The great recession that began in 2008 exasperated a decline that had already began in many major American cities. Once the American economy began trading factory manufacturing for services many once mighty U.S. cities have struggled to maintain their population and their tax base. Once their populations began to leave property values plummeted and cities that once had been powerful economic centers have become dying towns.

Cleveland was once not only a huge center for manufacturing and an important trading porting on Lake Erie. Cleveland was home to once powerful industries that no longer exist. Peerless, People’s and Winton have left as have thousands of Cleveland residents. The Midwest headquarters for Standard Oil once had a population that was close to one million. The number of people that call Cleveland home now sits at less than 450,000, and that figure continues to fall. Cleveland lost almost 10 percent of its population in the last decade. Nearly 20 percent of the homes in Cleveland are now vacant. Pollution and municipal government issues caused Cleveland to earn the nickname “the mistake on the lake” in the 1970s. Now Cleveland is a city that just hopes to hold on to the population it still has. Even the city’s most famous resident left Cleveland for greener pastures. LeBron James decided to take his talents to South Beach, which caused another blow in pride to a once proud city.

Cleveland was once one of the largest cities in the United States. Its decline is a lesson that even the most powerful economic areas can fall out of favor. While the reasons for Cleveland’s decline are easy to track, but finding a solution to reverse the trend is more difficult. Without residents to help Cleveland rebuild provide the services for a healthy community are nearly impossible to provide.