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‘Too many old people’: A rural Pa. town reckons with population loss (1 Viewer)

zincwarrior

zincwarrior

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I think is a core underlying issue for politics and culture now.

SHEFFIELD, Pa. — Lee Goldthwaite might have the most stable job in this remote corner of northwestern Pennsylvania.
The caretaker of Sheffield Cemetery is busier than ever directing crews clearing trees to make space for more graves as deaths dramatically outpace births here and in other vast stretches of rural America. Each time he buries a newly deceased resident he wonders how the town that once drew scores of young families will survive.

“We already lost our bank,” Goldthwaite said as he took a break from trimming the grass around headstones. “We lost our liquor store, and we may be about to lose our high school.”
 
zincwarrior said:
I think is a core underlying issue for politics and culture now.

SHEFFIELD, Pa. — Lee Goldthwaite might have the most stable job in this remote corner of northwestern Pennsylvania.
The caretaker of Sheffield Cemetery is busier than ever directing crews clearing trees to make space for more graves as deaths dramatically outpace births here and in other vast stretches of rural America. Each time he buries a newly deceased resident he wonders how the town that once drew scores of young families will survive.

“We already lost our bank,” Goldthwaite said as he took a break from trimming the grass around headstones. “We lost our liquor store, and we may be about to lose our high school.”
Click to expand...
Uplifting story. /s Is this a general dump on America post, or do you have a political point?
 
"As the presidential election approaches, many residents in this deeply Republican town say they view Trump as having a better vision for salvaging rural America, even though Biden has steered billions of dollars to initiatives that support rural America."

They prefer "vision" over practical assistance.
 
Stupid use of land, burn’em!
 
Donatello said:
Uplifting story. /s Is this a general dump on America post, or do you have a political point?
Click to expand...
America is great. This exemplifies all the wacky "replacement" theories. We saw it real time with the inlaws community in East Texas. Even the retirement homes are starting to shut down.
 
When people of childbearing age find their reproductive rights stripped, when they can't afford a house to raise a family, when their job's benefits don't cover family leave or do so at the bare minimum, when our society practically seems designed to disincentivize having children, they will get the message.
 
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zincwarrior said:
I think is a core underlying issue for politics and culture now.

SHEFFIELD, Pa. — Lee Goldthwaite might have the most stable job in this remote corner of northwestern Pennsylvania.
The caretaker of Sheffield Cemetery is busier than ever directing crews clearing trees to make space for more graves as deaths dramatically outpace births here and in other vast stretches of rural America. Each time he buries a newly deceased resident he wonders how the town that once drew scores of young families will survive.

“We already lost our bank,” Goldthwaite said as he took a break from trimming the grass around headstones. “We lost our liquor store, and we may be about to lose our high school.”
Click to expand...

“Why can’t we get young people to live in our town?”, asks out of touch Boomers who turned their towns into conservative hellholes left-leaning young people don’t want to live in.
 
j brown's body said:
"As the presidential election approaches, many residents in this deeply Republican town say they view Trump as having a better vision for salvaging rural America, even though Biden has steered billions of dollars to initiatives that support rural America."

They prefer "vision" over practical assistance.
Click to expand...

Because they are convinced their problems are those damn brown people and not for instance corporations increasingly dominating the rural parts of America.
 
Donatello said:
Uplifting story. /s Is this a general dump on America post, or do you have a political point?
Click to expand...
More lift for you, all across tRump's Oklahoma small towns are losing everything from pharmacies to schools, hospital/clinics, even ambulance services. Quite a few towns have lost their law enforcement, and the sheriff dept has to cover.... :unsure:
Make America Great Again.... ✌️
 
notquiteright said:
More lift for you, all across tRump's Oklahoma small towns are losing everything from pharmacies to schools, hospital/clinics, even ambulance services. Quite a few towns have lost their law enforcement, and the sheriff dept has to cover.... :unsure:
Make America Great Again.... ✌️
Click to expand...

It’s almost as if making basic necessary services dependent on capitalist companies that will pull out if they can’t make maximized profits is a bad idea.
 
Questerr said:
It’s almost as if making basic necessary services dependent on capitalist companies that will pull out if they can’t make maximized profits is a bad idea.
Click to expand...
Who'da thunk it???
Why it's a great idea to turn basic social services over to organizations which demand ever increasing profits.... :rolleyes:
Cost+ profit is so much better than Cost... ✌️
 
Cities and towns in Rural America depend on an industry to survive. It can be farming, ranching, logging, railroad, etc. When the industry goes the town goes along with it.
 
zincwarrior said:
I think is a core underlying issue for politics and culture now.

SHEFFIELD, Pa. — Lee Goldthwaite might have the most stable job in this remote corner of northwestern Pennsylvania.
The caretaker of Sheffield Cemetery is busier than ever directing crews clearing trees to make space for more graves as deaths dramatically outpace births here and in other vast stretches of rural America. Each time he buries a newly deceased resident he wonders how the town that once drew scores of young families will survive.

“We already lost our bank,” Goldthwaite said as he took a break from trimming the grass around headstones. “We lost our liquor store, and we may be about to lose our high school.”
Click to expand...

To be fair, Sheffield is MINIMUM SIXTY MILES from even the smallest city of 50 thousand population and with a population of 1100 and only two industries (a campground and a tiny winery) there's literally nothing to do and no work to be had.
I'm sorry but it doesn't really sound as political as one might be inclined to think.
Small towns with nothing to hold them together go bust all the time and always have.

Joe & Nic's Road Trip
We are traveling the USA by road. We are documenting towns & cities across the USA, mostly visiting the downtowns and the neighborhoods surrounding those downtowns. We're there to see the unique architecture, walkability, artwork, unique stores and restaurants. We will be visiting every state in the U.S.! Come along with us for the ride!!
 
dmpi said:
Cities and towns in Rural America depend on an industry to survive. It can be farming, ranching, logging, railroad, etc. When the industry goes the town goes along with it.
Click to expand...

And all of those are becoming increasingly automated and dominated by corporations.
 
Questerr said:
And all of those are becoming increasingly automated and dominated by corporations.
Click to expand...
When I started work in the mid 80s we had several engineer new-hires from very small rural towns. Their stories of growing up in a tiny town were quite interesting. They told me that the primary goal of just about every young person there was to get out of town and get yourself into a major city that has jobs and a growing economy. The only people who stay are the ones that have families that own the farms and industries or the kids than are so dumb or lazy they can't figure out how to get out. These very kids become the town's cop and mayor.
 
Some of these small towns suffered environmental disasters, a few natural ones but most manmade.
Here's Finland Minnesota, adjacent to Duluth...people even left their clothing, dishes and CARS when they fled.

 
dmpi said:
Cities and towns in Rural America depend on an industry to survive. It can be farming, ranching, logging, railroad, etc. When the industry goes the town goes along with it.
Click to expand...
Yes and No. Rural America depends on certain social/health services to survive. The 'industry' can simply be bedroom for larger more expensive towns. Many in Rural America live where they have always lived, for generations. They will commute far for work.
But when basics like schools, clinics, retirement centers (a 'big' industry in many small Oklahoma towns) depart what's left but a few families. The many 'dying' small towns across Oklahoma don't have couldn't possibly attract industry.
Farming is still strong in many of these dying towns, it simply isn't that big a job source, and these towns are now losing all social services and things most suburban folks take for granted- grocery stores, auto repair, tires, gas, toilet paper, etc.
Rural Oklahoma depends on social services like any other place, the problem is for profit services aren't going to invest large sums for slim returns.... ✌️
 
dmpi said:
Cities and towns in Rural America depend on an industry to survive. It can be farming, ranching, logging, railroad, etc. When the industry goes the town goes along with it.
Click to expand...
Exactly. On the other side of the coin, the rural NV town of Winnemucca is preparing for unprecedented growth.

www.nevadaappeal.com

Winnemucca braces for massive lithium mine

Construction and earth moving have begun for a massive mining operation and processing plant for the largest-known deposit of lithium in the world.
www.nevadaappeal.com www.nevadaappeal.com
 
zincwarrior said:
I think is a core underlying issue for politics and culture now.

SHEFFIELD, Pa. — Lee Goldthwaite might have the most stable job in this remote corner of northwestern Pennsylvania.
The caretaker of Sheffield Cemetery is busier than ever directing crews clearing trees to make space for more graves as deaths dramatically outpace births here and in other vast stretches of rural America. Each time he buries a newly deceased resident he wonders how the town that once drew scores of young families will survive.

“We already lost our bank,” Goldthwaite said as he took a break from trimming the grass around headstones. “We lost our liquor store, and we may be about to lose our high school.”
Click to expand...

I remember reading an article a few years ago in National Geographic talking about the loss of young people in the rural American Midwest (somehow I can’t find it now on Google).

I remember reading specifically about how this was happening in rural Nebraska. The primary reason they gave for this was that young people are leaving for education and better economic opportunities in the cities (read “Democrat-run sh-t holes”).

What about the move from Blue state to red states conservatives are always touting? It’s due to the iron law of supply and demand: the larger cities have become prohibitively expensive because the demand is so high. People have to move to more affordable, therefore less desirable, places like the red states. But almost always, go to the big cities and their suburbs, not remote rural areas.

Here is one article looking at the possible reasons:

“Population decline is a problem for many rural communities across the nation. The Fifth District states of Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia are not immune. The quest to understand the underlying reasons for the changes in the rural population has led to a body of research that looks at the factors behind locational choices of individuals and households and what factors attract people to rural areas.“
www.richmondfed.org

Rural Population Loss and Strategies for Recovery

Population decline has been a problem for many rural communities, including in the Fifth District. What are the current trends and potential strategies to address it?
www.richmondfed.org
 
j brown's body said:
"As the presidential election approaches, many residents in this deeply Republican town say they view Trump as having a better vision for salvaging rural America, even though Biden has steered billions of dollars to initiatives that support rural America."

They prefer "vision" over practical assistance.
Click to expand...
Yeah, that's pretty mind-blowing.
 
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