Smoke on the Cuyahoga: Prosperity to Problem

Description

The story of the Cuyahoga River in the second half of the twentieth century is one of both economic prosperity and environmental decline. This time period begins with great industrial productivity in the Cuyahoga River Valley based on two companies, Standard Oil (Sohio) and Republic Steel. These two companies were symbols of industrial power in the United States that altered the landscape of the Cuyahoga River forever. This same story and timeline has an inverse relationship with the water and air quality of the same geographic region. During the fifties and sixties the river was essentially dead and the air was choking. It wasn't until TIME Magazine published an article about the river fire that actions were taken to improve the environmental quality of the region.

TO THE USER: Examine the inverse relationship between industrial prosperity and environmental decline as you look at the images in the exhibit. What evidence do you see (or not see) of BOTH economic prosperity and environmental decline?

Credits

Adam McElwain and Shannon Conley-Kurjian

Sections

Sohio: Prosperity

Sohio's industrial development on the Cuyahoga River reached its economic heyday in the 1950s. Sohio was the backbone of American energy. It fueled the cars that Detroit produced and American industry and capitalism.

Republic Steel: Prosperity

Republic Steel was the number 3 steel producer in the United States in the 1950s. Republic Steel grew on the Cuyahoga because of the river's location and proximity between iron ore, coal and limestone. The crooked river provided the means of manufacturing and industrial production in the United States.

Industrial Air Pollution: Problem

In 1970 President Nixon established the Envirnomental Protection Agency. This organization gave federal regulation rights to maintain the quality of the air, water, and land. This had implications upon major industries in Cleveland especially Republic Steel and Sohio as their smoke stacks billowed with thick black air pollution.

Water Pollution: Problem

Throughout the 20th century industrialism, the Cuyahoga River caught fire primarily due to industrial chemical waste dumping into the river. The most famous fire happend without meida witnesses in 1969 however the most photgraphed fire caught in November 1952. These fires gained national attention in Time Magazine's June 1969 . These fires gave birth to modern Environmental Movement of the 1970s.