Since Chicago was named the 4th most miserable city in the U.S. by Forbes last week, and since Forbes seems to believe the nation’s misery is concentrated in the Upper Midwest -- six of the top 10 cities on the list are in Illinois or Michigan -- we thought we’d use statistics to find out what the most miserable city in the region is. We looked at the populations in 1950 -- when most Midwestern cities peaked -- and compared them to the populations in 2010, to determine which place people have been fleeing fastest.
The answer is Youngstown, Ohio, which has lost 61 percent of its residents since 1950. Detroit, Cleveland, Buffalo and Pittsburgh all lost around 55 percent. Chicago lost only 27 percent. And Rockford, which was named the 3rd most miserable city, actually increased its population by 60 percent.
Chicago
1950: 3.6 million, Rank: 2
2010: 2.6 million, Rank: 3
Percent change: -27
Local
Detroit
1950: 1.8 million, Rank: 5
2010: 770,000, Rank: 18
Percent change: -55
Cleveland
1950: 914,000, Rank: 7
2010: 396,000, Rank: 47
Percent change: -57
Buffalo
1950: 580,000, Rank: 15
2010: 261,000, Rank: 72
Percent change: -55
Pittsburgh
1950: 676,000, Rank: 12
2010: 305,000, Rank: 61
Percent change: -55
Milwaukee
1950: 637,000, Rank: 13
2010: 594,000, Rank: 28
Percent change: -6
St. Louis
1950: 856,000, Rank: 8
2010: 316,000, Rank: 58
Percent change: -63
Minneapolis
1950: 521,000, Rank: 17
2010: 382,000, Rank: 48
Percent change: -27
Rockford
1950: 92,000, Rank: off the charts
2010: 152,000, Rank: off the charts
Percent change: +60
Gary
1950: 133,000, Rank: 71
2010: 81,000, Rank: off the charts
Percent change: -38
Flint
1950: 163,000, Rank: 60
2010: 102,000, Rank: off the charts
Percent change: -37
Youngstown
1950: 168,000, Rank: 57
2010: 66,000, Rank: off the charts
Percent change: -61
