Most Affluent US Cities in 1949

[SC Maintenance]

As posted by Cem Karson on X.

Nothing lasts forever folks. Obviously NYC and DC continue to thrive, I think most of the others have fallen from grace.

I know some old timers that grew up in Detroit. They tell me it was the shining city on the hill the entire world looked to in the 50's. The Silicon Valley of there time if you will.

 

[dadto2]

Well this is thought provoking. That Median income for 1950 Buffalo NY of $3067 is equal to $42,648.23 in 2026 dollars. The 2026 median income for Buffalo NY is $74,258. I wonder if the quality of life today feels 174% of 1950 in Buffalo?

 

[JunkdrawerDog]

Lots of once great manufacturing centers up on the lakes.

 

[PontiacHO]

Southern and Appalachian folks left for Detroit for work after WWII. Then cities in Ohio etc. that supported the auto industry.

 

[Pew]

The amazing lesson we can learn from the changes the cities have gone through between them and now (in our current lifetime) is the rise and fall of industrial units and the subsequent decline neighborhoods built around them. Chicago used to be the beef processing capital of the world and a large steel and gas manufacturing industry. Nowadays many neighborhoods built around those factories are nearly dead like Chicago Heights (Ford plant), Armour neighborhood (Armour meat packing facility featuring work credits instead of regular wage), and various manufactured gas plants (which are now superfund sites.)

 

[Pablo]

They all tried change.

There are other ways to measure I see. Number of millionaires, GDP, number of poor, quality of life...........

The definition of affluent and affluence seems to be only slightly more than one being a noun and the other an adjective.

 

[Zee09]

@SC Maintenance did say "old timers" nice...

He was mistaken about affluence and the reason why it goes away.
When Pablo leaves an area so does the affluence...

 

[Pablo]

@SC Maintenance did say "old timers" nice...

He was mistaken about affluence and the reason why it goes away.
When Pablo leaves an area so does the affluence...

So despite Amsoil, septic blow outs, rocks, bad music, and large attacks I'm a decent neighbor?

Thanks!

 

[Zee09]

So despite Amsoil, septic blow outs, rocks, bad music, and large attacks I'm a decent neighbor?

Thanks!

Where was that said

 

[Pablo]

Where was that said

Affluence is good!

 

[Pablo]

So far without trying I know for a hard fact I am not in the top five and I highly doubt top ten most affluent BITOG members

 

[Pew]

So far without trying I know for a hard fact I am not in the top five and I highly doubt top ten most affluent BITOG members

You're gonna need a bigger property to stash your almost-52k reaction score. It's leaking into your neighbor's lawn!

 

[SC Maintenance]

They all tried change.

There are other ways to measure I see. Number of millionaires, GDP, number of poor, quality of life...........

The definition of affluent and affluence seems to be only slightly more than one being a noun and the other an adjective.

Well maybe, but Monaco is the richest place on earth but most did not make there money there.

Sullivan's island is the richest zip code here and one of the richest in America but most of that money was made 100+ years ago.

Maybe Affluence is simply the wrong word?

 

[Zee09]

So far without trying I know for a hard fact I am not in the top five and I highly doubt top ten most affluent BITOG members

Always a braggart

 

[Pablo]

Well maybe, but Monaco is the richest place on earth but most did not make there money there.

Sullivan's island is the richest zip code here and one of the richest in America but most of that money was made 100+ years ago.

Maybe Affluence is simply the wrong word?

People always worry about something. It’s the amount of worry that can differentiate. If affluence can lower worry then I suppose it’s fine. But most people never have enough and I’m certainly not immune. My stress is less and spread to silly things like keeping the little dog from eating too many cherries or did I charge all tool batteries for the next trip.

Affluence is a personal help in this way; I think back to the times when the company was downsizing and the girls were just small. Wow was I stressed then. But even then we had saved enough, had other sources of income and had a new job starting under 60 days.

I’m rambling a bit…seems like most posters here are not just lucky.

 

[SC Maintenance]

People always worry about something. It’s the amount of worry that can differentiate. If affluence can lower worry then I suppose it’s fine. But most people never have enough and I’m certainly not immune. My stress is less and spread to silly things like keeping the little dog from eating too many cherries or did I charge all tool batteries for the next trip.

Affluence is a personal help in this way; I think back to the times when the company was downsizing and the girls were just small. Wow was I stressed then. But even then we had saved enough, had other sources of income and had a new job starting under 60 days.

I’m rambling a bit…seems like most posters here are not just lucky.

I imagine its wired in our DNA to be ever vigilant / worried. Except there are no saber tooth tigers anymore so we find other things.

I don't think that is the point of the chart.

 

[fdcg27]

This is fascinating and maybe a cautionary tale for those in certain industries in certain zip codes.
The heavy industry that drove the prosperity of most of those metros is still around.
It just moved to other places, often other nations.

 

[Pablo]

I imagine its wired in our DNA to be ever vigilant / worried. Except there are no saber tooth tigers anymore so we find other things.

I don't think that is the point of the chart.

This is fascinating and maybe a cautionary tale for those in certain industries in certain zip codes.
The heavy industry that drove the prosperity of most of those metros is still around.
It just moved to other places, often other nations.

I was pointing out the shift at a micro/personal level.

https://pnwdaily.com/2026/07/02/bellingham-alpha-technologies-75-jobs-layoffs/

I was hired here in 2000. It really started it's slide in 2005, and was accelerated by the changes in tax structures. WA used to be friendly to industry/manufacturing.

 

[fdcg27]

Well maybe, but Monaco is the richest place on earth but most did not make there money there.

Sullivan's island is the richest zip code here and one of the richest in America but most of that money was made 100+ years ago.

Maybe Affluence is simply the wrong word?

The truth is that we really don't know.
We know the marquee names and those insecure enough to brag, but we know nothing beyond that.
Among the ten richest persons in the world are probably some Russian oligarchs we've never heard of who are barely known outside the Kremlin kleptocracy.
Certainly some Chinese operators, especially in property.
Maybe some Colombian drug lords as well and maybe among those who control illegal gold and diamond mining operations.

 

[Pablo]

The truth is that we really don't know.
We know the marquee names and those insecure enough to brag, but we know nothing beyond that.
Among the ten richest persons in the world are probably some Russian oligarchs we've never heard of who are barely known outside the Kremlin kleptocracy.
Certainly some Chinese operators, especially in property.
Maybe some Colombian drug lords as well and maybe among those who control illegal gold and diamond mining operations.

Waiting for the name Pablo to be flung about.