Support independent writing by and for the Rust Belt. Become a member today. »
POINTS NORTH
Rock Rehab
Rock hunting holds a special place in Joyce Fetrow’s heart. Years ago, she battled alcoholism that drove her to some dark places. Now, Joyce dedicates her life to helping others find recovery, and says rocks remind her of that journey and inspire her to keep on track with her sobriety.
Rock Rehab
Rock hunting holds a special place in Joyce Fetrow’s heart. Years ago, she battled alcoholism that drove her to some dark places. Now, Joyce dedicates her life to helping others find recovery, and says rocks remind her of that journey and inspire her to keep on track with her sobriety.
FEATURE
PA Fails to Buffer Homes from Fracking
A Pennsylvania bill that would limit fracking near homes and schools was shelved this summer right before a scheduled committee vote. In a small town in shale country, accounts of misery and discord show the stakes.
PA Fails to Buffer Homes from Fracking
A Pennsylvania bill that would limit fracking near homes and schools was shelved this summer right before a scheduled committee vote. In a small town in shale country, accounts of misery and discord show the stakes.
Independent, context-driven regional writing. Support Belt Magazine today. »
More Stories
Fighting to Get Home
Frank Green ran away from Carlisle Indian Industrial School in 1898, headed to the Oneida homeland in Wisconsin. In 2022 he finally arrived.
Death in Custody
We now know some of their names and how they died. Oscar Grant. Eric Garner. Michael Brown. Laquan McDonald. Tamir Rice. Walter Scott. Freddie Gray. Sandra Bland. Alton Sterling. Philando Castile. Stephon Clark. Atatiana Jefferson. Breonna Taylor. Daniel Prude. Antwon Rose II. Rayshard Brooks. Andre Hill. Daunte Wright.
Paradise Lost in Pittsburgh
To walk through Frick Park – at least for me – is a pilgrimage into Milton's Paradise Lost, read not in words, lines, and stanzas, but rather rocks, trees, and water.
Maxo Vanka’s Radical Gaze
If a focus on workers tied Vanka with New Deal artists, he diverged by drawing on Catholic spirituality and forcefully critiquing capitalism.
The Complexities of Jewish Identity
She made a choice in life, and I respect her right to choose to practice (or not practice) a religion that best suits her beliefs. That doesn’t mean I think a pastor should be speaking from a synagogue pulpit on Shabbat.
Making it Harder to Get Health Care in WV Prisons
In a last-minute special session, the GOP-led legislature rushed through a law denying care that corrections officials don’t deem “medically necessary.”
The Heart of It All
Set in a failing small town in central Ohio, this excerpt from Christian Kiefer's new novel from Melville House The Heart of It All asks how one manages, in an America of increasing division, to find a sense of family and community. Available September 12, 2023.
Fly-Fishing in Michigan
Today, in easier times than those of the explorers on a religious mission and timber men in search of their fortunes, the Pere Marquette is spoken of in hushed tones by those who pursue fly-fishing for sport and amusement, rather than a necessary search for food.
St. Louis Brick by Brick
To understand the history of St. Louis’s bricks is to unearth systems of power, economy, dispossession, decline, and manifest destiny; the storybook decorative brickwork we see today becomes a tale as complex—and as sinister—as American history itself.
The Accident that Changed a City
And so, it dawned on me - Pittsburgh is a city of very hard stops.
The Stone Skipping Philosopher
Kurt Steiner holds the world record for stone skipping. He does it because it makes him happy. And because he says it’s key to escaping digital self-saturation.
Get the latest stories from around the region sent straight to your inbox.
From the Archives
Producing Meaningful Asian American Stories in Minneapolis
The Minneapolis theatres exploring Asian American life in the Midwest, one scene at a time.
Finding Hope in Wicker Park’s Mexican Community
Coronavirus has devastated Latino communities in Illinois. But in Chicago’s Wicker Park neighborhood, one family is working and hoping for a better tomorrow.
Recipe: Rudy’s Humble Paczki
A Fat Tuesday tradition.
Recipe: Slovenian Sauerkraut Soup (Jota)
Feeding the holiday spirit.
Get the latest stories from around the region sent straight to your inbox.
Support independent, context-driven regional writing.