As part of our ongoing If Our Water Could Talk reporting, WBFO's Eileen Buckley spoke with author Edward McClelland. McClelland, who wrote Nothing But Blue Skies about the Great Lakes industrial past of Rust Belt cities like Buffalo, has been keeping a close watch on Buffalo's waterfront renaissance.
"I always call Buffalo 'the Mother of Rust Belt cities' because it was really the first city to rise to greatness on the Great Lakes and the first city to begin its decline in the 50's," said McClelland.
WBFO asked McClelland, 'If our water could talk -- what would it say?'
"It would say I want my people back. It would say I'm the reason Buffalo exists. You wouldn't be here if it weren't for the Niagara River and for Lake Erie," responded McClelland.