A few years ago, one of Maytag Corp.’s media relations folks sent us a bobblehead figurine of Ol’ Lonely, the fabled Maytag repairman who was the Newton-based manufacturer’s symbol of dependability for more than 25 years, hoping we’d write wonderful things about the company. After Whirlpool Corp. announced last week it would close Maytag’s flag Newton plant and two others in Arkansas and Illinois acquiired in the Maytag buyout, we lay the statuette on its back in somber tribute – for the Newton workers who will lose their jobs, and also for a disappearing sector of the U.S. economy.

The announcement wasn’t a surprise, but confirmation that Newton would be facing the same reality that countless other Midwest communities heavily dependent on a single manufacturer have confronted. U.S. manufacturing jobs are becoming dinosaurs. In the last two years, about 2.5 million factory jobs have been lost in the country, including about 16,000 in Iowa.

Maytag’s closing in Newton is a painful reminder that manufacturers that don’t change their processes, and even their products, face extinction. But even with sophisticated automation that leads to greater efficiency, manufacturing is dying out in this country as production is shifted to cheaper foreign labor markets.

The impending plant closure is a reminder, too, of the dangers of becoming a one-company town. Maytag’s high wages perhaps intimidated and stopped other potential big employers from investing in Newton. Luring another big employer from outside Iowa to occupy the soon-to-be-vacant facility is one strategy, but unrealistic. Better results can be gained by nurturing homegrown start-ups, encouraging expansion of existing businesses and looking at new sectors for economic growth.

Recognizing the instability of a one-company town, Newton economic development officials knew Ol’ Lonely’s head was bobbling even before he was laid out in the parlor. They’ve worked hard to diversify the community’s economic base, and that, along with a half-hour commute to Des Moines, where the economy is booming, leaves Newton better poised for recovery than most manufacturing towns.