Dortmund became a ghost town.
 The devastating bombing raids of 12 March 1945 with 1,108 aircraft (748 Lancasters, 292 Halifaxes, 68 Mosquitos) destroyed 98% of buildings in the inner city center, and 4,851 tonnes of bombs were dropped on Dortmund city centre and the south of the city; this was a record for a single target in the whole of World War II
== Demographics ==Dortmund's population grew rapidly in the time of the 19th century industrialisation when coal mining and steel processing in the city began

