The town's growth slowed and eventually declined, due to the rapid deforestation and subsequent scarcity of the timber that drove Hermansville's economy. Starting in the 1920s the IXL Company began selling off the individual dwellings and parcels of land on the village property - mostly to the employees who inhabited them. The village population dropped significantly, and most of the small businesses which catered to local people were eventually closed. By the end of World War II the village's homes were all privately owned, and the IXL Company ceased all operations in Meyer Township by the end of the 1960s. The village of Hermansville now serves as the Township seat.