Interesting Facts About Syracuse, New York

Syracuse, New York was my home for many years and I would love for other people to know the history that surrounds this central New York city.

In 1570 Chief Hiawatha of the Onondaga Indians chose Syracuse as the site for the Iroquois Confederacy.

A Jesuit Novitiate, Simon LeMoyne (1604 – 1697) became proficient in the Indian languages of Algonquin, Iroquois and Huron. He made his way from New France (Quebec) and eventually met with the council of the Iroquois in 1654 and established a settlement on the shores of Onondaga Lake referred to as Fort Ste. Marie de Gannentaha. It is here where Father LeMoyne discovered the salt springs from Onondage Lake and he proclaimed it as natural as the salt that came from the sea. Later, Syracuse was referred to as Salt City.

1817 is when the New York State Commission established the Erie Canal. This massive undertaking went from Albany, through Syracuse and all the way to Buffalo, New York and it involved digging a canal 4 ft. deep and 40 ft. wide. In order to allow boats of any size to pass through the canal system, they also built stone locks 15 ft. deep and 90 ft. wide. Soon there were more canals from Syracuse to Oswego, from the Hudson River to Lake Champlain and from Montezuma to Cayuga and Seneca Lakes.

The first railroad station was erected in the heart of Syracuse in 1839.

In 1860 there were over 4 million slaves living in the United States, yet 1,500 slaves traveled north seeking freedom through what is called “The Underground Railroad”. Even though there was the Fugitive Slave Act in place, which basically made it mandatory that federal officials assist in the capture and return of slaves to the slave catchers, by the mid 1850’s it was widely known these slave catchers were not welcome in Syracuse.

A Bishop in the Methodist-Episcopal Church, Jesse Truesdell Peck (1811-1883) became the first president of Syracuse University’s Board of Trustees when he, along with three others donated $25,000.00 to found the university.

WW1 aviator and mayor of Syracuse Charles Hanna established the first airport in 1927 with grass runways. By 1928 the city was already receiving airmail. 

Carrier Corporation, builder of commercial air conditioning (HVAC), heating and ventilation systems hired the first female air conditioning engineer, Margaret Ingels in 1917. In keeping with ties to the local community, Carrier donated $2.75 million for the name, with New York State kicking in $15 million, along with other donors that built the Carrier Dome for Syracuse University football and basketball in 1980 for a total cost of $27 million.

Even though Syracuse, New York’s annual snowfall amounts to 115.6 inches per year I can’t think of a better place to have lived or to have been from.