126 Fun Facts About Syracuse

What nickname did Syracuse earn from its 19th-century brine-spring industry?

Syracuse earned the name The Salt City from the brine springs around Onondaga Lake, whose salt water was boiled and sun-evaporated into salt that supplied much of the young nation.

The city was named in 1820 after a Greek-founded city on which Mediterranean island?

Sicily: the 1820 name was chosen after a poetic description of Siracusa, a city like this one with salt springs beside fresh water; the village became a city in 1848.

Which famous mathematician was born in the original Syracuse and died during its Roman siege in 212 BC?

Archimedes, born in Syracuse about 287 BC, designed the war machines that defended the city; a Roman soldier killed him when the legions finally broke in during 212 BC.

Colonists from which Greek city founded the original Syracuse in 733 BC?

Corinth: its settlers under Archias founded the colony in 733 BC, displacing the native Sicels; it grew into the most powerful Greek city in the west.

Which two interstates intersect in Syracuse?

I-81 and I-90 (the New York State Thruway) cross on Syracuse's north side; I-81 runs north–south from Tennessee to the Canadian border at the Thousand Islands.

Destiny USA, in Syracuse's Lakefront neighbourhood, holds what distinction?

Destiny USA is the largest shopping mall in New York State, with about 2.4 million square feet of retail space after a 2012 expansion added a new wing.

What was Destiny USA called when it opened in 1990?

Carousel Center: the mall opened in October 1990 on a former scrap yard beside Onondaga Lake, named for the restored 1909 carousel inside; it was rebranded Destiny USA in 2012.

Which two sources combine to give Syracuse about 115 inches of snow a year, the most of any US metro?

Lake Ontario lake-effect and Atlantic nor'easters: Ontario lies about 35 miles northwest and rarely freezes over, so cold northwest winds pick up moisture all winter, while coastal storms add heavy synoptic snow.

What is the annual prize for the snowiest large city in Upstate New York, usually won by Syracuse?

The Golden Snowball is awarded each winter to whichever of Syracuse, Rochester, Buffalo, Binghamton and Albany records the most snowfall; Syracuse has won it far more often than any rival.

What is unusual about the traffic light on Tipperary Hill?

The green is on top: in the 1920s Irish-American youths kept smashing the 'British red' lens mounted above the 'Irish green', and the city finally hung the light upside down.

What is secretly painted on the road under the Tipperary Hill light on St Patrick's Eve?

A shamrock: every year shortly before St Patrick's Day an anonymous painter marks one on the pavement beneath the upside-down light at Tompkins Street and Milton Avenue.

Salt potatoes, the Syracuse summer staple, were originally the daily lunch of which labourers?

Irish brine-vat crews: 19th-century salt workers boiled their lunch of small unpeeled potatoes in the brine, and the salty crust keeps the inside creamy; they are sold bagged with a pouch of salt.

Which barbecue-and-blues chain opened its first restaurant on Willow Street in downtown Syracuse in 1988?

Dinosaur Bar-B-Que began in 1983 as a mobile rig serving biker rallies, settled at 246 West Willow Street in 1988, and later opened in Rochester, Harlem and beyond.

The nation whose homeland surrounds Syracuse holds what role in the Haudenosaunee Confederacy?

The Onondaga are Keepers of the Fire: the Grand Council of the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy meets on Onondaga territory, the central of the original five nations between the Mohawk and Seneca.

What dubious title did the body of water beside Destiny USA hold after decades of chemical dumping?

Onondaga Lake was called the most polluted lake in the nation after a century of industrial waste and sewage; dredging and capping of the lakebed finished in 2017.

Which Syracuse car maker, active 1902-1934, was famous for air-cooled engines?

Franklin built only air-cooled cars in Syracuse from 1902 to 1934; Herbert H. Franklin's company favoured light aluminium construction, and Depression-era luxury sales collapsed before it could recover.

Syracuse China, which closed in 2009, began in 1871 under what name?

The Onondaga Pottery Company, founded in 1871, adopted the Syracuse China name in 1966; its durable vitreous china filled hotels, restaurants and railroad dining cars before the plant closed in 2009.

Which air-conditioning company was long headquartered in Syracuse and had a stadium named after it?

It sponsored the Carrier Dome from 1980 until 2022, when JMA Wireless took over the naming rights.

Which furniture maker's handmade empire was centred on Syracuse's Craftsman Workshops?

Gustav Stickley ran the Craftsman Workshops on Syracuse's east side in the early 1900s, turning out the plain oak Mission furniture that defined the American Arts and Crafts movement.

Which chip maker announced up to $100 billion of fabs in Syracuse's northern suburb of Clay in 2022?

Micron Technology announced in October 2022 a plan to invest up to $100 billion over 20 years in a memory-chip megafab complex in Clay, the largest private investment in New York's history.

Which NBA team began life as the Syracuse Nationals and won the 1955 title?

The 76ers: the Syracuse Nationals, NBA champions in 1955, played 17 seasons in the NBL and NBA before moving to Philadelphia in 1963 and taking the 76ers name.

In which year was Syracuse University founded?

Syracuse University was chartered on 24 March 1870, coeducational from the start, and opened classes in rented rooms downtown in 1871 before moving to its hilltop campus.

What is Syracuse University's mascot?

Otto the Orange: cheerleaders named the fuzzy orange Otto in 1990, rejecting 'Opie' because it rhymed with dopey, and the university later made him official.

What original Syracuse mascot grew out of a 1931 student-magazine hoax?

The Saltine Warrior: in 1931 the Syracusan magazine claimed the remains of an Onondaga chief, 'Big Chief Bill Orange', had been dug up on campus; the mascot lasted until 1978.

In which athletic conference did the Syracuse Orange compete in 2025-26?

The ACC: Syracuse joined the Atlantic Coast Conference in 2013 after 34 seasons in its previous league, and played there through the 2025-26 season.

Which famous television writer, later raised in Binghamton, was born in Syracuse in 1924?

Rod Serling, creator of The Twilight Zone, was born in Syracuse on 25 December 1924 and grew up in Binghamton, whose parks and small-town streets inspired several episodes.

What nickname did Syracuse's Dome earn soon after it opened in 1980?

The Loud House: the Dome's original air-supported Teflon-coated roof trapped and bounced crowd noise, making it notoriously deafening; a fixed roof replaced it in 2020.

The Dome, the largest on-campus basketball arena in the nation, seats about how many?

The Dome seats about 35,600 for basketball, the largest on-campus arena in the country, and Syracuse has regularly led NCAA men's basketball in home attendance.

Which venue stood on the Dome's site from 1907 until 1978?

Archbold Stadium, a concrete bowl modelled on the Colosseum, opened in 1907 and hosted Syracuse football until 1978, when it was demolished so the Dome could rise on the same site.

Which freshman led Syracuse to the 2003 NCAA basketball championship?

Freshman Carmelo Anthony scored 20 points with 10 rebounds in the 2003 final; the campus practice facility, the Carmelo K. Anthony Center, carries his name.

Whose last-second jump shot beat Syracuse 74-73 in the 1987 national final?

Keith Smart's baseline jumper in the closing seconds gave Indiana a 74-73 win over a Syracuse side featuring Rony Seikaly, Sherman Douglas and Derrick Coleman.

Which Brooklyn playground legend packed the Dome for Syracuse basketball in the mid-1980s?

Dwayne 'Pearl' Washington, nicknamed after Earl 'The Pearl' Monroe, arrived from Brooklyn's Boys and Girls High in 1983 and turned Dome crowds into sellouts with his playground flair.

How many Syracuse basketball wins did the NCAA vacate after the 2015 athletics scandal?

The NCAA vacated 101 Syracuse wins from the 2004-07 and 2010-12 seasons, stripping them from Jim Boeheim's official record; Louisville later had 123 vacated and Michigan 113.

The Syracuse coach's second Hall of Fame induction, in 2025, came as an assistant with which USA squad?

Jim Boeheim was an assistant to Mike Krzyzewski on the 2008 'Redeem Team' that won Olympic gold in Beijing; the team's 2025 Hall of Fame induction followed his individual enshrinement in 2005.

What was Syracuse halfback Ernie Davis's nickname?

The Elmira Express: the nickname came from a sportswriter in Elmira, where Davis starred at Elmira Free Academy; the 2008 biopic The Express, starring Rob Brown as Davis, took its title from it.

Syracuse football's only consensus national championship came in which season?

The 1959 team went 11-0 and beat Texas 23-14 in the Cotton Bowl on 1 January 1960, with sophomore Ernie Davis named the game's most valuable player.

Which coach led Syracuse football from 1949 to 1973 and developed Jim Brown, Ernie Davis and Larry Csonka?

Ben Schwartzwalder, a World War II paratrooper who jumped on D-Day, coached Syracuse from 1949 to 1973 and won a national title with Ernie Davis; Jim Brown and Larry Csonka were among his other stars.

Which running back, a 1956 All-American at Syracuse, is often called the greatest player in NFL history?

Jim Brown, from Manhasset on Long Island, finished fifth in the 1956 Heisman vote, then led the NFL in rushing in eight of his nine Cleveland seasons and retired in 1965.

How many Pro Football Hall of Famers had Syracuse produced after Dwight Freeney's 2024 induction?

Nine: Jim Brown, Jim Ringo, Larry Csonka, John Mackey, Al Davis, Art Monk, Floyd Little, Marvin Harrison and Dwight Freeney, whose 2024 induction made it nine.

Which US president graduated from Syracuse University's College of Law?

Joe Biden earned his law degree from Syracuse University's College of Law in 1968, then returned to Delaware and won a US Senate seat in 1972 at age 29.

Which president dedicated the Newhouse School in 1964, giving his 'Gulf of Tonkin' speech on its plaza?

Lyndon B. Johnson dedicated the Newhouse School on 5 August 1964 and used the ceremony to defend his Gulf of Tonkin response; the $15 million gift came from Advance Publications founder S.I. Newhouse Sr.

Which of these broadcasters is a Syracuse graduate?

Bob Costas graduated from Syracuse's Newhouse School in 1974 and went on to host NBC's Olympic coverage for 24 years; Marv Albert, Mike Tirico and Ian Eagle are fellow alumni.

Which West Wing creator and Oscar-winning screenwriter is a Syracuse alumnus?

Aaron Sorkin earned a BFA in musical theatre from Syracuse in 1983, created The West Wing and won the adapted-screenplay Oscar for The Social Network; Lou Reed, Vanessa Williams and Dick Clark are fellow alumni.

The Great New York State Fair, held in Syracuse, was first staged in which year?

1841: the first New York State Fair was held in Syracuse that September, making it the nation's oldest state fair; after rotating among cities it settled permanently in Syracuse in 1890.

What rare property do the two lakes at Green Lakes State Park near Syracuse share?

Their deep water never mixes with the surface: Green Lake and Round Lake in Fayetteville are meromictic, a rarity worldwide, leaving an oxygen-free bottom layer undisturbed for centuries.

The Everson Museum of Art, opened in 1968, was designed by which architect?

I. M. Pei designed the Everson, which opened in 1968 as four cantilevered concrete boxes around a central court; it was Pei's first museum and holds a major American ceramics collection.

Which downtown district has replaced South Salina Street as Syracuse's main dining and nightlife area?

Armory Square, named for the 19th-century armory on Jefferson Street, grew from warehouses and rail sheds into Syracuse's busiest restaurant and nightlife district in the 1990s.

What is Syracuse's major daily newspaper?

The Post-Standard, which traces its roots to 1829 and is produced by Advance Media New York, the company behind syracuse.com, is the city's paper of record.

Among New York's cities, where does Syracuse rank by population?

Fifth: only New York City, Buffalo, Rochester and Yonkers are larger; Syracuse counted about 148,600 residents in the 2020 census and is the largest city in Central New York.

Who proposed the name 'Syracuse' to fellow townsmen on February 4, 1820?

John Wilkinson, the village's first postmaster, suggested Syracuse after reading a poetic description of the ancient city's mingling salt and fresh water; the townsmen adopted it and the post office followed.

The village of Solvay commemorates the inventor of a process for making what?

Soda ash (sodium carbonate): Ernest Solvay's ammonia-soda process displaced the older Leblanc method, and the Solvay Process Company's 1884 plant gave the village west of Syracuse its name.

Which company later owned the chemical complex that grew from the Solvay plant?

Allied Signal: the Solvay Process Company merged into Allied Chemical in 1920, which became AlliedSignal in 1985 and closed the Solvay works in 1986; successor Honeywell later funded the lake cleanup.

What nickname did the Tipperary Hill youths who kept smashing the red traffic lamp earn?

Stonethrowers: the Irish-American youths who broke the 'British red' lens in the 1920s are honoured by the Stone Throwers' Park sculpture, dedicated in 1997 at Tompkins Street and Milton Avenue.

In which year was the famous upside-down Tipperary Hill traffic light installed?

1928: the city's standard light, installed in 1925, kept having its red lens smashed, so in 1928 Alderman John 'Huckle' Ryan had the signal rehung inverted.

Syracuse firm Crouse-Hinds was known for manufacturing what?

Crouse-Hinds, founded in Syracuse in 1897, built some of America's first electric traffic signals in the 1920s alongside its core explosion-proof electrical fittings; it became part of Cooper Industries in 1981.

Syracuse is the halfway point between New York City and which other city?

Toronto: by road Syracuse is about 250 miles from both New York City and Toronto, making it a common overnight stop between the two metropolises.

Which body of water, one of the cleanest in the country, is Syracuse's main water source?

Skaneateles Lake, about 20 miles southwest, has supplied Syracuse since 1894; the water is so clean it flows by gravity to the city unfiltered, with only chlorination, under a rare federal filtration waiver.

The Labor Day Storm of 1998, which felled 30,000 Syracuse trees, was what kind of storm?

A derecho, a fast-moving line of straight-line windstorms, struck on 7 September 1998 with gusts above 100 mph, toppling some 30,000 Syracuse trees and cutting power for days.

What is the most common street tree in Syracuse?

Norway maple, a hardy European import planted widely after Dutch elm disease, tops Syracuse's street-tree inventory; the sugar maple leads among all trees citywide.

How much snow fell in Syracuse's record 1992-93 season?

192.1 inches fell in the 1992-93 season, Syracuse's all-time record; January 2004 was the snowiest single month at 78.1 inches.

Roughly how much snow did the 1993 'Storm of the Century' dump on Syracuse in 48 hours?

43 inches: the blizzard of 13-14 March 1993 buried Syracuse under 42.9 inches, the city's record for a single storm, and shut down the airport and the Thruway.

Syracuse's population peaked at over 220,000 in which census year?

1950: the census counted 220,583 residents, Syracuse's all-time high; the city then shrank for six straight decades before the 2020 count showed its first decennial increase since.

Which ancestry group is the largest in Syracuse?

Italian: the North Side drew heavy Italian immigration in the early 1900s, and Italian was the most commonly reported ancestry in the 2000 census, ahead of Irish and German.

Which institution was Central New York's largest employer in the mid-2020s, with nearly 11,000 jobs?

SUNY Upstate Medical University, with its hospital and medical school on the hill beside Syracuse University, employed nearly 11,000 people in the mid-2020s, more than any other Central New York institution.

Which structure has been the tallest in Syracuse since the late 1920s?

The State Tower Building, a 22-storey Art Deco tower at South Warren and East Genesee streets, topped out in 1928 at about 315 feet and has never been surpassed in the city.

Which former village calls itself 'the village within the city'?

Eastwood, an independent village until Syracuse annexed it in 1926, adopted the motto 'the village within the city'; its retail strip runs along James Street.

Which Syracuse neighbourhood hosts a Street Cultural Fair each September?

Westcott, the student-and-artist quarter east of Syracuse University, has held the Westcott Street Cultural Fair each September since 1991, filling the street with music and food stalls.

Before Italians arrived, Syracuse's Little Italy was heavily populated by which immigrants?

German: Syracuse's North Side was the German quarter of the 19th century, with breweries and German churches, before Italian immigrants took over the North Salina Street area after 1900.

Which orchestra replaced the bankrupt Syracuse Symphony in 2013?

Symphoria, a musician-owned cooperative formed from the Syracuse Symphony's players, gave its first concerts in the 2012-13 season after the SSO, founded in 1961, filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in 2011.

Syracuse's MOST museum is devoted to what?

Science and technology: the Milton J. Rubenstein Museum of Science & Technology, housed in the old Jefferson Street armory, includes a planetarium and a domed IMAX-style theatre.

Burnet Park holds the Rosamond Gifford Zoo and which public facility dating to 1901?

Public golf course: Burnet Park's nine-hole course opened in 1901, among the oldest municipal courses in the United States; the park on Tipperary Hill also holds the Rosamond Gifford Zoo.

What is the two-mile holiday drive-through light show at the lakeside park called?

Lights on the Lake, a two-mile drive-through display along Onondaga Lake Parkway in Liverpool, has run every holiday season since 1990, with themed sections and a lit-up fantasy forest.

Nationals owner Danny Biasone is credited with introducing what to the NBA in 1954?

The 24-second shot clock, championed by Nationals owner Danny Biasone and adopted for the 1954-55 season, ended stalling; league scoring jumped about 14 points a game.

Which Hall of Famer made his pro debut for the Nationals and led them to their first winning record?

Dolph Schayes, a Hall of Famer from NYU, debuted with the Nationals in 1948-49, when the team went 40-23 for its first winning season; Al Cervi arrived as player-coach the same year.

Who was elected in 2017 as Syracuse's first independent mayor in over a century?

Ben Walsh, running without a major-party line, won the 2017 election to become the city's first independent mayor since Louis Will in 1913; he was re-elected in 2021.

Who was elected in 2009 as Syracuse's first female mayor?

Stephanie Miner, a Democrat and former city councillor, won the November 2009 election and took office in January 2010 as the first woman to lead Syracuse; she served two terms.

What is the student newspaper of Syracuse University and SUNY ESF called?

The Daily Orange, founded in 1903, is an independent student paper serving Syracuse University and SUNY ESF; it separated from the university in 1971.

What is the name of Syracuse's regional bus system?

Centro, run by the Central New York Regional Transportation Authority, operates Syracuse's buses from a downtown hub and also serves Auburn, Fulton, Oswego and Utica.

What was the short-lived Syracuse commuter rail service that ran from 1994 to 2007?

OnTrack ran a single route from the lakefront mall south past Syracuse University from 1994 until 2007, when low ridership ended the service.

What was I-81 through Syracuse known as when first built?

The Penn-Can Expressway, short for Pennsylvania–Canada, was the original name for I-81 through Syracuse in the late 1950s and 1960s; the Penn-Can Mall in Cicero took its name from the road.

The Community Grid project replaces the downtown I-81 viaduct with what?

A boulevard: the Community Grid plan tears down the elevated I-81 viaduct through downtown, replaces it with a street-level Business Loop boulevard, and shifts through traffic onto the I-481 loop.

Syracuse University was founded with roots in which church?

Methodist Episcopal: Methodist leaders founded the university by moving Genesee College from Lima, New York, to Syracuse; it became officially nonsectarian in 1920.

The memorial wall to the Pan Am Flight 103 victims stands in front of which campus building?

It was dedicated in April 1990.

What are the 35 seniors who receive scholarships in memory of the Lockerbie victims called?

One scholarship is awarded for each student lost.

In which year did Syracuse adopt orange as its official colour?

1890: students voted that year to drop the earlier rose pink and pea green and make orange the university's sole official colour.

Until 2004, Syracuse's men's teams were known by what name?

The Orangemen: in 2004 the university retired the Orangemen and Orangewomen names, and all teams became simply the Orange.

Which jersey number, worn by three College Football Hall of Famers, did Syracuse retire in 2005?

Floyd Little was the third of the great 44s after Brown and Davis.

Which three-time All-American Syracuse running back went sixth overall to Denver in 1967?

Floyd Little, a three-time All-American at Syracuse, went sixth overall to Denver in 1967, became 'The Franchise' for the Broncos and entered the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2010.

Which future Philadelphia Eagles quarterback starred for Syracuse in the 1990s?

Donovan McNabb quarterbacked Syracuse from 1995 to 1998, winning his conference's Offensive Player of the Year award three times, before the Eagles took him second overall in the 1999 draft.

In which small town west of Syracuse did coach Jim Boeheim grow up?

Lyons, the Wayne County seat about 50 miles west of Syracuse, where his father ran a funeral home; Boeheim arrived at Syracuse as a walk-on in 1962 and stayed for six decades.

Coach Boeheim's tenure ran from 1976 until which year?

2023: Jim Boeheim's 47 seasons as head coach ended in March 2023, with 1,015 official wins and five Final Four trips.

Which former Syracuse point guard succeeded Boeheim as head coach?

Adrian Autry, a Syracuse point guard from 1990 to 1994 and Boeheim's assistant from 2011, took over when Boeheim retired; Mike Hopkins had been the designated successor before leaving for Washington in 2017.

Which coach led Syracuse to its first Final Four in 1975?

Roy Danforth, head coach from 1968 to 1976, took Syracuse to the 1975 Final Four, where it lost in the semifinal; his assistant Jim Boeheim succeeded him the next year.

Syracuse was a founding member of which conference in 1979?

The Big East: Syracuse, Georgetown, St. John's, Providence, Seton Hall, Boston College and UConn formed the conference in 1979; Syracuse remained a member for 34 seasons.

Georgetown snapped a 57-game Syracuse home winning streak in the last game at which arena?

Manley Field House, Syracuse's home from 1962, closed with a 52-50 Georgetown win in February 1980, after which John Thompson declared 'Manley Field House is officially closed'.

Syracuse won its 2003 national title with an 81-78 win over which team?

Kansas: in the 2003 final in New Orleans, Gerry McNamara hit six first-half three-pointers and Hakim Warrick blocked a late three to seal Syracuse's 81-78 win over the Jayhawks.

Which team beat Syracuse 76-67 in the 1996 national final?

John Wallace led that Orange squad; Kentucky had nine future NBA players.

How many overtimes did Syracuse's 2009 conference tournament epic against UConn last?

Six overtimes: the 2009 conference quarterfinal ran 70 minutes of game time before Syracuse won 127-117 around 1:22 a.m. on 13 March; it was dubbed 'the game that wouldn't end'.

Which future Hall of Famer's arrival in the 1960s began the modern era of Syracuse basketball?

Dave Bing arrived in 1962 and left as a 1966 All-American, the first great star of the modern programme; he later served as mayor of Detroit from 2009 to 2013.

How many NCAA men's lacrosse titles had Syracuse officially won through the 2025 season?

Ten: official titles came in 1983, 1988, 1989, 1993, 1995, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2008 and 2009; the 1990 championship was vacated over eligibility violations.

In which year did the university officially recognise its orange mascot?

1995: after students rejected a wolf and a lion proposed by administrators, Chancellor Kenneth Shaw declared the Orange the official mascot in December 1995.

Under what nickname did Le Moyne College's teams move to NCAA Division I in 2023?

The Dolphins: Le Moyne, a Jesuit college on Syracuse's east side founded in 1946, moved its teams to Division I and the Northeast Conference in 2023.

Upstate Medical University traces its roots to the college where which woman earned her 1849 MD?

Elizabeth Blackwell graduated from Geneva Medical College in 1849, the first woman to earn a medical degree in the United States; the college moved to Syracuse in 1871 and became Upstate Medical University.

Before becoming the Mets, Syracuse's Triple-A club was long known by what name?

The Chiefs: Syracuse's Triple-A team carried the Chiefs name for most of its history from 1934, with a SkyChiefs interlude from 1997 to 2006, before becoming the Mets in 2019.

Which MLB club was Syracuse's Triple-A parent from 1978 to 2008?

The Toronto Blue Jays: Syracuse was Toronto's top farm club for 31 seasons from 1978 to 2008, then the Washington Nationals' from 2009 to 2018 before the Mets took over in 2019.

The Syracuse Crunch were the AHL affiliate of which NHL team in the 2025-26 season?

The Tampa Bay Lightning: the Crunch have been Tampa Bay's AHL affiliate since 2012; the franchise arrived from Hamilton, Ontario, in 1994 and plays at the downtown War Memorial arena.

How much butter goes into the State Fair's famous rotating sculpture?

800 pounds of butter, donated by the American Dairy Association North East, go into the sculpture, carved in a refrigerated display case in the Dairy Products Building and recycled into biofuel afterwards.

The State Fairgrounds sit in which town on the shore of Onondaga Lake?

Geddes: the 375-acre fairgrounds, branded the Empire Expo Center, lie in the town of Geddes on the lake's western shore, where the fair has been held permanently since 1890.

Salt potatoes gained popularity in 1904 at clambakes held where?

Hinerwadel's began selling salt potato kits in stores in 1981.

Which company shut the Syracuse China factory in 2009 after 138 years?

Libbey, the Toledo glassmaker that had bought Syracuse China in 1995, closed the Lyncourt factory in April 2009, ending 138 years of local production.

The Landmark on South Salina Street opened in 1928 under what name?

Loew's State Theatre: the Thomas Lamb movie palace opened in 1928 with an ornate Indo-Persian interior and was renamed the Landmark after a 1970s campaign saved it from demolition.

The Erie Canal Museum occupies which 1850 structure?

Canal boats were weighed there to assess tolls until 1883.

Which title, always held by an Onondaga chief, made him chief arbitrator of the Haudenosaunee?

Tadodaho: the original Tadodaho was the Onondaga chief whom Hiawatha and the Peacemaker won over when founding the league at Onondaga Lake; the name became the title of the Grand Council's presiding chief.

Why was fishing banned in Onondaga Lake in 1970?

Mercury contamination: a lakeside chlor-alkali plant discharged an estimated 165,000 pounds of mercury into Onondaga Lake between 1946 and 1970, and New York banned fishing that year; swimming had been banned since 1940.

Which developer built the lakefront mall that became Destiny USA?

The Pyramid Companies, the Syracuse-based developer run by Robert Congel, cleared oil tanks and scrap yards on the lakefront to build the mall, which opened in 1990.

The historic centre of the original Greek Syracuse sits on which island?

Ortygia, a small island joined to the mainland by bridges, holds the old city of Syracuse, the Fountain of Arethusa and a cathedral built into a Greek temple of Athena.

Which power launched a disastrous expedition against Greek Syracuse during the Peloponnesian War?

Athens: the expedition of 415-413 BC ended with the Athenian fleet destroyed in Syracuse's Great Harbour and thousands of prisoners worked to death in the city's stone quarries.

Which painter named the cave known as the Ear of Dionysius?

Caravaggio, visiting Syracuse in 1608 while on the run after a killing in Rome, gave the cave its name for its ear-like shape and remarkable acoustics; he painted the Burial of St Lucy there.

Which Roman orator called Syracuse 'the most beautiful and largest Greek city'?

Cicero, prosecuting the corrupt governor Verres in 70 BC, called Syracuse the largest and most beautiful of all Greek cities; Augustus later planted a Roman colony there to repopulate it.

Which Roman commander besieged Syracuse in 213-212 BC and ordered its famous inventor spared?

Marcellus: Marcus Claudius Marcellus took Syracuse in 212 BC after a two-year siege and had ordered the city's great inventor spared, but a soldier killed him anyway.

What device attributed to Syracuse's inventor supposedly hoisted Roman ships out of the sea?

The Claw: ancient accounts describe crane-like beams with grappling hooks that seized the prows of Roman galleys, lifted them and dropped them; legend also credits him with a burning mirror.

Which Greek playwright was among the famous guests hosted at the Syracusan court?

Aeschylus visited the court of the tyrant Hieron I in the 470s BC, staged his Persians there and wrote The Women of Aetna for Hieron's new city; Plato later visited too.

Syracuse's airport is named after Clarence E. Hancock, who held what office?

US Congressman: Clarence E. Hancock represented Syracuse in the House from 1927 to 1947; the airport in the town of Salina took his name when the city turned the former military field into a civilian airport.

Which of these is one of Syracuse's official sister cities?

Tampere, Finland, an industrial lake city much like Syracuse, is a long-standing sister city; others include Fuzhou in China, Hue in Vietnam, Taiz in Yemen and its namesake Siracusa in Italy.

Who was elected in November 2025 as Syracuse's first Black mayor?

Sharon Owens, the city's deputy mayor, won the November 2025 election and took office in January 2026 as Syracuse's first Black mayor and second woman in the job.

Why was the New York State Fair not held in Syracuse between 1942 and 1947?

The grounds were a military base: the US military took over the fairgrounds from 1942 to 1947 during and after the Second World War, so no fair was held for six years; 2020 was later skipped for COVID-19.