OCPL Local History & Genealogy

OCPL Local History & Genealogy The Onondaga County Public Library is one of the few public libraries in the country to maintain a large genealogical collection.

The department offers a rare and treasured view of the people, places and history of Syracuse and Onondaga County NY

Late April of 1966 found Randy Moreland putting the finishing touches on his Soap Box Derby entry for the July champions...
04/30/2026

Late April of 1966 found Randy Moreland putting the finishing touches on his Soap Box Derby entry for the July championship in Akron, Ohio. Randy was the 1965 winner of the local contest held on Geddes Street hill and sponsored by WHEN-TV and the Syracuse Jaycees. With Randy was Jaycee president John Estabrook. The Syracuse derby dates back to 1934 with the Syracuse Herald and area Chevrolet dealers as the original sponsors. Race venues moved over the years from East Fayette Street to South Crouse Ave, Schiller Park, Geddes Street and Burnet Park. Despite drawing crowds of 30,000 in its heyday, the local race had a 35-year hiatus before being revived in 2005. Derby racing was a family tradition for the Morelands, as Randy’s father Jack placed well in the 1935 Syracuse race, although with a very different car.

It was breezy, chilly late April Wednesday in 1974 when 69-year-old Karl Wallenda crossed State Street – on a wire some ...
04/23/2026

It was breezy, chilly late April Wednesday in 1974 when 69-year-old Karl Wallenda crossed State Street – on a wire some 80 feet above the pavement. The patriarch of the Flying Wallendas made the walk from the roof of the War Memorial to a crane parked in front of the Everson Museum to promote the Tigris Shrine Circus performance that afternoon. He paused his walk briefly midway to perform a headstand on the wire. Wallenda made several Syracuse appearances with the Tigris Shrine Circus, this being his last local performance. He passed away in 1978 following a fatal fall from a high wire in Puerto Rico.

A year after launching its residential drug rehabilitation facility in a two-family home on Westcott Street, Argosy Hous...
03/26/2026

A year after launching its residential drug rehabilitation facility in a two-family home on Westcott Street, Argosy House opened a storefront counseling and outpatient center in the Gridley Building in March 1971. Founded to address the needs of addicts following ‘detoxication’, Argosy House was one of the earliest local live-in facilities aimed at reforming addiction behavior. Challenged by funding, management and safety concerns, Argosy House closed in the mid-seventies.

On one of her many local appearances, Irish born singer and entertainer Carmel Quinn performed at the Hotel Syracuse bal...
03/16/2026

On one of her many local appearances, Irish born singer and entertainer Carmel Quinn performed at the Hotel Syracuse ballroom shortly before St. Patrick’s Day in 1972. This event benefited the American Cancer Society and Carmel briefly shared the microphone with event chairwoman Mrs. A. Andrew Shaffer. The red-haired singer was nursing a bad throat but pleased the afternoon crowd with renditions of “When Irish Eyes are Smiling” and “Look to the Rainbow” along with a few contemporary hits such as “Put Your Hand in the Hand of the Man who Stilled the Water.” Her ‘discovery’ on Arthur Godfrey’s Talent Scouts launched her American career. However, she became a frequent performer at many local venues over several decades, often headlining charity events. Mayor Lee Alexander confirmed her Syracuse popularity, declaring April 16 “Carmel Quinn Day” in 1978.

The small hours of an early Sunday morning in March 1971 marked the ‘last call’ at the Yates Hotel as the landmark close...
03/07/2026

The small hours of an early Sunday morning in March 1971 marked the ‘last call’ at the Yates Hotel as the landmark closed after nearly 80 years at the corner of Washington and Montgomery streets. The 200-room hotel, designed by Archimedes Russell, opened in 1892 and served as the unofficial ‘hub’ of Syracuse politics and civic affairs. With its location near city hall and the county courthouse, the Yates bar was the social meeting place for judges, lawyers and politicians, as well as newspaper and business men. The closing events were a two-day affair, with the All-Star Syracuse Parks and Recreation band directed by John Wilkie presenting an afternoon concert of selections from the hotel’s golden era. Managed by the Popp family for decades, the Yates closed a few years after the nearby Onondaga Hotel.

When beauty pageants of all stripes were popular, the Central New York Retail Bakers Association sponsored the area’s “L...
02/27/2026

When beauty pageants of all stripes were popular, the Central New York Retail Bakers Association sponsored the area’s “Little Miss Muffin Contest” in February 1961. A ‘baker’s dozen’ of area girls competed in the local event for a top prize of an expense-paid trip to Chicago and a chance at the national “Little Miss Muffin” crown. The Liverpool Bakery, the Butter Maid Bakery, Mondo’s Bakery and Harrison Bakery were the sponsors of the 1961 local contest, won by seven-year-old Michelle Shedd of Nedrow.

How many books will it take? Before there were loyalty cards and bonus points there were S&H Green Stamps. Shoppers re...
02/13/2026

How many books will it take? Before there were loyalty cards and bonus points there were S&H Green Stamps. Shoppers received stamps with each purchase at a variety of retailers to be saved in booklets and exchanged for merchandise found in S&H’s ‘Ideabook.’ Donald Chappell, Jr. and Green Stamp representative Freida DeCaire check out the latest Ideabook catalog in February 1968 as Chappell’s celebrated its tenth year as a Green Stamp redemption center at its downtown and Northern Lights locations. Booklets could also be exchanged for merchandise at a dedicated Green Stamp store in Eastwood on James Street. The 1960s were the heyday of retail trading stamps, with more trading stamps than postage stamps being distributed.

By January 1965, there was tangible progress towards tapping Lake Ontario as a water source for northern and eastern Ono...
01/09/2026

By January 1965, there was tangible progress towards tapping Lake Ontario as a water source for northern and eastern Onondaga County. Construction of a storage reservoir in Manlius was underway and transmission lines through Oswego County were being laid. Thomas Dyer, counsel for the Metropolitan Water Board, accurately predicted that Ontario water would be flowing to the Syracuse metropolitan area by the spring of 1967. It’s anticipated that the recent break in the Clay portion of the pipeline will be repaired by the middle of this month.

This was snowmobiling - 1952 style – when State Troopers of Troop B used an Eliason Motor Toboggan to rescue an injured ...
12/27/2025

This was snowmobiling - 1952 style – when State Troopers of Troop B used an Eliason Motor Toboggan to rescue an injured hunter in December of that year. The State Police acquired the motorized sled after WWII to use during the north country winters. The sled proved its worth shortly after its purchase when troopers used it to overtake a fleeing thief across frozen Lake Titus, solving a string of burglaries at closed summer camps. Eliasons were produced until the early 1960s, just before snowmobiling gained widespread popularity and newer designs replaced the toboggan style.

This week in 1976, Maria Von Trapp flew to Syracuse from her Stowe, Vermont lodge for a personal appearance at Bob Popyk...
12/19/2025

This week in 1976, Maria Von Trapp flew to Syracuse from her Stowe, Vermont lodge for a personal appearance at Bob Popyk’s North Syracuse Music Store on Brewerton Road. More than 1000 people crowded the store to meet the matriarch of the singing family made famous in “The Sound of Music.” Mrs. Von Trapp signed copies of her biography and albums for visitors and presented a talk on her life during the Sunday afternoon event while staff played selections from the musical on the store’s pianos and organs.

The first commercial television broadcast in Syracuse originated from a former machine shop on Court Street on a Wednesd...
12/09/2025

The first commercial television broadcast in Syracuse originated from a former machine shop on Court Street on a Wednesday evening in December 1948. WHEN-TV took the airwaves at 8:32pm on Channel 8 with an interview and performance by Melville Clark, concert music artist and local music store owner. Short travelogues and a newscast followed Clark’s performance on harp, with the entire first day’s broadcast concluding at 10:30pm. WSYR-TV began a few years later with both broadcasters relocating to James Street studios and WHEN-TV moving to Channel 5. The successor to WHEN-TV today broadcasts on Channel 15 and the former Court Street studio is now home to Harbor View Wine and Liquors.

Address

447 S Salina Street
Syracuse, NY
13202

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 4:50pm
Tuesday 9am - 4:50pm
Wednesday 9am - 4:50pm
Thursday 9am - 4:50pm
Friday 9am - 4:50pm

Telephone

+13154351900

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