An Art Deco masterpiece, the Niagara Hudson Building was constructed in 1932 as the headquarters for the Niagara Hudson Electric Company — the largest electricity provider in the United States at that time. It served the Great Corridor, a series of towns situated along the Erie Canal — from Buffalo to Albany. True success arrived in the early 1930s when it supplied power to New York City followed by linking all the major power grids in the Northeastern U.S. and Eastern Canada. The resulting 116,000 square-mile power grid served more than 30 million people!! Today it is owned by National Grid.
Completed in 1876 Syracuse Savings Bank building with a tower rising 170 feet, it was the tallest building in Syracuse at the time. Though not apparent now its setting was adjacent to the Erie Canal to emulate the Venetian palaces that lined Venice’s canals. Furthermore the design was Gothic revival with the pointed arches, trefoils, and Gothic moldings. Obviously today the Erie canal is filled in and comprises Erie boulevard.
Looking at it another angle you could see it is now acquired by Bank of America since 2007. Syracuse Savings bank operated until 1987, it was then acquired by NorStar Bank which was further acquired by Fleet Bank and eventually became part of Bank of America.
At 331 feet tall, the State Tower Building is the tallest building in downtown Syracuse. It has a unique “wedding cake” design with floor plates decreasing in size in sections as the building rises. The exterior brick color also transitions from darker to lighter as it rises, giving the building an even greater appearance of height and elegance. During the entirety of its existence, the State Tower had served solely as an office building with retail on the ground floor however the upper 14 floors became high-end residential units.
City Hall opened in 1892, designed in the Richardsonian Romanesque style, it was built of local limestone and anchored by a dramatic 165-foot bell tower. Pictured below is the rear view which looks across Water Street, which prior to 1924 was occupied by the Erie Canal.
The Onondaga County Courthouse officially opened in 1907 and was the fourth court house built in Onondaga County. It was designed in the Beaux Arts style.
The First Baptist Church better known as Mizpah Tower is a white terra-cotta Gothic Revival-style church built in 1914. The church featured a unique mix of religious and commercial space (sanctuary on the ground floor, hotel rooms on the upper floors). After the congregation moved to the suburbs in 1988, building has sat mostly vacant and city of Syracuse acquired the building. Developer plans to turn it into commercial space and luxury apartments.
If you look closely it would seem as if the building used to have spires, in 1981 the tower was struck by lightning prompting the removal of them. Below is an older image of what the building used to look like:
If there is a museum you need to check out to learn about the history of the Erie Canal look no further than the Erie Canal Museum. It is housed in the 1850 Syracuse Weighlock Building, the only remaining canal boat weigh station in America! It was constructed by New York State to collect tolls to defray construction costs and maintenance on the enlarged canal. The tolls were based upon the net weight of the cargo. To calculate, each boat entered the building’s lock chamber, which was a jut off the main canal. As this canal system became obsolete after the final canal boat passed through downtown Syracuse in 1922. New York State Department of Public Works occupied the building for some time but building was facing demolition in favor of development of Interstate 81. Fortunately preservationists prevailed and by 1962 it was dedicated as a museum.
Armory Square today is the go-to spot in Syracuse for trendy dining, drinking and shopping options. The square gets its name from the armory first built in the 1850s which housed National Guard units and a cavalry unit. The cavalry unit practiced at the armory right up until around World War I. Because of the railroad many of the old buildings here were once used as factories and warehouses that merchants could easily get their goods to railroad depots. With the decline of the railroad around the 1930s many factories and businesses closed, hence warehouses were left vacant and abandoned. Fortunately, people with vision began to emerge in the early 1980s, they saw something in the deteriorating buildings beyond grit and crumbling brick.
There’s perhaps no better symbol of the importance of this neighborhood to Syracuse’s identity than the Shot Clock Monument, right in the center of Armory Square. This landmark is a replica of the 24-second clock that, according to the monument plaque, saved basketball from stalling tactics, and was first used in Syracuse in 1954.
The Butler building built around 1866 as a two-story building that 30 years later, three more stories were added. The building housed various businesses related to furniture and household items, tobacco importers and wholesalers.
This commercial block was erected in 1875 for the Gray Brothers Boot and Shoe Factory. The front facade has a really faded ghost sign advertising Gray Shoes just below the 4th floor windows. By 1920s it was taken over by the Misener company a manufacturer of circular saws. Today you could see that the first floor is occupied by a credit union and side there is dance club named Benjamin’s convenient since the street itself is Franklin St.
Looking now at the premier theater of Syracuse, the Landmark. Since its completion in 1928 was once known as the Loew’s State Theater. While it thrived through the 1940s, competition from television and suburban multiplexes created financial difficulties. After briefly closing in 1975, the theater was saved from demolition by community members. Since then has undergone a resurgence in popularity, hosting Broadway shows and touring musicians, and remaining a vital link to the past in downtown Syracuse.
Here we have the Wilson Building (1898) and the Witherill Building (1855)
Wilson Building was a result of Wilson Jewelers moving into it in 1943. Ghost sign for Wilson’s still appears on the side of the building.
Witherill Building originally housed a number of businesses at the street level with offices and classrooms above.
McCarthy building constructed 1893 in the Italian Renaissance Revival architectural style. It has a beige brick masonry facade with bracketed eaves and decorative lintels. The building served as the headquarters for the former McCarthy Department Store chain which was sold by the McCarthy family in 1905. It also was the home of the Lincoln Department Store and the Hunter Tuppen Department Store. The McCarthy Building was one of the first fireproof buildings in Syracuse. It now has small storefronts on the first floor and offices on the upper floors.
