The 2001 SIA Fall Tour will explore Syracuse, NY. Once a major center for l9rh-century salt production and still known as the Salt City, Syracuse and its surroundings today boast an incredible diversity of industrial products and processes. This year's tour will be sponsored by the Onondaga Historical Association, which operates the county historical museum and research center.
A couple of preview events are planned for Thursday. Early arrivals can sign up to board the City of Syracuse as it plies the waters of the State Barge Canal and "locks through" at Baldwinsville. The boat, of recent construction but in the style of lake steamers of the late 19th century, will then take a spin into Onondaga Lake, once the heart of the city's defining salt industry. That evening, participants will have the option of attending Under the Eyes of Gambrinus, a beer-tasting celebration at the OHA Museum.
Over the next two days of tours, participants will visit Marsellus Casket, founded in 1871 and one of America's leading producers of fine wooden caskets. Several U.S. presidents rest for the ages in this Syracuse product. We also will see remnants of the mid-19th-century Erie and Oswego Canal, including aqueducts, locks, and a dry dock repair facility dating from 1855, currently under restoration.
Another sojourn will be to the Jamesville Quarry, where a blast demonstration will be offered. Also planned are visits to Crucible Steel, a specialty tool steel maker started in 1876; Baker Wood Products Engineering Lab at the State University of New York School of Environmental Science and Forestry, one of the nation's leading centers for forest management and wood products study; Syracuse China; Camillus Cutlery, a make of high-grade knives, begun in 1876; and the Woodland Reservoir, heart of Syracuse's 1894 water delivery system from Skaneateles Lake. A ride on Syracuse's in-city rail system, OnTrack, will offer a narrative of several former industrial sites and a special stop to explore the ruins of the 1860 Geddes brine pump house, one of just two surviving structures of the once mighty salt industry. Additional tour stops are being investigated.
A reception at the OHA Museum will start the Saturday evening festivities. Several unique venues are under consideration for the banquet, some dependent on renovation schedules, so stay tuned. Sunday morning will bring walking tours of downtown Syracuse's historic architecture with stops at the Brie Canal Museum, housed in an 1850 canal weighlock, and the Museum of Automobile History, boasting one of the largest private collections of automobile literature and graphic materials in the nation.
Due to the high demand for lodging in Syracuse in the fall (Syracuse Univ. events, etc.), three hotel options are available. Two are historic properties in the downtown area, within easy walking distance of the OHA Museum, the Museum of Science and Technology, and Armory Square, a renovated 19th-century commercial district boasting several restaurants and night spots. A third, suburban choice is also available at reduced cost. Shuttles will be provided. Registration materials were mailed to all current SIA members in late August 2001. Info: Dennis Connors, (315) 428-1864; mailto:djcoha@juno.com.