Cicero is a town in Northern Onondaga County, New York, United States. The population was 31,632 at the 2010 census. The name of the town was assigned by a clerk interested in the classics, honoring Cicero, a Roman statesman.
Brewerton is a census-designated place (CDP) in the town of Cicero in Onondaga County and the town of Hastings in Oswego County in the U.S. state of New York. It lies at the west end of Oneida Lake at its outlet into the Oneida River. The population was 4,029 at the 2010 census. 19th century maps indicate that this area was once known as Fort Brewerton, while Brewerton meant the Cicero portion.
New York State Railways was a subsidiary of the New York Central Railroad that controlled several large city streetcar and electric interurban systems in upstate New York. It included the city transit lines in Rochester, Syracuse, Utica, Oneida and Rome, plus various interurban lines connecting those cities. New York State Railways also held a 50% interest in the Schenectady Railway Company, but it remained a separate independent operation. The New York Central took control of the Rochester Railway Company, the Rochester and Eastern Rapid Railway and the Rochester and Sodus Bay Railway in 1905, and the Mohawk Valley Company was formed by the railroad to manage these new acquisitions. New York State Railways was formed in 1909 when the properties controlled by the Mohawk Valley Company were merged. In 1912 it added the Rochester and Suburban Railway, the Syracuse Rapid Transit Railway, the Oneida Railway, and the Utica and Mohawk Valley Railway. The New York Central Railroad was interested in acquiring these lines in an effort to control the competition and to gain control of the lucrative electric utility companies that were behind many of these streetcar and interurban railways. Ridership across the system dropped through the 1920s as operating costs continued to rise, coupled with competition from better highways and private automobile use. New York Central sold New York State Railways in 1928 to a consortium led by investor E. L. Phillips, who was looking to gain control of the upstate utilities. Phillips sold his stake to Associated Gas & Electric in 1929, and the new owners allowed the railway bonds to default. New York State Railways entered receivership on December 30, 1929. The company emerged from receivership in 1934, and local operations were sold off to new private operators between 1938 and 1948.
The Syracuse Rapid Transit Railway, an interurban rail, was chartered on May 21, 1896. The company was a consolidation of the Syracuse Street Railroad Company, the Syracuse Consolidated Street Railway Company and the People's Railroad Company which was formerly leased to the Syracuse Street Railroad Company.
The Syracuse and East Side Street Railway, an interurban rail in Syracuse, New York, was chartered on August 25, 1894, and was a successor to the Syracuse, Eastwood Heights and DeWitt Railroad Company. The company was also known as the Syracuse and East Side Railroad.
The People's Railroad was a street railway chartered in 1887 and opened for business in 1889 in Syracuse, New York. The total length of the line was 10.88 miles (17.51 km) with branches each 1 mile (1.6 km). In 1896, the company merged into Syracuse Rapid Transit Railway.
The Syracuse, Lake Shore and Northern Railroad, an interurban railway, was incorporated on September 9, 1905, after it was purchased by the Beebe Syndicate. The line ran from Syracuse, New York, to Baldwinsville, New York, a distance of 14 miles (23 km) with a short branch to the New York State Fair grounds ending at Long Branch Park west of the city for a total of 23.53 miles (37.87 km) of electric track.
The Syracuse, Eastwood Heights and DeWitt Railroad, an interurban rail in Syracuse, New York was established in 1859. This was one of the most important of the first lines and operated as a steam road. The company was awarded the operation rights for the Burnet Avenue route as well as the Burnet Street Car Company.
Interurban and streetcar railways flourished in Syracuse, New York until the automobile, airplane and bus took their place.
The Empire United Railways was an interurban railway that was owned by Clifford D. Beebe of Syracuse, New York. The Beebe Syndicate controlled interurbans that ran from Rochester to Syracuse, to Auburn to Oswego on Lake Ontario.
The Auburn and Syracuse Electric Railroad was an interurban rail that ran from Auburn, New York to Syracuse, New York, a distance of 24 miles (39 km). The railroad owned a total of 58 miles (93 km) of track which "was as fine as any in the state."
The Genesee and Water Street Railroad, a horse-drawn street trolley in Syracuse, New York, was established in 1865. The company was one of three different railways that were awarded operation franchise rights to run cars in James Street. The firm also secured the franchise to operate cars in Westcott Street, to South Beech Street, Euclid Avenue, College Place, University Place, Walnut Avenue and Madison Street.
The Syracuse and Onondaga Railway, a horse-drawn city railway, was chartered on April 29, 1863, and opened on July 25, 1864, in Syracuse, New York. The line commenced in Downtown Syracuse at Washington Street and terminated at Oakwood Cemetery at Brighton Avenue where it connected with the Onondaga Valley Railroad. By 1890, the total length of the road was 2 miles (3.2 km).
The New Brighton and Onondaga Valley Railroad, a horse-drawn street trolley line, was chartered on May 5, 1869, in Syracuse, New York. The road was also known as the New Brighton and Onondaga Railroad.
The Third Ward Railway, an electric street trolley line in Syracuse, New York, was established in 1886 and ran a distance of 4 miles (6.4 km) commencing in Park Avenue and terminating at Solvay Process Company in Solvay, a suburb. A second extension was open for business on July 4, 1889, when a branch was added from West Genesee Street to the shore of Onondaga Lake, known as "lake shore."
The Syracuse, Lakeside and Baldwinsville Railway began operations in 1898 and provided service along the shore of Onondaga Lake outside of Syracuse, New York. Due to dependence on summer traffic, the company did not prosper during the remainder of the first year; however, during 1899, the rail was extended to Baldwinsville, a suburb, and the line began to handle daily commuter traffic.
The Beebe Syndicate was the name given to a group of electric streetcar and interurban railroads as well as construction and finance companies that shared common management based in Syracuse, New York. Founder Clifford D. Beebe (1866–1937) had returned to New York State after building up his career in the banking industry in Michigan. His first involvement with managing electric railways was presiding over the Syracuse and East Side Railway in 1894. After several years of involvement with various local streetcar lines, Beebe turned his attention to the development of electric interurban railways. Beginning in 1899, the Beebe Syndicate grew to control 28 individual companies at its height in 1915. By this time, many properties were placed in receivership due to overwhelming debt. Large parts of the Syndicate were sold into foreclosure in 1917, with the remaining lines reorganized independently. Beebe left the Syracuse area in 1919 and moved to New York City to pursue a career in real estate. He returned to Kalamazoo, Michigan, in 1935 and died of a sudden heart attack in 1937.
Chartered in 1904 by the Beebe Syndicate, the Auburn and Northern Electric Railroad connected the city of Auburn, New York, with the Rochester, Syracuse and Eastern Railroad at Port Byron, New York. The New York Board of Railroad Commissioners authorized construction and a $1 million mortgage to the A&N in 1905 so it could build 12 miles (19 km) of track between Auburn and Port Byron. Lease of the line to be used by A&N was negotiated at an Auburn and Syracuse Electric Rairload stockholders' meeting in May 1907. Construction of the line was contested by the Lehigh Valley Railroad who initiated a frog war when the A&N tried to build a crossing at its tracks; the A&N obtained an injunction and continued building. The railroad began operation in 1908. Lehigh Valley Railroad kept the crossing as a point of contention with an order from the railroad commission in 1909 requiring the A&N to install and operate derails at the crossing.
