The Oswego and Syracuse Railroad was formed April 29, 1839, and the route was surveyed during the summer of that year. The Company was fully organized March 25, 1847. The road was opened on May 14, 1848, and ran a total distance of from

Syracuse, New York Syracuse ( ) is a City (New York), city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, Onondaga County, New York, United States. It is the fifth-most populous city in the state of New York following New York City, Buffalo, New York, Buffa ...

Oswego, New York Oswego () is a city in Oswego County, New York, United States. The population was 16,921 at the 2020 census. Oswego is located on Lake Ontario in Upstate New York, about 35 miles (55km) northwest of Syracuse. It promotes itself as "The Port C ...

. In 1872 it passed under the management of the

Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad The Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad (also known as the DL&W or Lackawanna Railroad) was a U.S. Class 1 railroad that connected Buffalo, New York, and Hoboken, New Jersey (and by ferry with New York City), a distance of . Incorporated in ...

History

One of the oldest surviving railroad structures in

New York State New York, officially the State of New York, is a state in the Northeastern United States. It is often called New York State to distinguish it from its largest city, New York City. With a total area of , New York is the 27th-largest U.S. stat ...

is the 1848 freighthouse of the Oswego and Syracuse Railroad in

. It is situated along West Utica Street, approximately one block west of the site of the former Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad (DL&WRR) depot. For many years, the DL&WRR maintained offices in Old City Hall in village of Oswego built in 1836 to rival the Market House in Albany. It is a three story brick structure. The third floor was wide open and used to provide drill space for the local militia during the winter months. The city built a new building a few blocks south in 1871. By 1862, the passenger depot in Syracuse was located at the

New York Central Railroad The New York Central Railroad was a railroad primarily operating in the Great Lakes and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The railroad primarily connected greater New York and Boston in the east with Chicago and St. Louis in the Midw ...

passenger depot where the baggage master was Arthur Hughes. The freight house was located West of New York Central Freight Houses in the 5th Ward. Freight agent was P. Bassett and tallyman was James Murray. The railroad had stations in Syracuse,

Baldwinsville Baldwinsville is a village in Onondaga County, New York, United States. The population was 7,898 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Syracuse Metropolitan Statistical Area. Baldwinsville (the village itself) is located in the towns of Lysand ...

, Lamsons, South Granby,

Fulton Fulton may refer to: People * Robert Fulton (1765–1815), American engineer and inventor who developed the first commercially successful steam-powered ship * Fulton (surname) Given name * Fulton Allem (born 1957), South African golfer * Fult ...

, Minetto and Oswego.

Freight rail

An act was passed by the

New York State Legislature The New York State Legislature consists of the two houses that act as the state legislature of the U.S. state of New York: The New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly. The Constitution of New York does not designate an official ...

during their assembly in 1847 which allowed the Oswego and Syracuse Railroad Company to carry freight provided they paid tolls to

Company management

In 1862, F. T. Carrington from Oswego was president and Allen Monroe from Syracuse was vice-president. Secretary was A. P. Grant and treasurer was Luther Wright, both from Oswego, along with George Skinner who was superintendent. Directors of the company in 1862 included; F. T. Carrington, Luther Wright, A. P. Grant, J. Turrill, S. Doolittle, all of Oswego. Additionally, E. B. Judson, Allen Monroe, E. R. Wicks, T. T. Davis of Syracuse and R. H. King and H. H. Martin, both from Albany and M. Islam of New York City.

Syracuse, Binghamton and New York railroad

The Oswego and Syracuse Railroad consolidated with the

Syracuse, Binghamton and New York Railroad The Syracuse and Binghamton Railroad was established on August 18, 1851, and opened for business on October 18, 1854. The road merged in 1856 into Syracuse and Southern Railroad which was renamed to Syracuse, Binghamton and New York Railroad when ...

in 1853 after the act was authorized by the

. In 1860, the rail was authorized along with

New York Central Railroad Company The New York Central Railroad was a railroad primarily operating in the Great Lakes and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The railroad primarily connected greater New York and Boston in the east with Chicago and St. Louis in the Mid ...

to build a station house in Geddes.

Delaware, Lackawanna and Western railroad

The DL&WRR bought the

in 1869 and leased the Oswego and Syracuse Railroad on February 13, 1869. This gave them a branch from

Binghamton Binghamton () is a city in the U.S. state of New York, and serves as the county seat of Broome County. Surrounded by rolling hills, it lies in the state's Southern Tier region near the Pennsylvania border, in a bowl-shaped valley at the conflue ...

north and northwest via

Syracuse Syracuse may refer to: Places Italy *Syracuse, Sicily, or spelled as ''Siracusa'' *Province of Syracuse United States *Syracuse, New York **East Syracuse, New York **North Syracuse, New York *Syracuse, Indiana * Syracuse, Kansas *Syracuse, Miss ...

to Oswego, a port on

Lake Ontario Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north, west, and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south and east by the U.S. state of New York. The Canada–United States border sp ...

. When the DL&WRR took over the Oswego and Syracuse Railroad in 1872, the road acquired the former hall for its shipping offices in the

Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes in the mid-east region of North America that connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River. There are five lakes ...

port. They held ownership until 1946.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Oswego Syracuse Railroad Predecessors of the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad Railway companies established in 1839 Railway companies disestablished in 1872 Defunct New York (state) railroads Defunct railroads in Syracuse, New York 1839 establishments in New York (state) 1872 disestablishments in New York (state) American companies established in 1839 American companies disestablished in 1872