Onondaga Creek
The settlement that became Syracuse arose in a forested swampy area at the creek outlet in the early 1800s as a result of the state of NY constructing the Erie Canal and developing salt production on the shores of Onondaga Lake. From this time forward, the natural meandering flood plain of the creek was periodically channelized and straightened to facilitate uncontrolled development of the creek-side and flood plain upstream towards the Onondaga Nation Reservation. A "progress"-based economic cycle involved land developers purchasing farmland and building in the adjacent rural towns, followed by flooding, sewage, water supply, and school crises. The city of Syracuse would then respond to petitions by the new homeowners and businesses to formally ask the state legislature to annex these lands. By the turn of the twentieth century, this cycle accelerated due to the city acquiring water rights to Skaneatles lake, and the development of street car lines.
Syracuse, Sicily
Syracuse was founded in 734 or 733 BC by Greek settlers from Corinth and Tenea, led by the "oecist" (colonizer) Archias. There are many attested variants of the name of the city including "Syrakousai", "Syrakosai" and "Syrakō". A possible origin of the city's name was given by Vibius Sequester citing first Stephanus Byzantius in that there was a Syracusian marsh () called "Syrako" and secondly Marcian's "Periegesis" wherein Archias gave the city the name of a nearby marsh; hence one gets "Syrako" (and thereby "Syrakousai" and other variants) for the name of Syracuse, a name also attested by Epicharmus. The settlement of Syracuse was a planned event, as a strong central leader, Arkhias the aristocrat, laid out how property would be divided up for the settlers, as well as plans for how the streets of the settlement should be arranged, and how wide they should be. The nucleus of the ancient city was the small island of Ortygia. The settlers found the land fertile and the native tribes to be reasonably well-disposed to their presence. The city grew and prospered, and for some time stood as the most powerful Greek city anywhere in the Mediterranean. Colonies were founded at Akrai (664 BC), Kasmenai (643 BC), Akrillai (7th century BC), Helorus (7th century BC) and Kamarina (598 BC).