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Your Hometown: Split Rock

More than 90 years ago, one small hamlet in Onondaga County was rocked when a factory responsible for building explosives, exploded, resulting in the death of 50 people. The place is Split Rock, New York and our Jim Gibbons has its story in this week's edition of Your Hometown.

02/28/2010 11:13 AM

Your Hometown: Montague

With just a handful of full time residents, it's not hard to find peace and tranquility in this Lewis County town, but more than 100 years ago, Montague was a much busier place. In this week's segment of Your Hometown, our Katie Gibas tells us how the Town of Montague has come full circle, returning to its isolated and tranquil roots.

02/17/2010 08:40 PM

Your Hometown: Hannibal

It spans to the north and to the south, but is not really all that big. What it lacks in square footage, it makes up for with a very rich and lengthy history. The Oswego County town of Hannibal is actually named after a famous Carthaginian leader from 230 B.C. In this week's Your Hometown, our Andy Mattison travels to North Hannibal and South Hannibal and parts in between to get to the center of the story that has people living there celebrating all year long.

02/13/2010 04:06 PM

Your Hometown: The Oneida Community

We all know there's no such thing as a perfect world. But during the 19th century, one man tried to create one in Oneida. John Humphrey Noyes founded the Oneida Community, a religious-based group who strived for perfection in all aspects of their lives. They lived in the Oneida Mansion House. Iris St. Meran takes us there and tells us about the community's rise, fall and lasting imprint on Central New York.

<em>Your Hometown:</em> The Oneida Community

02/05/2010 04:34 PM

Your Hometown: Endicott

They produced tens of millions of shoes and in doing so, changed the fabric of the Southern Tier. Under founder George F. Johnson, the Endicott-Johnson Shoe Company not only made the Southern Tier famous for its shoes, it revolutionized the workplace. From the people to the buildings, the influence of EJ can still be felt throughout the Southern Tier. For this week's edition of Your Hometown, our Janelle Burrell takes us to the Village of Endicott.

01/23/2010 11:07 PM

Your Hometown: Saranac Lake

It's a North Country village with a bit of an identity crisis, split between two counties and three towns. The divide may be transparent to outsiders, but many in the village say it needs to be reformed. For this week's edition of Your Hometown, our Sarah Hagen takes us to the Village of Saranac Lake.

03/14/2010 11:45 AM

Your Hometown: Saranac Lake

Two counties and three towns. All of them laying claim, at least in part, to one North Country village. And while most outsiders may not notice these historic lines of divide, others say the layered structure is outdated and in need of reform. For this week's edition of Your Hometown, our Sarah Hagen takes us to the Village of Saranac Lake.

Updated 01/16/2010 10:29 AM

Your Hometown: Newfield

The town of Newfield in southwest Tompkins County is known for its historic covered bridge, but the landmark is lucky to be there today. In this week's edition of Your Hometown, our Tamara Lindstrom tells us more about the series of fires, and some unfortunate mistakes that nearly spelled disaster for this town.

01/09/2010 11:26 PM

Your Hometown: Eaton

There are many towns, villages and hamlets in Central New York.
But there's only one that actually takes center stage in the state's geography. It's in Madison County. Iris St. Meran brings you there to show you the exact center of New York.

12/19/2009 12:44 PM

Your Hometown: Colosse

There are a lot of food products made in Upstate New York, but not many towns can say they've been doing it for more than 100 years. Colosse has been spreading its homegrown cheese throughout the area since the early 1900s. In today's edition of Your Hometown, our Andy Mattison tells us the history behind the signature company that bears the town's name.

12/13/2009 11:17 AM

Your Hometown: Wampsville

Big things can come in small packages. That's certainly true for one village in northern Madison County. In today's edition of Your Hometown our Jim Gibbons takes us to Wampsville. A place with an odd name and a great deal of importance to its county's day to day activity.

12/05/2009 02:18 PM

Your Hometown: North Pole

New York's North Country is full of unique towns and hamlets, but there is nothing quite like North Pole. In this week's Your Hometown, we take a trip to the Adirondacks and visit the place where you can get a one of a kind experience all year round.

Updated 11/28/2009 10:45 AM

Your Hometown: Fayetteville

In this week's Your Hometown we bring you to the Village of Fayetteville in Onondaga County. With a history beginning in the late 1700s, a women's rights activist, a famous inventor and Civil War general all called it home at some point. While their influence can be seen scattered throughout the village, they are also documented all in one place. Our Karen Lee takes us through the Fayetteville Cemetery.

11/21/2009 01:00 PM

Your Hometown: Croghan

With less than 700 people, the Lewis County Village of Croghan isn't exactly a full house, but its rich history fills it in quite nicely. A place that's been forced to survive not only one major fire, but two and it's gone from one major industry to another, now boasting its famous bologna and syrup. In this edition of "Your Hometown" we'll take you to Croghan. Our Brian Dwyer and photojournalist RD White, give you a sampling of everything this village "In the Foothills of the Adirondacks" has to offer.

11/15/2009 11:08 AM

Your Hometown: Ithaca

When we think about the early years of film, images of palm tree lined streets and Hollywood starlets come to mind. But before there was Hollywood, motion pictures were made right in one of your hometowns. Our Tamara Lindstrom takes up back to when Ithaca was once a booming movie town.

11/06/2009 10:07 PM

Your Hometown: Carthage/West Carthage

Last week in our segment of your hometown we told you about how Carthage in Jefferson County got it's name. But that naming may have led to an unanticipated rivalry between its twin village across the river West Carthage. In this week's segment of Your Hometown, our Katie Gibas tells us how the rivalry started and what's left of it today.

<em>Your Hometown:</em> Carthage/West Carthage

11/01/2009 12:34 PM

Your Hometown: The naming of Carthage, NY

If you've traveled around parts of Upstate New York, you'll notice a lot of classical Greek and Roman names: Syracuse, Rome, Troy, all named after great historic powers. But what about Carthage in Jefferson County? Yes it's a classical name, but as our Katie Gibas tells us in this week's Your Hometown, the Carthage in North Africa for which it is named had a very different history.

10/25/2009 11:10 AM

Your Hometown: Haiti Island

In Central New York, many communities are located near water, but in Cayuga County one neighborhood is completely surrounded by it. Haiti Island in the Town of Mentz was formed from the dredging of the canal system. In this week's edition of your hometown, our Andy Mattison introduces us to the island community and helps explain how it got its name.

10/17/2009 02:33 PM

Your Hometown: Painted Post/Gang Mills

One of the unique qualities of the Elmira-Corning area is the names of its municipalities. In today's Your Hometown segment, our Kaitlyn Lionti takes us to the Town of Erwin to find out how Painted Post and Gang Mills became names to remember.

10/10/2009 04:01 PM

Your Hometown: Galloo Island

It's a place where only two people currently live. A once-prosperous island that used to be home to many families and industry and played an important role in the development of Jefferson County. It's one of your hometowns. Our Katie Gibas takes us back in time to life and work on Galloo Island.

10/04/2009 10:23 AM

Your Hometown: Sherrill

When you think of a city, you often think of skyscrapers, booming populations, and a lot of traffic, but there's one city in New York that has almost none of these. Jim Gibbons takes us to the city of Sherrill in today's edition of Your Hometown.

09/27/2009 11:28 AM

Your Hometown: Mexico and Texas

In Oswego County you can travel to Texas and Mexico without setting foot in the desert. The two towns have been in the area for centuries and have a lot of unique history. Our Andy Mattison introduces us to two of your hometowns to find out if there's any connection between them or to the state and country they share names with.

09/20/2009 11:50 AM

Your Hometown: The Lost Village of Delta Lake

Since we began our series of Your Home Town, we have brought you the stories of many towns and villages and what makes them so special. In this week's edition, we have a bit of a twist. Our Jim Gibbons takes us back in time to a once prosperous village that was sacrificed to make way for the advancement of transportation.

09/13/2009 11:27 AM

Your Hometown: Route 20

Before the thruway was built, Route 20 was the fastest way of getting from one end of New York State to the other. While it stretches hundreds of miles across the state, there is one small section that is quite unique. Our Iris St. Meran brings you to one of your hometowns, to show us why it only takes three miles to find yourself jumping county lines again and again.

08/23/2009 11:11 AM

Your Hometown: Skunk City

It's one of Shakespeare's most recognizable quotes: "What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet." Well, for one Syracuse neighborhood, the name is anything but sweet. Our Karen Lee brings you to one of your hometowns.

08/16/2009 11:37 AM

The origin of Potsdam

A name can say a lot. Take Potsdam for instance, the rural town in the North Country that is often confused with Potsdam, Germany. In this week's Your Hometown, our Sarah Hagen tells us how the town got its name and how the entire region picked up some European flair.

Updated 08/08/2009 09:56 PM

The story of how Big Flats and Horseheads were named

Many cities and towns are named for their founders, but in the Southern Tier, there are some unique names that stand out. Our Kaitlyn Lionti tells us how two places in Chemung County became names to remember.

Updated 07/31/2009 09:21 PM

Your Hometown: Herkimer Diamond Mines

Diamonds are forever and you don't have to go too far to find them in Central New York. People from across the country and the world come to the Herkimer Diamond Mines to do some digging. In this edition of Your Hometown, Iris St. Meran has more on these special diamonds in the rough.

07/24/2009 08:13 PM

A brief history of Beaver River Station

Sitting in Northern Herkimer County, it's roughly 30 miles from the nearest city or village, and a part of that is 15 miles of dirt road. People say you'll either love it or hate it. With only a handful of full-time residents, the hamlet of Beaver River Station, in the heart of the Adirondacks, is a good old fashioned trip back in time. Videojournalist Brian Dwyer and photojournalist R.D. White spent the day there and have the story of this truly different community.
ONLINE EXTRA: Watch extra video and interviews inside this story.

Updated 07/22/2009 06:49 PM