SYRACUSE, N.Y. (WSYR-TV) — Welcome to this week’s Throwback Thursday. Today we have some photos to share from the small businesses that were part of Syracuse’s 15th Ward.
The 15th Ward was a section of Syracuse that sat between downtown Syracuse and the University Hill area. Much of the largely African-American neighborhood was destroyed to make way for the construction of Interstate 81. Here are some photos shared by the Onondaga Historical Association.
This photo from around 1920 is of the Williams Brothers Grocery store at the corner of East Washington Street, and Irving Ave. 
The men posing in this picture are on the steps of Record City Radio at 612 Townsend Street. It was owned by David Wilkens, a WW II Air Corps vet. He was the first African American to own a record store in the city. 
Malone’s Barber Shop on Townsend Street is open for business. Photo was taken around 1950.
If you want to learn more about the 15th Ward, and see it in the context of the proposed community grid plan for replacing the elevated portion of I-81 through downtown Syracuse, please watch our Hidden History special from January 2019.
If you have any suggestions for possible future TBT topics. let us know by emailing thewebunit@localsyr.com and we’ll pass it along to OHA.
