MUSIC - Frontiers by Journey

MacArthur Stadium - demolished now a parking lot Alliance Bank Stadium - still standing Onondaga War Memorial - still standing

MacArthur Stadium was the former home for the Syracuse Chiefs of the International league. For 62 glorious summers, the people of Syracuse watched their beloved Chiefs battle the best players in the International league. It was cozy and comfortable, like an old sweatshirt. MacArthur stadium had its day in the sun.

MacArthur stadium was built in 1934 and was used by the Boston Red Sox as their AAA affiliate. Syracuse was also home to triple A teams for Cincinnati, Philadelphia, Minnesota, the Yankees and most recently the Toronto Blue Jays. The Jays have had their AAA team there since the 1978 season.

MacArthur has seen its share of great players coming up. Starting with Denny McLain, to Thurman Munson, Ron Guidry, Fred McGriff, Vernon Wells, Roy Halliday, and Carlos Delgado. The Chiefs have won 8 governors cups, depicting the champions of the International league. Their last win was in 1976 when they defeated the Richmond Braves

MacArthur stadium was located on Hiawatha Blvd. E and Tex Simone Dr., just north east of downtown Syracuse. MacArthur was an old fashion ballpark. No frills, no exploding scoreboards, no unnecessary nonsense. It looked like something out of Bull Durham. You can almost picture Crash Davis walking out to talk to Nuke LaLoosh about "not thinking, it can only hurt the team." It was a single deck stadium with wooden advertising on the outfield walls.

Heavy winter snows had taken its toll on the park. It was in need of major repairs. Rust was everywhere. It was a relic and doomed to the wreckers ball. In 1996 the end finally came. That was the final year for MacArthur stadium. The following season, the Chiefs moved across the parking lot to the brand new Alliance bank stadium. MacArthur stadium was demolished in 1997. It is now part of the new parks parking lot. No marker has been placed anywhere to let people know about the legacy of old MacArthur stadium.

The Onondaga War Memorial is a small arena in downtown Syracuse. It's location is at the corner of State Street and Harrison Street. It is now known as the War Memorial at Onecenter. Built in 1951, it featured the first ever poured in place concrete roof in the United States.

Its first major tenant was the Syracuse Nationals of the NBA. The team played in Syracuse for 14 seasons and made the playoffs every year. The Nats won the cities only pro championship in 1955. After the 1963 season, the team was sold and moved to Philadelphia to become the 76ers.

Hockey has been king at Onondaga for most of its life. Several teams have called the Onondaga home. The latest team is the Syracuse Crunch of the AHL.

After 57 years, the War Memorial is still going strong. It's small and suits Syracuse well.