Things We Love That Are 55 or Older

By Margaret McCormick

The world has changed dramatically in the last 55 years. Some of the things we take for granted today were new or new-ish back then (in 1965). Others have been around longer than you might think.

Just for the fun of it, we decided to do some age-related background checks on places and things we know and love. You might be surprised to learn how old some things are — and how relatively recent others are.

55 Lifestyle

• 55 Plus Magazine: We’re young  born in 2005.

• AARP: 1958 (now with more than 38 million members).

Food/Beverage/Restaurants

• Borio’s Restaurant, Cicero: 1960.

• Luigi’s Restaurant, Syracuse: 1954.

• Coleman’s Authentic Irish Pub, Syracuse: 1933.

• Rudy’s Lakeside Drive-In, Oswego: 1946. 

• Mac’s Drive-In, Waterloo: 1961.

• Heid’s of Liverpool: 1917.

• B’ville Diner, Baldwinsville: 1934. Originally Grady’s Diner.

• Scotch ‘n’ Sirloin, DeWitt: 1967.

• Nibsy’s Pub, Syracuse: 1890. Considered the oldest pub in Syracuse.

• Wegmans: 1916 (Rochester); 1969 in Central New York (Route 57 at John Glenn Boulevard)

• Harrison Bakery, Syracuse: 1949. Moved from Harrison Street to West Genesee Street in 1961.

• Columbus Baking Co., Syracuse: 1895.

• DiLauro’s Bakery and Pizza, Syracuse: 1908. Originally known as Venezia Bakery.

• Central New York Regional Market: 1938.

Out and About

• Green on top traffic light, Tipperary Hill, Syracuse: 1925.

• Onondaga Lake Park: 1933. “Central New York’s Central Park’’

• Rosamond Gifford Zoo at Burnet Park, Syracuse: 1914. Originally known as Burnet Park Zoo.

• E.M. Mills Memorial Rose Garden (at Thornden Park), Syracuse: 1922.

• Crouse College, Syracuse University: 1881.

• Manley Field House, Syracuse: 1962.

• ShoppingTown Mall, DeWitt: 1954. A shopping center before it morphed into a mega mall.

• Soldiers and Sailors Monument, downtown Syracuse: 1910.

Around the House

• Riding lawn mower: 1946.

• Snowblower: 1925. A Canadian import.

• Electric drip coffee maker: 1954. Developed in Germany. The well-known Mr. Coffee didn’t debut until the 1970s.

• Air conditioner: 1902. Thank you, Willis Carrier.

• Microwave oven: 1946. Developed by American engineer Percy Spencer.

• Weber kettle grill: 1952. Invented by Weber founder George Stephen.

• Kitchen-Aid stand mixer: 1919. And still making mixing marvelous.

• Tupperware: 1946. Developed in Massachusetts by Silas Earl Tupper.

• Pyrex: 1915.  The iconic primary color four-piece nesting bowl set debuted in 1945.

Arts/Culture

• Everson Museum: 1897.  Originally known as the Syracuse Museum of Fine Arts. • The current building, designed by I.M. Pei, opened in 1968.

• Erie Canal Museum: 1962.  Housed in the Syracuse Weighlock Building, which dates to 1850.

• Landmark Theater: 1928. Built as a Loew’s State Theater.

• Eastwood Palace Theatre: 1922.

• Westcott Theater: 1919.

• Manlius Art Cinema: 1918.

Health/Wellness/Beauty

• Hearing aid: 1898. Early models were large and not very portable.

• Grecian Formula: 1961. The first hair coloring designed for men.

• Geritol: 1930. A dietary supplement for “iron poor blood.’’

• One a Day multivitamins: 1940.

• Special K: 1955. Once a single cereal, now with many options.

• Stationary bike: 1965. There were earlier models, but when Schwinn introduced its first stationary bike for the home, the Exerciser, a slew of copycats followed.

• Crutches: 1917.  Emile Schlick patented the first commercially produced crutch.

• Walkers: Early 1950s. First U.S. patent awarded in 1953.

Photo: E.M. Mills Memorial Rose Garden. 1922.