The east shore of the Great Salt Lake was surveyed in October 1855, and included land that later was to become the city of Syracuse. It was part of the "big range" of northern Davis County, which was a good place for raising sheep and cattle. However, the area did lack water, with only two springs between Kay's Creek and the Weber River.

With the Homestead Act of 1862 the land became available for settlement; however, the first person to plow and sow land in the area was David Cook in 1876. Joseph Bodily also homesteaded eighty acres and built the first log cabin in 1877. David Kerr, Joseph Hadfield, John Sheridan, and others came in 1878.

By 1884 the extended Hooper Canal brought water from the Weber River to the area. With water, homesteads developed near the lake shore. Soon hay and grain grew in abundance. Dairy farming became important when a group of farmers built a cheese factory. Within twenty years of the first settlers, most of the available land was under cultivation. It did not take long before farmers near the lake realized that some of the land was suited for fruit growing. Artesian wells with cement holding ponds in conjunction with the Hooper Canal irrigated several hundred acres of apples, pears, peaches, and plums. By the turn of the century, this area had become the largest producer of fruit in Davis County.

On the bench above the bluff, dry farming appeared about the year 1878. Alma Stoker, Richard Venable, and Richard Hamblin were some of the first who cleared the land. Deep wells were dug to water their livestock and small gardens. In about 1894 the Davis-Weber County Canal brought water to part of the land.

Syracuse was always a farming community. With irrigation, new row crops were introduced: sugar beets in 1893, potatoes in 1894, tomatoes in 1898, and peas in 1902. The Syracuse Canning factory started up in 1898, canning tomatoes, pickles, and all kinds of fruits.

William Galbraith, who manufactured salt from the lake, printed the name "Syracuse" on his salt bags. The name came from a salt company he knew in Syracuse, New York. The name was later used by the Syracuse Bathing Resort, built in 1887 by Daniel C. Adams. He was determined to have the finest resort on the lake, which for a time it became; it was the only spot along the shore of the lake with a natural grove of trees. The Union Pacific Railroad branch, constructed in 1887 as the Ogden and Syracuse Railway, linked the Syracuse resort to the main line between Ogden and Salt Lake City. It also served farmers and the salt works.

The first general store in town, which also adopted the name Syracuse, was built by Isaac Barton in 1888. In 1891 he sold his store to the Walker brothers. At one time the community also had a post office, which was commissioned on 10 November 1891. John Coles was the first postmaster, and the post office was set up in a room at the front of his home. Thomas and Clara Schofield later bought his farm, and Mrs. Schofield became postmistress until 15 May 1905 when the post office was discontinued. The general store and post office were located a mile east of the bathing resort.

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