News From Fort Schuyler

January 22, 1998 - Volume 2, No. 5

DOMER SURVEY FEEDBACK - Not everyone likes the term Domer, but at least we now have a better idea of when and why it may have come about. Here are snips from the e-mail responses to the survey findings which were posted on January 14. I think they will be the final words on this subject.

(Class of 1957) "In 1992.I was invited to speak at a luncheon at Kings Point to commission the NROTC part of the outgoing class... When some of the cadets heard that I was a graduate of Fort Schuyler, they commented that I was a "Domer." Having never heard us referred to as "Domers", I inquired as to the origin of the title. I was told that the title came simply from the fact that when they looked across the Sound, the distinguishing landmark was the dome at the Fort."

(Class of 1962) "A Webster's definition of dome as a verb says 'to swell upward or outward like a dome." Could the origin of the term as it applies to SUNYMC have implied some hidden humorous meaning, i.e., swell-headedness, brains groping for max capacity, etc ? There are so many possibilities."

(Class of 1963) "...by the way, I never hear the expression "Domers."

(Class of 1965) "I am Class of '65 and never heard of "The Dome" until your last e-mail. I don't think I lived in a shell for four years there, but who knows? Anyway, we commonly referred to the school as "The Fort.""

(Class of 1969) "We used to refer to Maritime as the "Maridome" which was named after the Metrodome which may have been built during this time. It later got shortened to "Dome" and hence the reference of cadets as "Domers." If no other class claims credit for the name, I will bet it was mine. ...I'm surprised to hear alumni in my area still use the term."

(Class of 1971) I still have one of those T-shirts! They were done by my classmate Steve Cernik. It depicts a guy in a sailor suit twiddling his thumbs and whistling "innocently," with the TSES IV on a rock and down by the bow TITANIC-style behind him. It's a reference to the ship having ripped a bit of a hole in its bottom the summer of our second class cruise. My shirt has survived because it's a very small large, and I'm a very XXlarge guy and never wore it."

(Class of 1972) " I first heard the expression "The Dome" in the Fall of 1968 as a MUG. We even printed T-shirts with the inscription "Domers." As far as I can recall the expression came from the fact that the Throgs Neck Bridge expanded over the fort, creating the Maridome College at Fort Schuyler."

(Class of 1974) " ...1974 yearbook, we gave life to a "Domer" in the form of a cartoon type character that appears through the yearbook. In his first appearance he has the word "DOMER" on his T-shirt. This attire changed throughout the book depending on the section of the book he was in. For example, on the page covering our trip to Rome, he was dressed as a Roman gladiator, for Genoa he was a matador ... and for the various sport teams he was dressed accordingly. He appears a dozen or so times..."

(Class of 1983) "I'm sorry to see that my class seems to be the forgotten class, because nobody apparently contributed to the replies about the Dome .... However (now belatedly it may be) I think the term Domer, which was widely used during my time there, referred to the observatory on the fort."

(Class of 1987) "..I can't ever recall ever hearing "Domer" during my IDO summer as a MUG. It wasn't maybe until 2nd or 1st class years that I began to hear it used on campus. However, it wasn't until I was out of school that I began to hear it with frequency. It's almost like a secret handshake in the industry. "Oh..you're a Domer? ...What class ?"

ALUMNI CONTRIBUTORS: Dave Barto, Roy Brown, Frank Critelli, Andy Fosina, Frank Gallo, Al Guardino, Chris Krusa, Luis Luis, Hugo Polanco, Cesar De Windt.

1) The Houston Astrodome was completed in 1965.

2) If anyone wants to see a sample of this cartoon Domer from the 1974 Eight Bells, let me know. I will try to scan it into a JPEG, (ed.)