Living History: Remembering Frank Tomaino ‘61

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Living History: Remembering Frank Tomaino ‘61

Black and white photo of Frank Tomaino from the Utica Yearbook

His passion for history made him the area’s resident historian.

Living in and around the city of Utica, it would be hard to not have come across the name Frank Tomaino ‘61 - a Utica graduate who found his calling in the world of journalism and became the name of record when it came to local history.

Though he passed away on January 2, 2025 at the age of 92, he will forever remain a part of the area’s history he loved so much, his legacy living on in the immense knowledge he was so glad to share with individuals and the community in a career that spanned six decades, and the joy, wisdom, and laughter he brought to family, friends, and colleagues.

“Frank Tomaino was a Mohawk Valley institution. No one knew more about local history than Frank,” fellow Utica alum and long-time friend and colleague Dave Dudajek ‘72 told the Daily Sentinel. “Frank nurtured my love of local history. He was a thoughtful, thorough researcher and wrote with a friendly flair that brought history alive. He wasn’t just a talented writer; he was a marvelous teacher.”

Frank Tomaino in his baseball uniform in 1960.

Born in 1932, Francis “Frank” Tomaino graduated from TR Proctor High School in Utica in 1949, going on to serve in the US Air Force during the Korean War. Following his military service, he attended then-Utica College, pursuing a bachelor’s degree in English and playing on the Utica baseball team for three years.

“I played three years of baseball at Utica College and hit .333,” he was known to say. “.111 each year!”

In the early 1960s he began working at the Utica Observer-Dispatch newspaper as a freelancer, working his way through the ranks to full-time reporter in 1962. While he left briefly to teach, he returned to the newsroom and served in numerous roles throughout the next three decades at both the Observer-Dispatch as well as the former Utica Daily Press, retiring as City Editor in the 1990s. As City Editor he, for many years, wrote the column “Frankly Speaking,” where he discussed things happening around the area.

Yearbook photo of Frank Tomaino in white t-shirt on Utica bowling team, 1959.

His passion for history made him the area’s resident historian, and he made the past vividly come to life with his writing of the popular “This Week in History” column for the Observer-Dispatch, highlighting moments and events from the area’s past, sometimes going back centuries. The column debuted in 1987 and ran until Summer 2024. He also authored the book History Just for the Fun of It: Sketches of Utica’s Glorious Past, and shared his love of the past with audiences as a regular guest on The Joe Kelly Show.

His love of history may have been in his genes, or so he would say, noting that both his parents were local history buffs.

“My mother kept scrapbooks in the 1920s, 30s and 40s,” he said in a 2015 interview. “Anything important that happened in Utica, she’d put the newspaper story or the picture in the scrapbook. Like when they tore down the old city hall.”

He worked not only to preserve and teach history through his writing, but in numerous lectures and talks throughout the area as well as in action as a member and trustee of the Oneida County History Center, where he was honored for his dedication and contributions with the prestigious Living Legend Award.

“I am devastated,” said Richard Benedetto ‘65, a fellow Utica graduate and journalist who began his career in the Observer-Dispatch newsroom and went on to become a founding member of USA Today and former White House correspondent for Gannett News Service. He told the Daily Sentinel after learning of Frank’s passing - “I always thought he would go on forever. I can’t believe it. I am deeply saddened. He was not only one of my dearest friends, he was my biggest booster, as well as the Utica area’s untiring promoter and favorite son. He always had a good word for everyone. He loved where he came from and told people of that love every day. God bless him.”