The Finger Lakes and Ancient Greece

I am now in Ithaca, New York: I have a very cool meeting with a very cool person tomorrow.  (I can't reveal too much here.)  On the drive up here, though, I was struck by an interesting phenomenon: many towns in upstate New York have names derived from ancient Greece and Rome.  Aside form "Ithaca" -- the name of Odysseus's native town -- this part of the country is home to Marathon, Syracuse, Homer, Virgil, and Etna.  Was this naming theme coordinated by someone?  What is the history behind this trend?  Does anyone know?