Binghamton, industrial city, seat of Broome County, south central New York, at the confluence of the Chenango and Susquehanna rivers; settled 1785, incorporated as a city 1867. With Endicott and Johnson City, it forms the Triple Cities, a manufacturing hub long known for its footwear industry. Other manufactures include machinery, printed materials, processed food, transportation equipment, and electronic components; several large plants producing business machines and electronic goods are nearby. The city is the seat of the State University of New York at Binghamton (1946; formerly called Harpur College) and a community college. The Tri-Cities Opera, the Binghamton Symphony, the Roberson Museum and Science Center, a zoo, and six antique carousels are located here. Binghamton prospered after it was connected by canal to Utica in 1837. The railroad came here in 1848. The city is named for William Bingham, a U.S. senator (1795-1801) from Pennsylvania who owned land here. Population 55,860 (1980); 53,008 (1990); 47,380 (2000).
