[4] Surrounded by rolling hills, it lies in the state's Southern Tier region near the Pennsylvania border, in a bowl-shaped valley at the confluence of the Susquehanna and Chenango Rivers.

[8] IBM was founded nearby, and the flight simulator was invented in the city, leading to a notable concentration of electronics- and defense-oriented firms.

[9] However, starting with job cuts made by defense firms towards the end of the Cold War, the region lost a large part of its manufacturing industry.

[11] The first known people of European descent to come to the area were the troops of the Sullivan Expedition in 1779, during the American Revolutionary War, who destroyed local villages of the Onondaga and Oneida tribes.

[9] The city was named after William Bingham, a wealthy Philadelphian who bought the 10,000 acre patent for the land in 1786, then consisting of parts of the towns of Union and Chenango.

[9] By the early 1920s, Endicott Johnson, a shoe manufacturer whose development of welfare capitalism resulted in many amenities for local residents, became the region's largest employer.

[20] An even larger influx of Europeans immigrated to Binghamton, and the working class prosperity resulted in the area being called the Valley of Opportunity.

[24] Along with Edwin Link's invention of the flight simulator in Binghamton, IBM's growth helped transition the region to a high-tech economy.

[32] The increased downtown residential population and the university's plans to build additional student housing have spurred development of supporting businesses and a renewed focus on the riverfront.

Located at the northeast corner of the river confluence and increasingly populated by college students, it supports a flourishing arts scene.

[50] The North Side is a light commercial and working-class residential area of the city, with Chenango Street serving as its major artery.

Across the Chenango River lies the West Side, a primarily residential neighborhood along the banks of the Susquehanna that has a combination of family homes, student housing, and stately mansions.

Main Street's large supermarkets, pharmacies, bank branches, pubs, restaurants, auto shops, and a few strip malls form the West Side's commercial corridor.

[52] It is also home to several large supermarkets, churches, pharmacies, bank branches, a few bars and restaurants as well as mom and pop shops that provide such goods as video games and music.

Many Irish, Italians, and Eastern Europeans settled in the area, and the American Civic Association was created to help their transition to life and assimilation in the United States.

[20][67] This has had a lasting effect on the city, which sports many churches and contemporary ethnic festivals, along with a population that is still predominantly white (though steadily decreasing in proportion).

The First Ward, the historic home to much of the city's Eastern European population, houses several gold domed Orthodox churches.

[8] Several other notable businesses started in Binghamton, such as Valvoline,[75] the Nineteen Hundred Washer Company (which merged to form Whirlpool),[76] and Dr. Kilmer's Swamp Root, a famous patent medicine.

[84] Upstate Medical University has worked to expand its clinical campus by establishing a permanent home at the former New York State Inebriate Asylum on the East Side.

Downtown Binghamton is home to a Boscov's department store,[92] and the development of large student housing projects has led to a resurgence of restaurants and service-oriented businesses.

[120] Residents of Binghamton typically speak the Inland Northern dialect of American English, and the region falls within a distinct set of isoglosses that also contain Buffalo, Rochester, and Syracuse.

The former Binghamton Mets have sent stars like Daniel Murphy, Noah Syndergaard, Steven Matz, Juan Lagares, José Reyes, David Wright, Preston Wilson, Ike Davis, Zack Wheeler, Edgardo Alfonzo, Jon Niese, Pete Alonso and Jay Payton to the majors.

The B-Sens sent players such as Jason Spezza, Robin Lehner, Chris Kelly, Jakob Silfverberg, and Jean-Gabriel Pageau to the NHL.

An expansion team in the Federal Prospects Hockey League (FPHL) called the Binghamton Black Bears replaced the Devils at the Veterans Memorial Arena starting with the 2021–22 season.

[142] In addition to its downtown campus, the university operates the Southern Tier High Technology Incubator in the city,[84] and it is restoring the New York State Inebriate Asylum on the East Side for future use.

[144] Formerly specializing in technical education, SUNY Broome started in downtown Binghamton and stood at the Washington Street Armory until a fire in 1951.

[151] The market is served by TV stations affiliated with the major American broadcast networks, including WBNG-TV 12 (CBS/CW), WBGH-CD 20 (NBC), WIVT 34 (ABC), and WICZ-TV 40 (Fox).

Transit, a daily bus service provided by Broome County, offers public transportation in Binghamton and outlying areas.

Short Line Buses offer service to Olean, Ithaca, Utica, Albany, New York City, and Long Island.

Located 10 miles (16 km) north of downtown, it currently has non-stop flights to Detroit on Delta Air Lines and to Orlando, Florida on Avelo Airlines.