Binghamton, New York

Binghamton is a city in upstate New York in the United States. It is the county seat of Broome County. The population of the City of Binghamton, according to the 2000 Census, is 47,380 (1990 Census: 53,008).

History

Early history

The city was named after William Bingham, a wealthy Philadelphian who bought the surrounding land in 1792. Before that, the first known people of European descent to come to the area were the troops of Gen. John Sullivan in 1779, during the American Revolutionary War.

Related Topics:
William Bingham - 1792 - John Sullivan - 1779 - American Revolutionary War

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Binghamton was incorporated as a village in 1834 within the Town of Binghamton and became a city in 1867.

Related Topics:
Village - 1834 - Town of Binghamton - City - 1867

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Binghamton was nicknamed the ?Parlor City? for its neat streets and attractive homes, including many stately mansions. Now, ironically, many of those stately mansions are now ?funeral parlors? (i.e., funeral homes.) During the late 1800s and early 1900s, many immigrants moved to the area, finding an abundance of jobs, leading them to call it the ?Valley of Opportunity.? However, during the 1920s, Binghamton was also the regional headquarters of the Ku Klux Klan in the Northeastern United States.

Related Topics:
Funeral home - 1800s - 1900s - 1920s - Ku Klux Klan

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Binghamton is noted as being the birthplace of both IBM and the Link flight simulator. It is also famous for Dr. Kilmer?s Swamp Root and the invention of margarine. Until the Cold War ended, the area never experienced an economic downfall, due in part to the generosity of employers (IBM and Endicott-Johnson) and also because of its defense-heavy industries. This concentration of the defense industry made the area the seventh most likely area in the nation for a nuclear attack during the Cold War, and the population peaked at around 85,000 in 1950.

Related Topics:
IBM - Link flight simulator - Margarine - Cold War - 1950

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Binghamton is known as the ?Carousel Capital of the World? for its collection of historic carousels located in public parks around the area.

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Famous residents

Famous people from Binghamton include Rod Serling (creator of The Twilight Zone) and Johnny Hart (cartoonist of B.C. and The Wizard of Id). Richard Deacon of The Dick Van Dyke Show also worked as an orderly in City Hospital, now known as Binghamton General Hospital. Binghamton scientist Edwin A. Link invented the Flight Simulator used for pilot training and video interface technology.

Related Topics:
Rod Serling - The Twilight Zone - Johnny Hart - B.C. - The Wizard of Id - Richard Deacon - The Dick Van Dyke Show - Edwin A. Link

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