Broome County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 United States census, the county had a population of 198,683. Its county seat is Binghamton. The county was named for John Broome, the state's lieutenant governor when Broome County was created. The county is part of the Southern Tier region of the state.
The county is part of the Binghamton, New York Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is home to Binghamton University, one of four university centers in the State University of New York (SUNY) system.
History When counties were established in the Province of New York in 1683, the present Broome County was part of the enormous Albany County, including the northern part of New York State as well as all of the present State of Vermont and, in theory, extending westward to the Pacific Ocean. This county was reduced in size on July 3, 1766, by the creation of Cumberland County, and further on March 16, 1770, by the creation of Gloucester County, both containing territory now in Vermont.
On March 12, 1772, what was left of Albany County was split into three parts, one remaining under the name Albany County. One of the other pieces, Tryon County, contained the western portion (and thus, since no western boundary was specified, theoretically still extended west to the Pacific). The eastern boundary of Tryon County was approximately five miles west of the present city of Schenectady, and the county included the western part of the Adirondack Mountains and the area west of the West Branch of the Delaware River. The area then designated as Tryon County now is organized as 37 counties of New York State. The county was named for William Tryon, colonial governor of New York.
In the years prior to 1776, most of the Loyalists in Tryon County fled to Canada. In 1784, following the peace treaty that ended the American Revolutionary War, the name of Tryon County was changed to Montgomery County, for General Richard Montgomery, who had captured several places in Canada and died attempting to capture the city of Quebec, thus replacing the name of the hated British governor.
In 1789, Montgomery County was reduced in size by the splitting off of Ontario County. The actual area split off from Montgomery County was much larger than the present county, also including the present Allegany, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Erie, Genesee, Livingston, Monroe, Niagara, Orleans, Steuben, Wyoming, Yates, and part of Schuyler and Wayne Counties.
In 1791, Tioga County split off from Montgomery County, along with Herkimer and Otsego Counties. Tioga County was at this time much larger than the present county and included the present Broome and Chemung Counties and parts of Chenango and Schuyler Counties.
In 1798, Tioga County was reduced in size by the splitting off of Chemung County (which also included part of the present Schuyler County) and by the combination of a portion with a portion of Herkimer County to create Chenango County.
On March 28, 1806, Broome County was formed by splitting several towns off from Tioga County. At the time, this included all of Broome County's current area, as well as the then-named town of Tioga (renamed the town of Owego in 1813) and the town of Berkshire. Small portions of land were lost to Cortland County and Tompkins County in 1815 and 1817, respectively. The towns of Owego and Berkshire were returned to Tioga County on March 21, 1822, establishing the present-day boundaries of Broome County.
Geography
Broome County lies on the southern line of New York. Its southern border abuts the northern boundary of the state of Pennsylvania. The Susquehanna River flows southward through the eastern part of the county, enters Susquehanna County in Pennsylvania, then re-enters Broome and flows northwestward to meet the Chenango River at Binghamton. The combined flow moves west-southwestward into Tioga County to the west. The West Branch Delaware River flows southward along the lower portion of the county's east border, delineating that portion of the border between Broome and Delaware counties.Broome County NY - Google Maps (accessed June 14, 2019)
The county's western portion is hilly, with wide valleys that accommodate Binghamton and its suburbs. In the northern portion, Interstate 81 traverses a wide glacial valley. The eastern part of the county is much more rugged, as the land rises to the Catskill Mountains. The terrain generally slopes to the west. The county's highest point is in the southeast of the county, a U.S. National Geodetic Survey benchmark known as Slawson atop an unnamed hill in the Town of Sanford. It is approximately above sea level.Another website lists the Benchmark's elevation as ASL: Slawson Benchmark, New York (PeakBagger.com) Accessed 14 June 2019 An area due east on the Delaware County line in Oquaga Creek State Park also lies within the same elevation contour line. The lowest point is above sea level, along the Susquehanna River, at the Pennsylvania state line.
The county has a total area of , of which is land and (1.4%) is water.
Adjacent counties
Chenango County – northeast Delaware County – east Wayne County, Pennsylvania – southeast Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania – south Tioga County – west Cortland County – northwest
Protected areas Source:
Aqua-Terra Wilderness Area Beaver Flow State Forest (part) Beaver Pond State Forest Cascade Valley State Forest Cat Hollow State Forest Chenango Valley State Park Dorchester County Park Greenwood County Park (part) Hawkins Pond State Forest Marsh Pond State Forest Nathaniel Cole County Park Oquaga Creek State Park (part) Skyline Drive State Forest Triangle State Forest Whitney Point Multiple Use Area (part) Whittacker Swamp State Forest
Lakes Source:
Agwaterra Pond Blueberry Lake Chenango Lake Deer Lake Fly Pond Hawkins Pond Hust Pond Laurel Lake Lily Lake Nanticoke Lake Oquaga Lake Otselic River Potato Creek Sky Lake Summit Lake
Major highways
/ Quickway
Demographics
2020 census +Broome County, New York – Racial and ethnic compositionRace / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)Pop 1980Pop 1990Pop 2000Pop 2010 Pop 2020% 1980% 1990% 2000% 2010% 2020White alone (NH)206,697201,385181,339173,074156,17396.75%94.92%90.43%86.28%78.60%Black or African American alone (NH)3,0654,1326,2568,85011,5471.43%1.95%3.12%4.41%5.81%Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)2523383523284130.12%0.16%0.18%0.16%0.21%Asian alone (NH)1,4393,6405,5497,0199,3370.67%1.72%2.77%3.50%4.70%Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)x included in the Asian category in the 1980 Censusx included in the Asian category in the 1990 Census476064xx0.02%0.03%0.03%Other race alone (NH)6441872522428640.30%0.09%0.13%0.12%0.43%Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)x not an option in the 1980 Censusx not an option in the 1990 Census2,7554,24910,000xx1.37%2.12%5.03%Hispanic or Latino (any race)1,5512,4783,9866,77810,2850.73%1.17%1.99%3.38%5.18%Total213,648212,160200,536200,600198,683 100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%
2000 census As of the 2000 United States census, there were 200,536 people, 80,749 households, and 50,225 families in the county. The population density was . There were 88,817 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 91.33% white, 3.28% black or African American, .19% Native American, 2.79% Asian, .03% Pacific Islander, .79% from other races, and 1.59% from two or more races. 1.99% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 16.1% were of Irish, 13.3% Italian, 12.3% German, 11.6% English, 6.4% American and 5.7% Polish ancestry according to the census. 91.4% spoke English, 2.0% Spanish and 1.1% Italian as their first language.
There were 80,749 households, out of which 28.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.60% were married couples living together, 10.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.80% were non-families. 31.00% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 2.97.
The county population contained 23.00% under the age of 18, 11.00% from 18 to 24, 26.80% from 25 to 44, 22.80% from 45 to 64, and 16.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 93.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.90 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $35,347, and the median income for a family was $45,422. Males had a median income of $34,426 versus $24,542 for females. The per capita income for the county was $19,168. About 8.80% of families and 12.80% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.90% of those under age 18 and 7.20% of those age 65 or over.
Climate Broome has a warm-summer humid continental climate (Dfb) and the hardiness zone is mainly 5b.
Government and politics For the past few decades, Broome County has been a swing county. Since 1964 the county has selected Democratic and Republican party candidates at approximately the same rate in national elections (as of 2024). The more recent elections had favored the Democratic candidate, until Donald Trump carried the county in 2016, the first Republican to win the county since Ronald Reagan in 1984. Joe Biden carried Broome with 50.5% of the vote in 2020. In 2024, the county went for Democrat Kamala Harris, although she only managed to carry it by a 379-vote plurality. In Broome County, Democratic strength comes primarily from Binghamton and its suburbs, such as Johnson City and Endicott, while Republicans dominate the outer, rural parts of the county.
Broome County's offices are housed in the Edwin L. Crawford County Office Building of Government Plaza located at 60 Hawley Street in Downtown Binghamton.
Executive
+ Broome County Executives Name Party Term Edwin L. Crawford Republican 1969–1976 Donald L. McManus Democratic 1977–1980 Carl S. Young Republican 1981–1988 Timothy M. Grippen Democratic 1989–1996 Jeffrey P. Kraham Republican 1997–2004 Barbara J. Fiala Democratic 2005–Apr. 15, 2011 Patrick J. Brennan Democratic Apr. 16, 2011–Dec. 31, 2011 Debra A. Preston Republican Jan. 1, 2012–Dec. 31, 2016Jason T. Garnar DemocraticJan. 1, 2017–
Legislature The Broome County Legislature consists of 15 members. The 15 legislature members are elected from individual districts. As of 2026, there are 10 Republicans and 5 Democrats.
+ Broome County Legislature District Legislator Title Party Residence 1 Stephen J. Flagg Republican Colesville 2 Scott D. Baker Republican Windsor 3 Kelly F. Wildoner Republican Conklin 4 Kim A. Myers Minority Leader Democratic Vestal 5 Daniel J. Reynolds Chair Republican Vestal 6 Greg W. Baldwin Republican Endicott 7 Matthew J. Pasquale Majority Leader Republican Endicott 8 Jason E. Shaw Republican Endwell 9 Matthew J. Hilderbrant Republican Whitney Point 10 Erin V. Micha Republican Fenton 11 Susan V. Ryan Democratic Binghamton 12 Louis P. Augostini Republican Dickinson 13 Robert Weslar Democratic Binghamton 14 Mary Kaminsky Democratic Binghamton 15 Timothy D. Ames Democratic Binghamton
Party affiliation +Voter registration as of February 21, 2020 Party Active voters Inactive voters Total voters Percentage Democratic 44,335 5,694 50,029 37.59% Republican 41,318 3,895 45,213 33.97% Unaffiliated 23,535 4,051 27,586 20.73% Other 8,980 1,273 10,253 7.70% Total 118,168 14,913 133,081 100%
Law enforcement In Broome County, law enforcement services are provided by local, county, state, and federal law enforcement professionals.
At the federal level:
United States Marshals Service (located in the federal courthouse in downtown Binghamton) Customs and Border Protection (Greater Binghamton Airport located in Johnson City) Transportation Security Administration (Greater Binghamton Airport located in Johnson City)