Italian Festival And Parade In Binghamton Is Back For The 64th Year

Who loves a parade? We do! And it's been a while since we've had a parade in Downtown Binghamton. But the time for another is almost here.

Binghamton Mayor Jared Kraham along with members of the Binghamton Italian-American community, announced earlier this week, the details for the 64th annual Columbus Day parade on Monday October 9th in Downtown Binghamton.

At 9 a.m. on Monday, the annual flag raising ceremony will occur outside of Binghamton City Hall with a performance by Felix Tomlinson from the Tri-Cities Opera, followed by the parade at 10 a.m.

The annual Tournament of Marching Bands will once again be a big part of the parade with several New York State and Commonwealth of Pennsylvania high school bands including Union-Endicott, Johnson City, Whitney Point and Chenango Forks from New York State along with the Williamson Warriors from Tioga, Pennsylvania and Athens Area Schools from Athens, Pennsylvania.

Every year, this event draws people from across the Southern Tier to downtown Binghamton to celebrate our area’s proud Italian-American community. It’s a day filled with delicious homemade Italian food, family friendly entertainment and performances by some of our area’s most talented young musicians. - Binghamton Mayor Jared M. Kraham

The parade will kickoff at 10 a.m. near the intersection of Main and Arthur streets, with the Binghamton High School Steel Drum leading off the music segment of the parade.

The parade will head east on Main Street and end in front of the Broome County Courthouse, and in addition to the bands, also feature local Italian fraternal organizations, police and fire agencies, antique vehicles, local sports organizations, regional marching bands and other groups according to Mayor Kraham's Office. 

The marching bands will compete in front of judges on Court Street between Water and Washington Street. And once again, the Italian Festival will be set up on Water Street, close to Court Street from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. featuring live music and food for sale.