In 1813 the State Legislature authorized the formation of a fire department, however, no steps were taken until May 3, 1834 when a legislative act authorized the Trustees of the Village of Binghamton to establish and organize fire and hook and ladder companies of not more than sixteen members each. The Village of Binghamton was incorporated to City status by the State Legislature in 1867 and the Fire Department became the Fire Department of the City of Binghamton on April 23, 1869.

In the early 1900's, the City started to take over the various fire companies that the volunteers had manned and the first paid firefighters were hired. On October 1, 1911 the fire department became fully paid with a complement of 91 officers and firefighters. In 1920, thirty more firefighters were hired to the force. The first motorized apparatus was purchased in 1910 and was a Cadillac for the Chief of Department. The last horses were retired from service in 1922.

Today, the department is comprised of a staff of one hundred nineteen career firefighters and three civilian employees operating out of five fire stations and a training facility. In 2020, the Fire Department responded to 10155 calls for service. In 2011, the original Binghamton Fire Department Squad Company 1, a 1929 Larabee built here in Hillcrest, was donated back to the fire department by the VanHart family.