Susquehanna River, a river in the northeastern United States, draining south-central New York and central Pennsylvania. It begins in several head-streams near Otsego Lake in New York and flows generally southward for 458 miles (737 km) to empty into Chesapeake Bay at Havre de Grace, Maryland. Principal tributaries include the Chenango, Chemung, West Branch Susquehanna, and Juniata rivers. Swift and shallow, the Susquehanna is unsuited to navigation but has been harnessed for hydroelectric power in Pennsylvania and Maryland. Chief cities on or near the river are Binghamton, in New York, and Scranton, Wilkes-Barre, and Harrisburg, in Pennsylvania.