A Brief History
of the
East Riding

Yorkshire was for centuries the largest county in England.  For administrative purposes it was divided into three districts called 'ridings' (from the Viking word meaning a third) - East, North and West - centred upon the city of York.  York itself lay in all three Ridings.   The East Riding was the smallest of the three.  If you want to see its exact whereabouts, click on the small map.

In 1974, many county boundaries were changed as a result of local government reorganisation.  Some counties disappeared completely and new ones were created.  Most of the East Riding of Yorkshire was joined with the northern part of Lincolnshire in a new county called Humberside.  Locally, this was a very unpopular move prompting vociferous protests.   In some quarters, the very name Humberside became a dirty word.

In 1996, Humberside was abolished as part of another round of local government reorganisation.  The former name was resurrected to describe an area similar to, but not the same as, the old East Riding.

As these pages are concerned with the history of the East Riding, it is the pre-1974 area which is being described.