Bessingby appears to be a site of Prehistoric and
Roman occupation. Fragments of
Neolithic axes have been discovered, and
cropmarks indicating
trackways, ditch
boundaries and
enclosures have been seen at Bessingby High Field, to the south of the village, and just to the east, near to the A165 road. A further archeological site is that of a now non-existent water mill, noted as extant in 1418, that could have been sited on
Gypsey Race. The name Bessingby derives from the
Old Norse Besingbȳ or
Basingbȳ meaning 'Besing's' or 'Basing's village'. In the
Domesday Book of 1086 the village is written as “Basingebi”or “Basinghebi”. It consisted of 3
villagers, 1
freeman and 4
burgesses, 37
ploughlands, 1.5 plough teams, a meadow of and a church. In 1066
lordship of the manor was held by
Earl Morcar, being transferred to
King William in 1086. The Conqueror gave the village to Gilbert de Gant, his nephew; its ownership was later transferred to
Bridlington Priory during the reign of
Henry I. In 1808 Benjamin Pitt Capper recorded 17 houses and a Bessingby population of 87. By 1837
Moule noted 83 inhabitants, and St Magnus's church, rebuilt in 1766, containing monuments to H. Hudson (d.1826), and his wife Lady Ann (d.1818). Hudson's seat was Bessingby Hall at the north of the village, inherited by his son
Sir James Hudson (1810–1885), a private secretary under
William IV, later in
Foreign Service at
Rio de Janeiro and
Turin. In July 1825
William Scoresby, Arctic explorer and scientist, became curate of Bessingby, before leaving to become Chaplain of the Mariners' Church, a floating ministry at
Liverpool, in November 1826. In 1892 Bessingby and its parish contained 171 inhabitants, within an area of . Agricultural production was chiefly wheat, oats and beans. By then, the manor, Hall and estate had been purchased from the Hudson family by George Wright
JP, On 1 April 1935 the civil parish was abolished and merged with Bridlington and
Carnaby. ==Buildings==