Prehistoric Cropmarks and the discovery of polished
handaxes in the area surrounding Barton-upon-Humber suggest that the area was inhabited at least as far back as the
Neolithic (circa 4000 to circa 2,500 BCE).
Roman No Roman settlement has been found in Barton-upon-Humber, though individual discoveries dating to the
Roman period have been made: in 1828 a Roman
cremation and an
inhumation were discovered, in 1967 part of a
Roman road was excavated near Bereton school (now Baysgarth school), and other finds of coins, potteries,
querns, and other Roman objects have been made. The
Deepdale Hoard was discovered in the vicinity in 1979.
Anglo-Saxon , now administered by
English Heritage An Anglo-Saxon
inhumation cemetery was discovered at Castledyke South during the construction of air raid shelters in 1939. The cemetery, believed to have been in use from the late 5th or early 6th century until the late 7th century, was investigated and partially excavated during 1975 to 1990. The skeletal remains of 227 individuals were identified, including one who had undergone (and survived) trepanning. The Castledyke South area has been suggested to be the site of the
Battle of Brunanburh (AD 937), one of the most defining battles in the history of the British Isles. Historical sources tell of a huge fleet of warships entering the
Humber led by
Olaf Guthfrithsson. Olaf and a coalition force were overwhelmed in battle by King
Æthelstan and his army, after which the defeated warriors and their leaders were said to have escaped in their ships.
Medieval The name Barton derives from the
Old English bere-tūn meaning a '
barley farm'. Barton is mentioned as a medieval borough in documents dating from 1086, 1216–1272 and 1298. A ferry to Hull was first recorded in 1086. The oldest residential building in Barton is
51 Fleetgate: it dates back to 1325 with the majority of the front of the building dating to 1425. The Medieval manor in Barton was
Tyrwhitt Hall which dates to at least the 15th century.
Churches There are two medieval churches extant in Barton-upon-Humber,
St Peter's and
St Mary's, located only about 170 yards apart. St Peter's is a large, mostly
Anglo-Saxon church. The
Church of England made it redundant in 1972, after which the remains of some 2,750 people were removed. The significance of the human remains lies in their representing the pathology of an isolated community over the period ca. 950-ca. 1850. The church was reopened in May 2007 as a resource for medical research into the development of diseases and
ossuary practices. An excavation report on this, one of England's most extensively investigated parish churches, was published in 2007. St. Peter's predates St. Mary's, which may have originated as a
chapel on the original market place. St. Mary's was enlarged and increased in importance as the town's trade thrived in the 12th and 13th centuries.
18th century • William Hall's
Barton Ropery opened in 1767.
19th century under conversion into flats (2006) • The
United Reformed Church (originally the Providence Chapel) was opened in 1806. • A Temperance Hall was opened in 1843 and latterly converted into the
Assembly Rooms in 1906. • The
Police Station and Magistrates Court was opened in 1847. • The first public train arrived in Barton-upon-Humber on 1 March 1849; this fact is commemorated by a
blue plaque at the modern railway station. • The
Corn Exchange, which was later converted into a private club, opened in 1854. • The
Trinity Methodist Church was built in 1860–1861. • The
Oddfellow's Hall was constructed in 1864. It latterly served as Barton's first cinema, a
roller skating rink, a
dance hall during the Second World War, and as offices and private accommodations. • What is now the
Salvation Army Citadel was first opened as a
Primitive Methodist Chapel in 1867. • In 1880 Fred Hopper started a
bicycle repair business in a former
blacksmith's shop in the town. He soon began manufacturing bicycles, and after buying the Elswick Cycle Company of Newcastle,
Northumberland in 1910, developed the renamed
Elswick Hopper into a major manufacturer.
20th century • The war memorial records the deaths of 165 men from Barton who died fighting in the
First World War. The memorial was unveiled on 3 April 1921 and is a Grade II listed structure. • A further 48 men and women who died fighting in the
Second World War are also recorded on the memorial. • The Star Theatre was opened on Fleetgate around 1934. By 1953 it had been renamed the Star cinema. It closed in June 1957 and was subsequently demolished. ==Education==