The date of earliest habitation at Bridlington is unknown, but the 2.5-mile (4 km) man-made Danes Dyke at nearby Flamborough Head goes back to the Bronze Age.

[7] In the fourth century AD, Count Theodosius set up signal stations on the North Yorkshire coast to warn of Saxon raids.

Another station at Flamborough Head is also believed to have had one – probably on Beacon Hill (now a gravel quarry) from where Filey, Scarborough Castle and the Whitby promontory can be seen.

Here the personal names advanced include Bretel, Bridla and Berhtel, attached to -ingtūn, an Old English term for a small farming community.

The 1086 Domesday Book is earliest known reference to Bridlington being record as Bretlinton:[17] the settlement has since been called Berlington, Brellington and Britlington before gaining its present name in the 19th century.

[20] After the Dissolution of the Monasteries, the manor of Bridlington remained with the Crown until 1624, when Charles I passed it to Sir John Ramsey, who had recently been created Earl of Holderness.

[14] In 1643 Queen Henrietta Maria of France landed there with troops to support the Royalist cause in the English Civil War, before moving on to York, which became her headquarters.

[citation needed] Decline in the popularity of seaside tourism in the 1960s, reduced the number of pleasure steamers working from the harbour.

The Town Council coat of arms is described as:Per Sable and Argent three Gothic Capital letters B counterchanged on a Chief embattled of the second two Barrulets wavy Azure and for the Crest Issuant from a Coronet composed of eight Roses set upon a rim of a Sun rising Gules.

From 1950 to 1997, Bridlington had its own MP, until reform extended the boundary to include more countryside, as the single-seat East Yorkshire constituency.

Local government reorganisation in 1974 included it in the new county of Humberside, which caused resentment among residents against being excluded from Yorkshire.

The Gypsey Race river flows through the town, the last 1⁄2 mi (800 m) being below ground from the Quay Road Car Park.

The solid geology of the area is mainly from the Cretaceous period, consisting of Chalk overlain by Quaternary Boulder clay.

[30] Southwards the coast becomes low, but northwards it is steep and very fine, where the great spur of Flamborough Head projects eastwards.

Although the fishing fleet also declined, the port remains popular with sea anglers for trips along the coast or further out to local shipwrecks.

Bridlington has lucrative shellfish exports to France, Spain and Italy, said to be worth several million pounds a year.

In January 2014, Bridlington Leisure World on the Promenade, with its swimming facilities, gymnasium and indoor bowling rinks, closed for redevelopment.

A temporary Olympic legacy pool was opened by Jo Jackson in January 2014 at the Bridlington Sports Centre on Gypsey Road,[42] while Leisure World was rebuilt.

On the opposite side, closer to the town centre, is the fire station, established in 1960, with a mix of full-time and on-call crew.

It also has a large four-manual organ that boasts the widest "scaled" 32-foot reed (contra tuba) in the United Kingdom.

Bridlington's war memorial is located in a triangular patch of garden at the junction of Prospect Street and Wellington Road.

It was unveiled on 10 July 1921 by Captain S. H. Radcliffe, C. M. G., R. N.[59] Bridlington Cemetery in Sewerby Road dates from the 19th century and includes 73 Commonwealth War Graves.

[60] The Grade II listed Gothic cemetery chapels, gatehouse and lodge were built in 1869 by the architect Alfred Smith of Nottingham.

[62] In 2014 blue plaques went up for Herman Darewski, composer and conductor of light music,[63] and Wallace Hartley, leader of the orchestra playing as the Titanic sank.

'Promenade' by Bruce McLean and Mel Gooding with architects Bauman Lyon runs the length of the South Foreshore and encompasses beach huts, a metal sculpture and public showers as well as a nautical mile of text that references aspects of the locale.

[66] East Yorkshire Motor Services has a depot,[67] running nine local and six out-of-town bus routes, including York, Scarborough, Driffield, Beverley and Hull.

[69] Two run on the North Promenade between Leisure World and Sewerby Hall and Gardens linking Bridlington town centre with the summer car parks.

In May 2018 they were obliged by NHS England to reopen their lists, but there was no funding for a proposed Health and Wellbeing Centre, which was to have housed five surgeries.

The team's honours include the FA Vase in 1993, three NCEL Premier Division titles and 15 East Riding Senior Cup's.

It currently plays home matches at Bridlington Astro Centre in Bessingby Road, and also field two ladies' sides and a junior development section for girls and boys.