Successful National Hunt jockey Brian Hughes lives in the village Carlton was first mentioned in the Domesday Book in 1086.

The village was in the Hambleton district until 2023 and never formed part of the county of Cleveland, which existed from 1974 to 1996.

The present St Botolph's Church, Carlton in Cleveland, was completed in 1897.

[6] On 10 August 2003, a thunderstorm dropped 1.9 inches (49 mm) of rain on the village in less than 13 minutes.

The recording is held by the Met Office to be the most accurate rainfall measurement in the British Isles.