They surrendered the land to the colonial government in the Anglo-Maasai agreement of 1911 and were subsequently pushed towards Trans Mara District.

In 1908, fifty-eight families of Afrikaans-speaking South Africans settled in the Uasin Gishu plateau.

Its the 11th richest County in Africa with a gdp per Capita of $2,050 Uasin Gishu along with neighbouring Trans-Nzoia, are considered Kenya's breadbasket due to their large-scale maize and wheat farms which produce the bulk of the country's total harvest.

[11] The National Cereals Board has a cereal storage depot located at Moi's Bridge town located in the north of the county, which consists of eight large silos with a capacity of approximately 5 million tonnes of grain.

The county also has many private and public dams suitable for capture fisheries with an annual production of 33,048 kg worth KShs 9,914,400.

[13] The county capital, Eldoret, is home to a textile industry as well as East Africa's only manufacturer of small arms and ammunition.

The Eldoret International Airport and two airstrips are also located in the county, all combining to make it the regions service hub.