The name Yarm is thought to be derived from the Old English gearum, dative plural of gear, 'pool for catching fish' (source of the modern dialect word yair with the same meaning), hence 'at the place of the fish pools'.

[7] On 1 February 1643, during the First English Civil War, a small Roundhead force attempted to halt the progress of a large waggon-train of arms, landed at Tynemouth and destined to bolster the Royalist war effort in Yorkshire and beyond.

[9] In 1890, Bulmer & Co listed twelve inns in Yarm: Black Bull, Cross Keys, Crown Inn, Fleece, George and Dragon, Green Tree, Ketton Ox, Lord Nelson, Red Lion, Three Tuns, Tom Brown, and Union.

It formed part of the Stokesley Rural District under the Local Government Act 1894, and remained so until 1 April 1974 when, under the Local Government Act 1972, it became part of the district of Stockton-on-Tees in the new non-metropolitan county of Cleveland.

[18] Yarm Town Hall in the High Street was built in 1710 by Thomas Belasyse, 3rd Viscount Fauconberg who was Lord of the Manor.

The A67, which runs through High Street was previously classified as the A19 until a dual carriageway was built in the 1970s, about three miles (five kilometres) south of the town near the village of Crathorne.

[21] The classification of the road as an 'A'-road meant that it was difficult to place a ban on heavy goods vehicles; however the town council made efforts to come up with voluntary agreements with many haulage firms[21] until 2012, when all HGV traffic was banned from the route through Yarm and Eaglescliffe.

[22] The Rookery is a public area by the River Tees situated at the bottom of Goose Pasture.

The ash, sycamore and lime woodland is about 200 years old and owned by Yarm Town Council.

[23] In 2002, a walkway was constructed around the wood to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II.

Within the woodland, close to the river, BMX riders have created numerous dirt ramps which are regularly used during summer months.

Areas of Yarm include the housing estates Levendale in the southeast and Leven Park in the south.

Yarm is part of the Stockton South constituency, currently represented in the House of Commons by Matt Vickers of the Conservative Party.

The Yarm ward, including Kirklevington, is currently represented by three Conservative Party councillors on Stockton Borough Council.

Designed by Thomas Grainger and John Bourne, it comprises seven million bricks and 43 arches, with the two that span the River Tees being skewed stone.

[29] The Roman Catholic (RC) church of Ss Mary and Romuald, built in 1860, is at the south end of High Street.

[citation needed] Yarm and Eaglescliffe FC play in the Northern Football League, it was established in 2017.

Other sports facilities within Yarm include 4G football pitch, located at Conyers' School.

In 2016, the Go-Sport group hosted an FA-accredited 11-a-side Midweek Football League, contested by various local clubs, including TIBS F.C.

[38] The Princess Alexandra Auditorium is a 750-seat venue opened in 2012 as a part of Yarm School’s redevelopment.