Yarmouth, seaport and par., Isle of Wight, at mouth of river Yar, 10 miles W. of Newport, 58 ac. and 66 tidal water and foreshore, pop. 787; P.O., T.O., 2 Banks. Yarmouth was anciently called Eremuth, and was once a place of some importance, being much frequented as a port of communication with the mainland. It suffered severely from the French in 1277 and 1524, and in 1539 was protected by a castle, now a semicircular battery, armed with four guns. Yarmouth was early made a chartered incorporation, and it sent 2 members to Parliament from the time of Elizabeth till 1832. The trade of the place consists in the importation of cattle, coals, slate, and iron. A new pier, 700 ft. long, was opened in 1876.

(John Bartholomew, Gazetteer of the British Isles (1887))