South Yorkshire is a metropolitan county in England. It borders onto Derbyshire, West Yorkshire, North Yorkshire, East Riding of Yorkshire, Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire. It was created as a metropolitan county in 1974 the southern part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, as a result of the Local Government Act 1972. The principal settlements of South Yorkshire are: Sheffield, an industrial city known for steel and cutlery - England's fourth city and the only one in the county; Doncaster, a large town, bigger than most cities in England, and traditionally a central hub of the nation's rail network; Rotherham, an industrial town that lies between Sheffield and Doncaster, on the River Don; Barnsley, a market town on the river Dearne, and the administrative centre of the county. Each of these settlements gives its name to a metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire - the City of Sheffield, the borough of Doncaster, the borough of Barnsley and the borough of Rotherham.
In 1986, the metropolitan county councils were abolished, with control devolving to the boroughs. These metropolitan districts are now part of the larger region of Yorkshire and the Humber.
