former county, NE England, created under the Local Government Act of 1972 (effective 1974). It was composed of the county boroughs of Hartlepool and Teeside and parts of the former counties of Durham and Yorkshire (North Riding). In 1997, Cleveland was dissolved and the unitary authorities of Hartlepool, Middlesbrough, Redcar and Cleveland, and Stockton-on-Tees were created.
