Marlinton, West Virginia, was named for Jacob Marlin, who along with Stephen Sewell became the first non-native settlers west of the Allegheny Mountains in the Greenbrier Valley in 1749. Marlinton was originally known as Marlin's Bottom, but the name was changed to Marlinton in 1886.
Jacob Marlin was born in Connecticut in 1719. He came to the Greenbrier Valley in 1749 with Stephen Sewell, a fellow New Englander. The two men built a cabin in what would become Marlinton, but after various religious disputes, Sewell moved into a nearby hollowed-out sycamore tree. In 1751, surveyor John Lewis discovered the pair. Sewell eventually settled on the eastern side of Sewell Mountain, near present-day Rainelle.
Marlin remained in Marlinton and became a prominent figure in the community. He served as a justice of the peace, a member of the House of Burgesses, and a colonel in the militia. He died in 1783.
The town of Marlinton grew slowly in the early years, but it began to develop more rapidly in the late 19th century. The arrival of the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway in 1890 helped to spur growth, and the town was incorporated in 1900. Today, Marlinton is the county seat of Pocahontas County and a popular tourist destination.
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