Marlinton was known as Marlin’s Bottom until 1886 when its name was changed to Marlinton. The development of the town was closely linked to the expanding railroad and timber industry in the area around the turn of the century. In 1890, John T. McGraw bought land in the area of the future town, which had been discussed as a logical location to build a Chesapeake & Ohio (C&O) Railway connection. At this point, Marlinton was not yet a town, but plans were laid out and it was advertised as “a place where a town would be built.”