Editing Sutton, West Virginia (section)

==History==
Sutton was settled in 1792 by Adam O'Brien, from [[Bath County, Virginia]]. In 1809, John D. Sutton settled at the confluence of [[Granny's Creek]] and the [[Elk River (West Virginia)|Elk River]], at the edge of the present town. The village of Suttonville, formerly known as Newville, was laid out in 1835. When Braxton County was formed in 1836, the first court was held in the home of John D. Sutton.<ref name="e-WV">{{cite web|url=http://www.wvencyclopedia.org/articles/650|title=The West Virginia Encyclopedia: Sutton |date=November 5, 2010|access-date=July 23, 2011 |author= Michael Gioulis|publisher=West Virginia Humanities Council}}</ref>

Sutton was a transportation hub. In addition to the navigable Elk River, the [[Weston and Gauley Bridge Turnpike]] connected the [[Staunton and Parkersburg Turnpike]] to the [[James River and Kanawha Turnpike]], via Sutton. A [[suspension bridge]] was constructed on the Weston and Gauley Bridge Turnpike across the Elk River at Sutton in 1853.<ref name="e-WV"/> Railroads also served the town of Sutton, with the Sutton Branch<ref>{{cite web|title=The Sutton Branch|url=http://www.abandonedrails.com/Sutton_Branch|work=Abandoned Rails|publisher=Greg Harrison|access-date=August 1, 2013}}</ref>  connecting to the [[West Virginia and Pittsburgh Railroad]] at [[Flatwoods, West Virginia]] via McNutt (near the area now called Laurel Court),<ref>{{cite web|title=West Virginia and Pittsburgh Railroad|url=http://www.wvrailroads.net/index.php/West_Virginia_%26_Pittsburgh_Railroad|work=wvrailroads.net|publisher=wvrailroads.net|access-date=July 31, 2013}}</ref> a path that would later be used by [[WV 4|West Virginia State Route 4]]. Another branch that ran along the southeastern bank of the Elk River joined the [[Coal and Coke Railway]] six miles to the east at [[Gassaway, West Virginia|Gassaway]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Sutton|first=John|title=History of Braxton County and Central West Virginia|year=1919|publisher=McClain Printing Company|location=Parsons|isbn=978-0-87012-621-5|page=[https://archive.org/details/historyofbraxton00sutt/page/111 111]|url=https://archive.org/details/historyofbraxton00sutt}}</ref>

Due to its location, Sutton was embroiled in the [[American Civil War]]. On September 5, 1861, the town was occupied by 5,000 Union troops. Later in 1861, General [[William Rosecrans]] bivouacked 10,000 Union troops there, including future President [[William McKinley]]. On December 29, 1861, Confederate soldiers burned most of the downtown.<ref name="e-WV"/>

Sutton slowly rebuilt but remained small until the local timber industry boomed. The town then became a commercial center, and many of the banks, hotels, shops, and other historic buildings in the [[Sutton Downtown Historic District]] date from this 1890–1920 period. After this, Sutton once again slowed in development. [[Sutton Lake (West Virginia)|Sutton Dam]] was built on the Elk River upstream from the town in 1961, adding a tourism component to the local economy.<ref name="e-WV"/>

The [[William Edgar Haymond House]] and [[Old Sutton High School]] are listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]], along with the historic district.<ref name="nris">{{NRISref|version=2009a}}</ref>