Fulton County was created on April 19, 1851, from part of Bedford County and named for Robert Fulton, the inventor who pioneered in the use of the steamboat. McConnellsburg, the county seat, was laid out by Daniel McConnell in 1786.

Settlement of Fulton County began in the early 1700s and was greatly influenced by the settlement patterns of a nation of pioneers and the roads carved by them and the early industrialists.

By 1850, many residents of this region wished to create a new county from the eastern edge of Bedford County. The Pennsylvania House of Representatives passed a bill to create a new county, to be called "Liberty". John Pott of Ayr Township here convinced several Senators to support the bill, but it was amended to change the name to Fulton in recognition of Robert Fulton, steamboat inventor from Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

Sometime between 1743 and 1748, Adam McConnell and his three sons came to the Great Cove from eastern Pennsylvania. They followed the pack horse trail from Lancaster. By the end of the French & Indian War, 30 families were living in the Great Cove. Son William McConnell established a bridle path from Cove Gap to Sideling Hill Mountain (near Breezewood) to join the Forbes Road in 1761. This was the first public road through the Great Cove. Today, Routes 16 and 30 (the Lincoln Highway) follow this early path. Daniel McConnell deeded over his land for the town of McConnellsburg in 1786.