Downtown Fulton, stretching along 4th Street between 10th and 12th avenues, is the historic commercial heart of this Mississippi River town. Originally named Baker’s Ferry in 1835 and renamed for steamboat pioneer Robert Fulton, the area grew as a key transfer and warehouse port by the mid-1800s. The arrival of multiple railroads in the 1850s connected Fulton to major cities like Chicago and St. Louis, while the early 20th-century Lincoln Highway added a vital road link across the Mississippi via the Lyons-Fulton Bridge. This convergence of river, rail, and road traffic fueled a prosperous commercial district filled with Italianate-style masonry buildings housing groceries, department stores, and restaurants. Today, the downtown area’s cohesive historic architecture, spanning 1856 to 1956, reflects Fulton’s rich river town heritage and is recognized on the National Register of Historic Places.