The area now called Jacmel was Taíno territory, part of the Xaragua chiefdom ruled by cacique Bohechio.

Today, many of these homes are now artisan shops that sell vibrant handicrafts, papier-mâché masks, and carved-wood animal figures.

The town is a popular tourist destination in Haiti due to its relative tranquility and distance from the political turmoil that plagues Port-au-Prince.

Some of these occurrences are: In 1791 and 1792, Romaine-la-Prophétesse led thirteen thousand rebels in besieging, occupying, and later burning Jacmel, and taking weapons and supplies from (and then burning) surrounding plantations from Marigot, about 25 kilometers east of Jacmel, to Bainet, about 45 kilometers west of it, freeing their slaves.

[8] Toussaint Louverture fought over Jacmel in the so-called War of Knives between him and his fellow countryman André Rigaud, who wished to maintain authority over the city.

By November the rebels were pushed back to this strategic southern port, the defence of which was commanded by Alexandre Pétion.

Puerto Rican pro-independence leader Ramón Emeterio Betances spent a short interval in Jacmel in 1870, from where he gathered support for an uprising in the Dominican Republic, seeking to install a liberal government there.

Among the wealth of art and crafts available in Jacmel are the papier-mâché, done by nearly 200 artisans and the renowned Atelier created by Moro Baruk.

Its carnival, the nearby Bassin Bleu (Haiti's most famous natural deep pools), and the scenic white sand (Timouillage, Cabic, Raymond-les-bains, located primarily in Cayes-Jacmel) beaches attract many visitors.

Royal Caribbean, the leading tourism company whose cruise ships regularly dock at Labadee, plans to add stopovers at Jacmel.

A Jacmel radio station estimated that at least 5000 were dead from the quake itself, although mayor Edwin 'Edo' Zenny in later reported that the figure was closer to 300–500 deaths and 4,000 injured.

[12] A small tsunami hit Jacmel Bay, with the ocean receding, leaving fish high and dry on the seabed, and rushing back in, four times.

[17] The board promotes best practices to provide a socio-economic system for thousands of Haitians living in the southeast region.

The carnival of Jacmel is notable for particular costumes and masks which blends everything from Haitian folklore legends and historical figures from the country's past to sports celebrities and political caricatures.