[3] When compared with the other 356 cities in North Dakota, Linton ranks in the top twelve percent based on the number of its residents.

[6] In August 1898, land located in the geographic center of Emmons County in Section 7 of Township 132 North, Range 76 West, of the Fifth Principal Meridian, was surveyed and platted by W.E.

Petrie into lots, streets and alleys[8] explicitly for the purpose of creating a seat for Emmons County.

The site was named Linton, after George W. Lynn, who had settled in Emmons County in 1885.

Charles Patterson, editor of the Emmons County Republican, was Linton's first postmaster, having received his commission for the post in March 1899.

At the same time Bismarck was connected to the line of the South Dakota system so that each of the communities could communicate with each other in this way.

However this did not end the dispute, and the effort to move the seat of government from Williamsport to Winona continued.

People in the North still wanted to keep the seat at Williamsport, however, so they preferred charges claiming that the election was "fraudulent and illegal",[17] and obtained a court injunction to prevent the move.

No charges were brought against the men, although the Williamsport interests succeeded in having the records brought back to their city and causing another election to be ordered which would require the approval of a majority of two-thirds of the voters to have Linton retain its position as county seat (this election was never held).

Allen, the attorney for the people of Williamsport, moved that the case be dismissed,[22] whereby the city of Linton prevailed and the seat of Emmons County has remained there ever since.

As a result of losing its position as the county seat, and because the Northern Pacific Railway preferred the Linton location when they built a branch to the area in about 1897, Williamsport ceased to exist as a community by the early years of the 20th century[23] and the site today is occupied by farmland.

The community's oldest newspaper, The Emmons County Record, began publication with 75 copies printed on June 10, 1884 [24] in Williamsport but was relocated to Linton by Darwin R. Streeter, its founder,[25] in 1899.

Streeter continued as the newspaper's publisher until January 1914, at which time full control of it passed into the hands of his son Frank.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 0.75 square miles (1.94 km2), all land.