The Lenape had a major settlement in Marcus Hook; New Sweden colonists established a trading post here in the 1640s.

Walter Martin of Upper Chichester founded this church as an alternative place of worship and burial for Christian non-Quakers.

[6] Marcus Hook became a prosperous community and market town and in 1708 was of equal prominence to nearby Chester, Pennsylvania, with each location having approximately 100 houses.

The market at Marcus Hook provided the pirates a place to sell plundered goods and re-supply away from the authorities and custom officials in Philadelphia.

Early maps of Marcus Hook show the current Second Street was originally named "Discord Lane", since it was the location of the pirates' revelry when they were in town.

[8] Marcus Hook Plank House reportedly was once the home of a Swedish mistress of the pirate Blackbeard, named Margaret.

By that time, larger tonnage ships became more popular than the sloops and schooners built in Marcus Hook.

[8] During the American Revolutionary War, two tiers of underwater chevaux-de-frise obstacles were placed across the Delaware River at Marcus Hook to provide a first line of defense of Philadelphia against British naval forces.

[11] Marcus Hook served as a defensive post along the Delaware River during the War of 1812, with over 5,000 United States troops placed there.

The convergence of rail, roads, a deep water port, and the nation's growing thirst for petroleum gave rise to the refineries that became the borough's dominant industry.

[14] The refinery was reopened as Marcus Hook Industrial Complex operated by Energy Transfer Partners.

In 1910, the American Viscose Corporation opened a plant in Marcus Hook for the production of rayon and other synthetic fibers.

The disaster induced Sun Oil to develop cargo tank inerting and install it on all their ships beginning the following year, in 1933.

The borough has a humid subtropical climate (Cfa) and average monthly temperatures range from 33.1 °F in January to 77.9 °F in July.

[27] The 2005 American comedy-drama film One Last Thing..., about a 16-year-old terminally ill boy hoping his final wish is granted, takes place in Marcus Hook.