Golden Delicious arose from a chance seedling, possibly a hybrid of ‘Grimes Golden’ and ‘Golden Reinette’. The original tree was found on the Mullins’ family farm in Clay County, West Virginia, United States, and was locally known as Mullin’s Yellow Seedling and Annit apple. Anderson Mullins sold the tree and propagation rights to Stark Brothers Nurseries for $5000, which first marketed it as a companion of their Red Delicious in 1914.