The first evidence of a human settlement is a paleolithic/neolithic village. A few, scattered Roman era items were discovered in Magden. Two empty Alamanni cist graves were also found near the village. The modern municipality of Magden is first mentioned in 804 as "in curte Magaduninse". The counts of Thierstein and then their successors the Habsburgs ruled over Magden until 1797. They owned the land and exercised the "Zwing und Bann" rights over the entire village. With the Act of Mediation in 1803, the entire "Fricktal", including Magden, joined the newly created Canton of Aargau. The first school opened in Magden in 1761.