Collinsville, Oklahoma

History

A community that had existed here had no official name until Dr. A. H. Collins, the town namesake, established a post office on May 28, 1897. Henry P. Cook was the first postmaster. Then it became known as either Collins or Collins Post Office. The name officially became Collinsville by June 1898 and it incorporated as a city in April 1899. The population in 1900 was 376.

The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe routed its line from Kansas to Owasso, Oklahoma about a mile west of Collinsville in 1899, to avoid crossing an additional stream. The town's buildings were moved on rollers to be nearer the track in 1899 and 1900.

Collinsville originally was located in Rogers County. In 1918, the residents voted to be annexed by Tulsa County, in order to be nearer a county seat. It was only 20 miles (32 km) north of Tulsa.

An abundant supply of sulfur-free coal lay near the surface, which attracted fifteen hundred to two thousand miners. Oil and gas production and zinc smelting boomed briefly during the first two decades of the 20th Century. The local population swelled to around eight thousand people. But the population swiftly declined as these businesses ceased. By 1930, there were 2,249 residents. Since the 1920s, the economy has been based primarily on agriculture. Several dairies located in Collinsville, many delivering products to Tulsa. In 1948, Oklahoma Agricultural and Mechanical University (now Oklahoma State University) named Collinsville "the Dairy Capital of Oklahoma."

Several notable people hail from Collinsville. Kelsey Cartwright- Former Miss Oklahoma Haley Ganzel- Trickrider and stuntwoman Rick Brinkley- politician

Geography

Collinsville is located at 36°22′2″N 95°50′23″W (36.367166, -95.839736). It is about 20 mi north of Tulsa, and lies within a triangle formed by the Caney River, Verdigris River and Bird Creek. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 6.0 square miles (15.5 km²), of which, 5.9 square miles (15.4 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.2 km²) of it (1.17%) is water.

Demographics

As of the census of 2010, there were 5,606 people, 2,111 households, and 1,529 families residing in the city. The population density was 785.7 people per square mile (265.5/km²). There were 1,688 housing units at an average density of 284.8/sq mi (109.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 76.3% White, 1.2% African American, 12.2% Native American, 2.1% Asian (1.5% Hmong), 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.8% from other races, and 7.3% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.1% of the population.

There were 1,550 households out of which 35.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.5% were married couples living together, 11.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.2% were non-families. 24.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.02.

In the city, the population was spread out with 27.0% under the age of 18, 8.0% from 18 to 24, 29.8% from 25 to 44, 20.7% from 45 to 64, and 14.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 93.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.4 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $53,874 and the median income for a family was $57,235. The per capita income for the city was $22,661. About 7.3% of families and 5.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17.4% of those under age 18 and 7.3% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

In its early years, Collinsville's economy was largely based on coal mining. That industry declined during the 1920s and was replaced by agriculture as the mainstay of the local economy. The Sallee Family Dairy started up in 1912, with local deliveries by buggy. By 1926, Sallee was delivering by truck to Tulsa. There was also a milk producers' cooperative and a cheese factory in the 1930s.

Government

Collinsville has a home rule charter form of government.

Media

Collinsville has one newspaper, the Collinsville Times Star. Originally named the Collinsville Times, it began publication May 11, 1899. It is Tulsa County's oldest newspaper and Collinsville's oldest continuously operating business. The paper is published every Wednesday. It is owned, edited, and published by Bill Johnston, a 54-year veteran of the media business.

Collinsville news is also included in the Owasso newspaper, the Owasso Reporter. The paper is published every Wednesday. It is owned by Community Publishers, a newspaper and Internet publisher and commercial printer that serves Oklahoma, Missouri, and Arkansas.

Collinsville has a community website, Cvilleok.com that provides everyone in the community a place to view local topics, share status of lives, list events, and share photos and videos.