Albion, Oklahoma

Albion, Oklahoma
Town
Location of Albion, Oklahoma
Country	United States
State	Oklahoma
County	Pushmataha
Area
• Total	0.2 sq mi (0.6 km2)
• Land	0.2 sq mi (0.6 km2)
• Water	0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2)
Elevation	673 ft (205 m)
Population  (2000)
• Total	143
• Density	593.0/sq mi (229.0/km2)
Time zone	UTC-6 (Central (CST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP code	74521
Area code	918
FIPS code	40-01050Template:GR
GNIS feature ID	1089573Template:GR

Albion is a town in Pushmataha County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 143 at the 2000 census.

History

A United States Post Office opened at Albion, Indian Territory on December 6, 1887 and is still in operation.

In its early days Albion—named by John T. Bailey, an Englishman, using the Roman name for England—was a sawmill town in the Indian Territory. Later it became a trading center in an agricultural region in which cotton and other crops were grown.

During the 1880s the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway, more popularly known as the “Frisco”, built a line from north to south through the Choctaw Nation, connecting Fort Smith, Arkansas with Paris, Texas. The railroad paralleled the Kiamichi River throughout much of its route in present-day Pushmataha County, Oklahoma. Train stations were established every few miles to aid in opening up the land and, more particularly, to serve as the locations of section houses. Supervisors for their respective miles of track lived in the section houses to administer the track and its right-of-way. These stations also served as points at which the trains could draw water.

The site of Albion was selected because of its proximity to the Kiamichi River, with its abundant water supply. Adjacent station stops were established at Talihina, Oklahoma to the north, and Kiamichi, Oklahoma to the south.

The sparsely-populated area, at that time known as Wade County, Choctaw Nation, in the Indian Territory, was home to Choctaw Indians who farmed or subsisted on the land.

Few roads or trails existed. Transportation was provided by the Frisco Railroad, which offered six trains per day—three in each direction—until it closed to passenger traffic during the late 1950s. It continued freight operations until 1981, when it closed altogether and its rails were removed. The loss of passenger rail fortunately coincided with the construction of U.S. Highway 271.

Albion has more in common economically with Talihina, Oklahoma, the town to its north. Planners of the proposed State of Sequoyah, who in 1905 proposed a state to be formed from the Indian Territory, realized this, and called for Albion to be the southernmost town in a county which was also to include Talihina and towns to its north. Instead, Sequoyah was not admitted to the Union by Congress, and in the State of Oklahoma which followed it Albion became the northeastern-most town of a county whose geographic and population centers are far to Albion’s southwest.

Albion prospered during its first few decades. Most business was centered around a town square, with residential neighborhoods ringing it. During recent decades, however, it has diminished greatly. United States Census returns show it dropping from a high of 300 residents in 1920 to just 88 in 1990.

Albion became home to an internationally known poet and author when Mato Kosyk, or Kossick, moved to the town in 1912. Locating there because its climate was considered healthy and its views of the Kiamichi Mountains were scenic, Kosyk lived for the next 28 years there, until his death in 1940. Kosyk, a Lutheran minister, immigrated to the United States from Werben, Lower Lusatia, Germany in 1883. He is considered one of the most significant writers in Sorbian, a Slavic language, and his 150th birthday was celebrated by his followers in Europe in 2003. Unfortunately Kosyk may not have fared well during his years in Albion; according to accounts he was swindled and defrauded by unscrupulous residents.

Geography

Albion is located at 34°39′43″N 95°5′58″W (34.662065, -95.099440)Template:GR. Using the statewide grid commonly in use in Oklahoma its coordinates are T2-2N-R21E. According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 0.2 square miles (0.6 km²), all of it land.

Demographics

As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 143 people, 53 households, and 34 families residing in the town. The population density was 593.0 people per square mile (230.1/km²). There were 63 housing units at an average density of 261.3/sq mi (101.4/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 83.92% White, 12.59% Native American, and 3.50% from two or more races.

There were 53 households out of which 32.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.9% were married couples living together, 11.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.8% were non-families. 34.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 20.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.70 and the average family size was 3.56.

In the town the population was spread out with 36.4% under the age of 18, 4.2% from 18 to 24, 24.5% from 25 to 44, 18.2% from 45 to 64, and 16.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 70.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 102.2 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $14,464, and the median income for a family was $17,750. Males had a median income of $33,438 versus $13,125 for females. The per capita income for the town was $6,800. There were 20.0% of families and 33.6% of the population living below the poverty line, including 43.2% of under eighteens and 8.7% of those over 64.

Notable residents

• Mato Kosyk, Sorbian writer (see h t t p: // www. flickr. com/photos/25600678%40N08/3354733435).

External links

• Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture - Albion

For photographs of Albion taken in 2009, see h t t p://tiny.cc/p4OK2