Editing Calvin, Oklahoma (section)

==History==
The present community of Calvin was established in 1895, when the Choctaw, Oklahoma and Gulf Railway (C O & G) {{efn|The C, O & G later became a subsidiary of the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railway.}} laid a line through the Choctaw Nation between McAlester (then in Indian Territory) and Oklahoma City (then in Oklahoma Territory). The community was initially called "Riverview", for its location on the south bank of the Canadian River. The Riverview post office was established on March 21, 1895, with John Wilbur as postmaster. The town (and post office) name was changed to Calvin in June 1895, to honor the Choctaw landowner, Calvin Perry. The Choctaw Nation Town Site Commission surveyed Calvin's site and divided it into 350 lots, which were put up for sale.<ref name="EOHC-Calvin">[http://okgenweb.net/~okhughes/towns.htm Fran Cook and Spencer P. Petete. "Calvin." ''Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture''.] Accessed July 1, 2019.</ref>

About 1904, a fire destroyed several business buildings and the Masonic Lodge on Canadian Street (the main street in downtown Calvin. These losses were soon replaced with new all-brick buildings. In 1905, the population was reportedly about 300.<ref name="EOHC-Calvin"/> From then until the Great Depression, Calvin served as a busy trade center for the area's produce.

In 1906 J. W. Hundley established a store and in 1907 erected a building, the largest mercantile establishment in Hughes County. A ferry operating across the Canadian River gave access to Calvin's cotton market and railroad connections. The Missouri, Oklahoma and Gulf Railroad (M, O &G) {{efn|which later became part of the Kansas, Oklahoma and Gulf system (K, O & G)}} constructed a line through the area, reaching Calvin in 1909. By that time the growing town offered the surrounding agricultural community a choice of four cotton gins, eight general stores, two hotels, and numerous other businesses typical of the era.<ref name="EOHC-Calvin"/>