Editing Albion, Oklahoma

{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2024}}
{{Infobox settlement
|official_name            = Albion, Oklahoma
|settlement_type          = Town
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|map_caption              = Location of Albion, Oklahoma
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<!-- Location -->
|subdivision_type         = Country
|subdivision_name         = United States
|subdivision_type1        = [[U.S. state|State]]
|subdivision_name1        = [[Oklahoma]]
|subdivision_type2        = [[List of counties in Oklahoma|County]]
|subdivision_name2        = [[Pushmataha County, Oklahoma|Pushmataha]]

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|population_as_of         = [[2020 United States census|2020]]
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|population_total         = 58
|population_density_km2   = 94.96
|population_density_sq_mi = 245.76

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|postal_code_type         = [[ZIP code]]
|postal_code              = 74521
|area_codes                = [[area codes 539 and 918|539/918]]
|blank_name               = [[Federal Information Processing Standard|FIPS code]]
|blank_info               = 40-01050<ref name="GR2">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]] |accessdate=January 31, 2008 |title=U.S. Census website  }}</ref>
|blank1_name              = [[Geographic Names Information System|GNIS]] feature ID
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'''Albion''' is a town in northeast [[Pushmataha County, Oklahoma|Pushmataha County]], [[Oklahoma]], United States, approximately {{convert|2|miles|km}} south of the Pushmataha-[[Latimer County, Oklahoma|Latimer]] county line. The population was 58 as of the [[2020 United States census|2020 Census]].<ref>{{cite web|url=  https://www.census.gov/search-results.html?searchType=web&cssp=SERP&q=Albion%20town,%20Oklahoma  |title=Albion (town), Oklahoma|publisher=United States Census Bureau|accessdate=July 2, 2024}}</ref>  When Albion was established, before Oklahoma became a state, the community was located in [[Wade County, Choctaw Nation]], in what was then known as [[Indian Territory]].<ref name="EOHC-Albion">[http://digital.library.okstate.edu/encyclopedia/entries/A/AL004.html Wilson, Linda D. "Albion." ''Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture''.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100721063435/http://digital.library.okstate.edu/encyclopedia/entries/A/AL004.html |date=July 21, 2010 }} Accessed October 30, 2017.</ref>

== History ==
A [[United States Post Office]] opened at this location on December 6, 1887. Charles F. Igo was the first postmaster.<ref>[http://digital.library.okstate.edu/Chronicles/v006/v006p004.html Foreman, Grant. "Early Post Offices of Oklahoma." ''Chronicles of Oklahoma''. Volume 6, Number 1. March, 1928.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100305094212/http://digital.library.okstate.edu/Chronicles/v006/v006p004.html |date=March 5, 2010 }} Accessed October 30, 2017.</ref>

In its early days, Albion {{efn|named by John T. Bailey, an Englishman, using the ancient Greek name for England.<ref name = "EOHC-Albion"/>}}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.<ref>George B. Shirk, ''Oklahoma Place Names'', p. 67; Post Office Site Location Reports, Record Group 28, National Archives; Oklahoma Encyclopedia of Culture and History</ref>

During 1885–6, the [[St. Louis-San Francisco Railway]], more popularly known as the "Frisco", built a line from north to south through the [[Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma|Choctaw Nation]], connecting [[Fort Smith, Arkansas]], with [[Paris, Texas]]. 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|Talihina]] to the north and [[Kiamichi, Oklahoma|Kiamichi]] to the south.

The railroad paralleled the [[Kiamichi River]] throughout much of its route in present-day Pushmataha County. 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 (transportation)|right-of-way]]. These stations also served as points at which the trains could draw water.

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. The railroad 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. Route 271#Oklahoma|U.S. Highway 271]].

At the time of its founding, Albion was located in [[Wade County, Choctaw Nation|Wade County]], Choctaw Nation.<ref>Morris, John W. ''Historical Atlas of Oklahoma'' (Norman: University of Oklahoma, 1986), plate 38.</ref>

Albion has more in common economically with Talihina, 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, Wade County, which was also to include Talihina and towns to its north, and stretch far to the north and west. Instead, Sequoyah was not admitted to the Union by Congress, and in the state of [[Oklahoma]] which followed it, Albion became the northeasternmost 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 on a town square, with residential neighborhoods ringing the square. 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. More information on Albion may be found in the [[Pushmataha County Historical Society]].<ref>Encyclopedia of Oklahoma Culture and History</ref>

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, migrated to the United States from [[Werben, Brandenburg|Werben]], [[Lower Lusatia]], Germany in 1883.<ref name = "EOHC-Albion"/> He is considered one of the most significant writers in [[Sorbian languages|Sorbian]], a [[Slavic language]], and his 150th birthday was celebrated by his followers in Europe in 2003. Kosyk may not have fared well during his years in Albion; according to accounts he was swindled and defrauded by unscrupulous residents.<ref>''Letopis'', February 1977, p. 50 {{dead link|date=October 2017}}</ref>

In 1979, the [[Mato Kosyk House]] in Albion was entered into the [[National Register of Historic Places|NRHP]]. It is considered significant as the only surviving structure associated with the famous poet.<ref name = "NRHP-KosykHouse">[https://npgallery.nps.gov/pdfhost/docs/NRHP/Text/79002025.pdf "Mato Kosyk House." National Register of Historic places Nomination Form - Kosyk House. December 11, 1979.] Accessed October 31, 2017.</ref>

The post office in Albion was scheduled for possible closure by the US Postal Service in 2012.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://about.usps.com/news/electronic-press-kits/expandedaccess/states/oklahoma.htm |title=Expanded Access Study List - Oklahoma |accessdate=February 20, 2012 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120125204256/http://about.usps.com/news/electronic-press-kits/expandedaccess/states/oklahoma.htm |archivedate=January 25, 2012 }}</ref>

==Geography==
Using the statewide grid commonly in use in Oklahoma, Albion's coordinates are T2-2N-R21E. According to the [[United States Census Bureau]], the town has a total area of {{convert|0.2|sqmi|km2}}, all land.

==Demographics==
{{US Census population
|1920= 301
|1930= 256
|1940= 240
|1950= 178
|1960= 161
|1970= 186
|1980= 165
|1990= 88
|2000= 143
|2010= 106
|2020= 58
|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census<ref name="DecennialCensus">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html|title=Census of Population and Housing|publisher=Census.gov|accessdate=June 4, 2015 }}</ref>
}}
At the 2010 [[census]], there were 106 people living in the town.<ref name="Census2010">{{cite web|title=2010 City Population and Housing Occupancy Status |url=http://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=DEC_10_PL_GCTPL2.ST13&prodType=table |publisher=U.S. Census Bureau |accessdate=October 18, 2013  }}{{dead link|bot=medic|date=April 2020}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> The population density was {{convert|530|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}.  There were 62 housing units at an average density of {{convert|261|/sqmi|/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}.<ref name="Census2010"/>

At the time of the 2000 census, the racial makeup of the town was 83.92% [[White (U.S. Census)|White]], 12.59% [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]] and 3.50% from two or more races.

There were 53 households, of which 32.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.9% were [[Marriage|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.

36.4% of the population were 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 household income]] was $14,464 and the median family income was $17,750. Males had a median income of $33,438 and females $13,125. The [[per capita income]] for the town was $6,800. 20.0% of families and 33.6% of the population were living below the [[poverty line]], including 43.2% of under eighteens and 8.7% of those over 64.

==Notable people==
* [[Mato Kosyk]], Sorbian writer

==See also==
*[[List of towns in Oklahoma]]

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20100721063435/http://digital.library.okstate.edu/encyclopedia/entries/A/AL004.html  Albion] in ''Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture''
* [https://www.flickr.com/photos/koknor/3354579547/in/set-72157615018429253/ Photographs of Albion taken in 2009]

{{Pushmataha County, Oklahoma}}

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[[Category:Towns in Pushmataha County, Oklahoma]]
[[Category:Towns in Oklahoma]]
[[Category:Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma]]