| Sitting atop the
Mississippi River bluffs in southwestern
Illinois was once the
settlement of Downing’s Station. The first known resident was a
man named John Cook of Shepherdstown, Virginia who built the first log
cabin in 1810. In 1817 the three Collins brothers came to the
area from the east and bought Cook’s property. Later, they were
joined by their parents and sisters. The family first
established a distillery store, ox-grist mill, sawmill, blacksmith,
carpenter, and wagon shops. Before long, more and more settlers
came to the area. In 1822, the brothers renamed the settlement
Unionville. However, this name lasted only a short time as
another Unionville post office already existed in
Illinois. The new name
selected by the residents was
Collinsville which became an official on December 21, 1825.
The town was platted in 1837 and
officially became an incorporated village in 1850, with Judge D.D.
Collins as its first president. Although
his family and the Collins family who first settled here were friends
and fellow Presbyterians, they could not claim knowledge of any
kinship.
In 1870, the
first coal mine was sunk by a man named Dr. Lumaghi which started the
coal mining era of the city. As the miners poured in, the city
began to grow, establishing more and more businesses. In 1885 a
new city hall, designed in the Italianate style, was built which
continues to be used today.
In December 1918, the doors opened to
the Miners Institute, a cornerstone in downtown
Collinsville. The building, now called the Miners Theatre, now
houses a theatre, shops and other businesses.
By 1922, 3,000 coal miners and their
families made up almost a third of the City’s 9,800 residents. More
mines were opened during the next half-century, as well as other
industries including zinc and lead works, a knitting mill, cow bell
factory and canning plants.
Most of these were closed by 1950
as the City evolved into a "bedroom community" of
St. Louis, only nine miles
west, and has continued to grow in population as families seek a
quieter, less hectic pace of life away from the hustle and bustle of
urban living.
Today, the City of
Collinsville is one of the fastest-growing suburbs in the
St. Louis metropolitan area.
A relatively small suburb of just less than 10,000 people, the town
provides a panoramic view of the magnificent Gateway Arch and downtown
St. Louis.
|
|
Please report
broken links, missing pictures, or other problems online by clicking
Discoveries
America Illinois DVD