Allen is a town in Hughes and Pontotoc counties in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The population was 805 at the 2020 census.

History

thumb|Old photograph of Black Rock School, in Allen, 1896

The town was founded in 1883 by a group of white settlers who had arrived in Choctaw Nation, Indian Territory in 1882 from Gainesville, Texas, led by Confederate Army veteran Doctor John Trigg Gilmore, his wife, Elizabeth Louise Oliveaux, their children, and relatives William and George McCall, with their respective families. They first settled in Cold Springs, northwest of the present town site, where other settlers soon joined them. The first log cabin was built in Allen in 1883, and this building was used as both a school and church. The town was named after the son of deputy United States marshal William McCall.

Allen, Oklahoma is the modern-day site of the Battle of Middle Boggy during the American Civil War.

In 1892, Dr. Gilmore became Allen's first postmaster and founded the town's first Masonic Lodge two years later.

The Missouri, Oklahoma, and Gulf Railway built a line through the area in 1909, although it bypassed Allen, by a half-mile.

Allen became a boomtown in 1913, when an oil well was drilled west of the town. The population rose from 645 in 1910 to 1,389 in 1930, but dropped to 907 in 1970.

The Allen Advocate is a weekly newspaper published on Thursday in Allen. The newspaper is published by the Robinson Publishing Company, founded in 1982, by Bill and Dayna Robinson. The company also publishes the Coalgate Record Register and the Holdenville Tribune.

| align = right

| align-fn = center

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, Allen had a population of 805. The median age was 40.1 years. 25.7% of residents were under the age of 18 and 18.0% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 102.8 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 91.1 males age 18 and over.

There were 318 households in Allen, of which 39.9% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 42.8% were married-couple households, 17.3% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 34.9% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 25.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

! Race !! Number !! Percent

|-

| White || 522 || 64.8%

|-

| Black or African American || 1 || 0.1%

|-

| American Indian and Alaska Native || 162 || 20.1%

|-

| Asian || 0 || 0.0%

|-

| Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander || 0 || 0.0%

|-

| Some other race || 9 || 1.1%

|-

| Two or more races || 111 || 13.8%

|-

| Hispanic or Latino (of any race) || 27 || 3.4%

|}

2010 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 932 people living in the town.

Allen has an elementary school, middle school, and high school.

References

  • Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture - Allen