Colbert is a town in Bryan County,

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

, United States. The population was 1,140 at the 2010 census, a 7 percent increase over the figure of 1,065 recorded in 2000. It was incorporated in 1939.

History

Colbert men became prominent leaders among the Chickasaw for most of the 18th and 19th centuries, starting with William "de Blainville" Colbert from France born of Scottish blood. His parents fled during the

Glorious Revolution The Glorious Revolution, also known as the Revolution of 1688, was the deposition of James II and VII, James II and VII in November 1688. He was replaced by his daughter Mary II, Mary II and her Dutch husband, William III of Orange ...

in Scotland; hence, he was born in exile in

Blainville-sur-Orne Blainville-sur-Orne (, literally ''Blainville on Orne'') is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France. Geography Blainville-sur-Orne is on the west side of the Canal de Caen à la Mer, just south of ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. William traveled to the

New World The term "New World" is used to describe the majority of lands of Earth's Western Hemisphere, particularly the Americas, and sometimes Oceania."America." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: ...

to seek a new line of work as a fur trader since the Jacobite uprisings had ruined his entitlements as a "King Baron." These Colberts were also related to

Jean Baptiste Colbert Jean-Baptiste Colbert (; 29 August 1619 – 6 September 1683) was a French statesman who served as First Minister of State from 1661 until his death in 1683 under the rule of King Louis XIV. His lasting impact on the organization of the countr ...

, Treasurer to King

Louis XIV LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...

. There is a chateau named after Jean Baptiste Colbert in the aforementioned French town located on the Atlantic coast; it became a safe haven beginning in 1688. Once in the New World, William Colbert ended up marrying the Chickasaw chief's eldest daughter in order to gain more influence in his trading of furs with the native tribes. It was from this union that the Colbert men started gaining prominence, especially since the next two generations married Chickasaw/Cherokee wives. They also became chiefs such as

George Colbert George Colbert (November 7, 1839) was an early 19th century, 19th-century Chickasaw leader who commanded 350 Chickasaw auxiliary troops who fought under Major General Andrew Jackson during the Creek War. He also served as an Officer (armed forc ...

("Tootemastubbe") and

Levi Colbert Levi Colbert (June 2, 1834) was an early 19th-century Chickasaw leader and the namesake of Itawamba County, Mississippi. Early life and education Levi Colbert was born around 1759 in the Chickasaw Nation (present-day Alabama). He was the ...

("Itawamba Mingo").Pate, James P
Colbert, George,"
''Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture'', Oklahoma Historical Society, 2009. Accessed April 15, 2015.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the town has a total area of , all land.

Demographics

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 1,065 people, 428 households, and 275 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 493 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 73.33%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 17.18%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 4.51% Native American, 0.09% Asian, 0.28% from other races, and 4.60% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 1.60% of the population. There were 428 households, out of which 26.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.6% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 11.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.7% were non-families. 31.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.40 and the average family size was 3.00. In the town, the population was spread out, with 23.0% under the age of 18, 9.3% from 18 to 24, 25.4% from 25 to 44, 22.6% from 45 to 64, and 19.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 84.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 77.1 males. The median income for a household in the town was $26,304, and the median income for a family was $30,250. Males had a median income of $25,417 versus $15,962 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the town was $12,447. About 11.6% of families and 15.1% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 15.5% of those under age 18 and 24.2% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

* Czarina Conlan * Tony Goolsby

References

External links