Most of Rock Island was built recently: 3% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1989. Below: maps from 1887 on and the census since 1990.
The Fort Smith and Southern Railway built a north–south line through what is now Le Flore County in 1886; the line was sold the next year to the St. Louis and San Francisco Railroad ("the Frisco"). In 1903–04 the Midland Valley Railroad laid an east-west line. The settlement originally known as Maney Junction developed at the crossing of these railroads.
A post office was established as Rock Island, Indian Territory on February 1, 1905. It was presumably named for Rock Island, Illinois. At the time of its founding, the community was located in Skullyville County, part of the Moshulatubbee District of the Choctaw Nation.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →
From Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
