History

The Pine Island Area History Center has a permanent home in the house built circ. 1913 by Sumner Prescott Collins and Martha Ann Cron Collins for their retirement. This house was built on the site of an early Pine Island store. Half of that store was moved to the lot immediately south of the History Center. The store had been owned by Daniel F. Collins, an early settler and father of Sumner P. Collins.

This House was purchased in August 2005 by the Pine Island Area Historical Society, a nonprofit organization, to be used as an area History Center.

the house features an enclosed front porch and an upstairs enclosed sun porch. There are three entrances, the front door facing west, side door facing west, side door on the north and an entrance on the west from the back deck. Also on the property is a two car garage.

The rooms on the main floor include a back entry, kitchen, a large pantry, a dining room with a built in buffet with leaded glass doors, living room with fireplace, a display room, bathroom and front entryway. The open stairway features entrances from kitchen as well as living room. On the second floor are three large rooms with large closets, a bathroom with original fixtures and the sun porch. Throughout the house the flooring is the original hardwood. The basement will in the future be used for display proposes also.

Throughout the house there are displays and artifacts of the Pine Island area. Included in the collection are Olson Studio photos, area Church histories, Pine Island High School yearbooks, military records, histories of local businesses, Biographical index of Pine Island Newspaper, scrapbooks and plat books.