Mining heritage, Italian culture, a regional convention center and much more highlight the city of Collinsville.
Located just 10 miles from downtown St. Louis, the Gateway Arch and skyline are visible from the Collinsville bluffs. Commuters will enjoy the easy access to I-55/70.
Collinsville's Gateway Convention Center offers a variety of popular shows and events held throughout the year. An aquatic center, the Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site (a United Nations World Heritage Site) and the Fairmount Park thoroughbred race track are among the area's attractions.
The first log cabin was built in the area in 1810. Several years later the Collins family moved to town and lent their name to the settlement. The first coal mine opened in 1870 and by the 1920s nearly one-third of the town's residents, many of whom were Italian immigrants, were miners.
Collinsville celebrates its Italian heritage each year with the Italian Fest and it marks its position in Madison County -- the Horseradish Capital of the World -- with the annual International Horseradish Festival. In another unusual claim to fame, Collinsville is home to the World's Largest Catsup Bottle.
Click here for the Collinsville city web site.
Learn more about Collinsville schools.
About the Author: Kristina Pratt is a REALTOR® with Goshen Realty Group at RE/MAX Preferred Partners in Edwardsville, Illinois. She and Nancy Milton help their customers buy and sell homes and investment properties in St. Louis' Illinois suburbs of Madison and St. Clair counties with special emphasis on the communities of Edwardsville, Glen Carbon, Maryville, Collinsville and Troy. For more information, visit their web site at http://www.GoshenRealtyGroup.com or e-mail Kristina@GoshenRealtyGroup.com
