Hettie's parents were:
Charles Hobart Heald (1843 - 1922)
Elizabeth Jane Guy Heald (1841 - 1887)
Charles and Elizabeth were married in Old Boggy Depot, I.T. on April 10, 1861. Their children, including Hettie, were:
Serena LeGrande Heald 1863 – 1865
Stella Wright Heald 1865 – 1866
Cyrus Harris Heald 1867 – 1867
Mary Eliza 'Molly' Heald 1870 – 1959
John Hobart Heald 1871 – 1883
James Dawson Heald 1874 – 1876
Janetta (Janie) Heald 1876 – 1908
Hettie Heald 1878 – 1939
William Raney Heald 1881 – 1958
Benjamin Carter Heald 1883 – 1963
Hettie was about 9 years old when her mother died on November 26, 1887.
On June 18, 1893, her father then married Fanny Ellen Nichols. Their children were:
Lucy Wright Heald 1895 – 1945
Hazel Margaret Heald 1901 – 1978
Charles Hobart Heald 1903 – 1909
-----
Ardmore Daily Ardmoreite
Friday, November 2, 1894
"Miss Hettie Heald, an accomplished young lady of Headton, is in the city the guest of her sister, Mrs. Walter Hardy."
Hettie was 18 years old when she married Ben Carter Collins, age 21, in Healdton, Carter Co, OK on November 17, 1896.
Their children were:
Ernest Berry Collins 1898 –
Henry Furman Collins 1899 – 1900
Baby Collins 1900 –
Vernon (Peck) Collins 1903 – 1973
Daniel Harding Collins 1905 – 1999
Sadly her first husband, Ben, a county sheriff, was assassinated on Aug. 1, 1906, when he was only 31 years old and she was left with several young children to raise; the youngest was about 14 months old.
Hettie's second marriage was to Rufus Henry Davis on August 23, 1914.
Newspaper articles over the years have helped provided a glimpse into Hettie's life. Unless otherwise indicated all the articles are from The Daily Ardmoreite, a local Carter Co, newspaper.
*****
On June 16, 1900,
Ben C. & Hettie Collins, ages 25 & 21, owned a farm in Healdton, Chickasaw Nation, I.T. They had been married three years; Hettie had given birth to a son, Earnest, age 2. Ben & Hettie were shown as 1/8 Chickasaw Indian.
Ardmore Daily Ardmoreite
Thursday, August 15, 1901
Durwood
"Ben Collins and family from Healdton passed through yesterday enroute to Colbert."
Monday, June 15, 1903
"Ben Collins, wife and family have gone to Colbert to visit relatives for a week or so."
Monday, October 5, 1903
Healdton
"Ben Collins and family went to Ardmore to the circus."
Tuesday, December 29, 1903
"Healdton
"There was a family reunion at the home of Grove Chase yesterday. Also one at the home of Ben Collins. All report a nice time."
Monday, January 25, 1904
"Healdton
Ben Collins has sold his home here to Mr. West. We learn that Mr. Jones from Hewitt will move into it."
Saturday, July 1, 1905
Healdton
"Ben Collins of Emet was in Ardmore today. He went to Cornish to visit the picnic."
Thursday, August 2, 1906
"Ben Collins Shot At Home
Was Waylaid and Death was Instantaneous.
Collins Was a Model Officer, Fearless in the Performance of His Duty. His Wife Witnessed Tragedy. Well Known in Ardmore.
Ardmore Special.
Milburn, I.T., Aug. 2. - Indian Policeman Ben Collins was waylaid and shot at his home five miles south of Milburn at 10 o'clock last night.
When his wife, who witnessed the tragedy from a short distance, reached Mr. Collins, he was dead. The nature of the wounds indicate that there were two parties to the assassination. Bloodhounds have been sent for and will be put on the trail early today.
News of the killing of Ben C.Collins reached here last night from his home at Emet by telephone. Collins was a United States Indian police and was formerly a deputy marshal. He was of fine build and a young man and made a daring officer. All the particulars surrounding the murder are not known her, but it is said that at 9 o'clock last night while Collins was standing in his door conversing with his wife, that a shot rang out and Collins fell mortally wounded to the floor. Two persons have been suspected of the crime and federal officers will make every effort to apprehend the guilty parties. Mrs. Walter Hardy and Mrs. W.R. Ingram of this city are sisters to Mrs. Collins. Mrs Ingram departed today for Emet. Ben Collins was well known throughout the Chickasaw Nation."
Friday, September 14, 1906
"Mrs. Ben Collins of Ardmore was in the city today on business with the Choctaw-Chickasaw paying party."
-----
Police Officer Ben C. Collins
United States Department of the Interior - Bureau of Indian AffairsU.S. GovernmentEnd of Watch: Wednesday, August 1, 1906
Biographical Info
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: Wednesday, August 1, 1906
Incident Location: Oklahoma
Weapon Used: Shotgun; 8 gauge
Suspect Info: Hung in 1909
Officer Collins was shot and killed in Oklahoma by a hit-man in retribution for the shooting of an armed fugitive. Officer Collins' murder happened in front of his home and witnessed by his wife.
The suspect was arrested in 1909 for another murder and hung by a lynch mob, along with three other men. The mob had broken into the jail to lynch the murderer of Marshal Zeke Putnam, of the Allen, Oklahoma, Police Department. The suspect was a cousin by marriage of the suspect that killed Deputy Sheriff John Turman in 1898.
Two of Officer Collins' nephews were also shot and killed in the line of duty while serving as police officers in Oklahoma. Patrolman Jim Keirsey, of the Seminole Police Department, was shot and killed on November 7, 1929, and Deputy William Keirsey, of the Carter County Sheriff's Department, was shot and killed on December 10, 1930.
-----
Ardmore Daily Ardmoreite
Monday, January 13, 1913
Healdton
"Mrs. Hettie Collins and little ones returned home this week to Colbert."
Hettie's second marriage was to Rufus Henry Davis on August 23, 1914.
Ardmore Daily Ardmoreite
Wednesday, August 26, 1914
"Married at Waurika
Mrs. Hettie Collins of Healdton and Mr. Henry Davis of the Healdton oil fields were married last Sunday afternoon in Waurika. They will make their home in this city. Mrs. Collins is the daughter of Judge C.H. Heald of Healdton and is a member of one of the most prominent Indian families in the state. She was the widow of the late Ben Collins, who was assassinated at his home near Emmet in August 1907, for which A. Washmood and others have been tried in the state courts."
Ardmore Daily Ardmoreite
Tuesday, September 8, 1914
"Mr. and Mrs. Henry Davis are home from a trip to Colorado Springs, Colo. They will make their home in Ardmore."
-----
Hettie was living in Cameron, TX when she died on May 11, 1939, News about Hettie's death was published in The Daily Ardmoreite on the day of her death.
Woman Known Here Passes
Mrs. Henry Davis of Heald Family Dies At Cameron, Texas
Mrs. Henry Davis died at her home in Cameron, Texas, Thursday morning at 1 o'clock, according to a message that came here to Dr. Walter Hardy. Mrs. Davis was born Hettie Heald. Her family gave their name to the town of Healdton. She was of Indian blood. Dr. Walter Hardy's first wife was a sister of Mrs. Davis. Another sister is Mrs. Mollie Ingram of Healdton, wife of William R. Ingram. Two brothers survive; they are Ben Heald and Will Heald, who reside in the state of Colorado.
Mrs. Davis first married Ben Collins, a colorful Indian officer, when this was Indian Territory. Because Collins shot Pete Pruitt at a picnic at Orr and made an invalid of Him, Collins was slain by the Miller gang who were afterward hanged at Ada in by a mob of citizens who became outraged at the killing of Gus Bobbit, another old deputy marshal.
Built Home in Ardmore
Mrs. Collins then married Henry Davis, who was active in oil development. they built the home at Fourth and I southwest, now owned by Denny Fitzgerald and his sister, Lillian. After leaving Ardmore the Davis family moved to Tyler, Texas, and then to Cameron. Two sons by Collins survive; they are Peck and Dan, both of whom are in business and are doing well. Peck Collins at one time possessed a nice oil fortune.
Funeral services will be held in Cameron. For a year before her passing she frequently consulted Dr. Hardy about her condition. Hear and kidney trouble was said to have made an invalid of her as they did of her husband, Henry Davis, who preceded her a couple of years."
Charles Hobart Heald (1843 - 1922)
Elizabeth Jane Guy Heald (1841 - 1887)
Charles and Elizabeth were married in Old Boggy Depot, I.T. on April 10, 1861. Their children, including Hettie, were:
Serena LeGrande Heald 1863 – 1865
Stella Wright Heald 1865 – 1866
Cyrus Harris Heald 1867 – 1867
Mary Eliza 'Molly' Heald 1870 – 1959
John Hobart Heald 1871 – 1883
James Dawson Heald 1874 – 1876
Janetta (Janie) Heald 1876 – 1908
Hettie Heald 1878 – 1939
William Raney Heald 1881 – 1958
Benjamin Carter Heald 1883 – 1963
Hettie was about 9 years old when her mother died on November 26, 1887.
On June 18, 1893, her father then married Fanny Ellen Nichols. Their children were:
Lucy Wright Heald 1895 – 1945
Hazel Margaret Heald 1901 – 1978
Charles Hobart Heald 1903 – 1909
-----
Ardmore Daily Ardmoreite
Friday, November 2, 1894
"Miss Hettie Heald, an accomplished young lady of Headton, is in the city the guest of her sister, Mrs. Walter Hardy."
Hettie was 18 years old when she married Ben Carter Collins, age 21, in Healdton, Carter Co, OK on November 17, 1896.
Their children were:
Ernest Berry Collins 1898 –
Henry Furman Collins 1899 – 1900
Baby Collins 1900 –
Vernon (Peck) Collins 1903 – 1973
Daniel Harding Collins 1905 – 1999
Sadly her first husband, Ben, a county sheriff, was assassinated on Aug. 1, 1906, when he was only 31 years old and she was left with several young children to raise; the youngest was about 14 months old.
Hettie's second marriage was to Rufus Henry Davis on August 23, 1914.
Newspaper articles over the years have helped provided a glimpse into Hettie's life. Unless otherwise indicated all the articles are from The Daily Ardmoreite, a local Carter Co, newspaper.
*****
On June 16, 1900,
Ben C. & Hettie Collins, ages 25 & 21, owned a farm in Healdton, Chickasaw Nation, I.T. They had been married three years; Hettie had given birth to a son, Earnest, age 2. Ben & Hettie were shown as 1/8 Chickasaw Indian.
Ardmore Daily Ardmoreite
Thursday, August 15, 1901
Durwood
"Ben Collins and family from Healdton passed through yesterday enroute to Colbert."
Monday, June 15, 1903
"Ben Collins, wife and family have gone to Colbert to visit relatives for a week or so."
Monday, October 5, 1903
Healdton
"Ben Collins and family went to Ardmore to the circus."
Tuesday, December 29, 1903
"Healdton
"There was a family reunion at the home of Grove Chase yesterday. Also one at the home of Ben Collins. All report a nice time."
Monday, January 25, 1904
"Healdton
Ben Collins has sold his home here to Mr. West. We learn that Mr. Jones from Hewitt will move into it."
Saturday, July 1, 1905
Healdton
"Ben Collins of Emet was in Ardmore today. He went to Cornish to visit the picnic."
Thursday, August 2, 1906
"Ben Collins Shot At Home
Was Waylaid and Death was Instantaneous.
Collins Was a Model Officer, Fearless in the Performance of His Duty. His Wife Witnessed Tragedy. Well Known in Ardmore.
Ardmore Special.
Milburn, I.T., Aug. 2. - Indian Policeman Ben Collins was waylaid and shot at his home five miles south of Milburn at 10 o'clock last night.
When his wife, who witnessed the tragedy from a short distance, reached Mr. Collins, he was dead. The nature of the wounds indicate that there were two parties to the assassination. Bloodhounds have been sent for and will be put on the trail early today.
News of the killing of Ben C.Collins reached here last night from his home at Emet by telephone. Collins was a United States Indian police and was formerly a deputy marshal. He was of fine build and a young man and made a daring officer. All the particulars surrounding the murder are not known her, but it is said that at 9 o'clock last night while Collins was standing in his door conversing with his wife, that a shot rang out and Collins fell mortally wounded to the floor. Two persons have been suspected of the crime and federal officers will make every effort to apprehend the guilty parties. Mrs. Walter Hardy and Mrs. W.R. Ingram of this city are sisters to Mrs. Collins. Mrs Ingram departed today for Emet. Ben Collins was well known throughout the Chickasaw Nation."
Friday, September 14, 1906
"Mrs. Ben Collins of Ardmore was in the city today on business with the Choctaw-Chickasaw paying party."
-----
Police Officer Ben C. Collins
United States Department of the Interior - Bureau of Indian AffairsU.S. GovernmentEnd of Watch: Wednesday, August 1, 1906
Biographical Info
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: Wednesday, August 1, 1906
Incident Location: Oklahoma
Weapon Used: Shotgun; 8 gauge
Suspect Info: Hung in 1909
Officer Collins was shot and killed in Oklahoma by a hit-man in retribution for the shooting of an armed fugitive. Officer Collins' murder happened in front of his home and witnessed by his wife.
The suspect was arrested in 1909 for another murder and hung by a lynch mob, along with three other men. The mob had broken into the jail to lynch the murderer of Marshal Zeke Putnam, of the Allen, Oklahoma, Police Department. The suspect was a cousin by marriage of the suspect that killed Deputy Sheriff John Turman in 1898.
Two of Officer Collins' nephews were also shot and killed in the line of duty while serving as police officers in Oklahoma. Patrolman Jim Keirsey, of the Seminole Police Department, was shot and killed on November 7, 1929, and Deputy William Keirsey, of the Carter County Sheriff's Department, was shot and killed on December 10, 1930.
-----
Ardmore Daily Ardmoreite
Monday, January 13, 1913
Healdton
"Mrs. Hettie Collins and little ones returned home this week to Colbert."
Hettie's second marriage was to Rufus Henry Davis on August 23, 1914.
Ardmore Daily Ardmoreite
Wednesday, August 26, 1914
"Married at Waurika
Mrs. Hettie Collins of Healdton and Mr. Henry Davis of the Healdton oil fields were married last Sunday afternoon in Waurika. They will make their home in this city. Mrs. Collins is the daughter of Judge C.H. Heald of Healdton and is a member of one of the most prominent Indian families in the state. She was the widow of the late Ben Collins, who was assassinated at his home near Emmet in August 1907, for which A. Washmood and others have been tried in the state courts."
Ardmore Daily Ardmoreite
Tuesday, September 8, 1914
"Mr. and Mrs. Henry Davis are home from a trip to Colorado Springs, Colo. They will make their home in Ardmore."
-----
Hettie was living in Cameron, TX when she died on May 11, 1939, News about Hettie's death was published in The Daily Ardmoreite on the day of her death.
Woman Known Here Passes
Mrs. Henry Davis of Heald Family Dies At Cameron, Texas
Mrs. Henry Davis died at her home in Cameron, Texas, Thursday morning at 1 o'clock, according to a message that came here to Dr. Walter Hardy. Mrs. Davis was born Hettie Heald. Her family gave their name to the town of Healdton. She was of Indian blood. Dr. Walter Hardy's first wife was a sister of Mrs. Davis. Another sister is Mrs. Mollie Ingram of Healdton, wife of William R. Ingram. Two brothers survive; they are Ben Heald and Will Heald, who reside in the state of Colorado.
Mrs. Davis first married Ben Collins, a colorful Indian officer, when this was Indian Territory. Because Collins shot Pete Pruitt at a picnic at Orr and made an invalid of Him, Collins was slain by the Miller gang who were afterward hanged at Ada in by a mob of citizens who became outraged at the killing of Gus Bobbit, another old deputy marshal.
Built Home in Ardmore
Mrs. Collins then married Henry Davis, who was active in oil development. they built the home at Fourth and I southwest, now owned by Denny Fitzgerald and his sister, Lillian. After leaving Ardmore the Davis family moved to Tyler, Texas, and then to Cameron. Two sons by Collins survive; they are Peck and Dan, both of whom are in business and are doing well. Peck Collins at one time possessed a nice oil fortune.
Funeral services will be held in Cameron. For a year before her passing she frequently consulted Dr. Hardy about her condition. Hear and kidney trouble was said to have made an invalid of her as they did of her husband, Henry Davis, who preceded her a couple of years."
Hettie's parents were:
Charles Hobart Heald (1843 - 1922)
Elizabeth Jane Guy Heald (1841 - 1887)
Charles and Elizabeth were married in Old Boggy Depot, I.T. on April 10, 1861. Their children, including Hettie, were:
Serena LeGrande Heald 1863 – 1865
Stella Wright Heald 1865 – 1866
Cyrus Harris Heald 1867 – 1867
Mary Eliza 'Molly' Heald 1870 – 1959
John Hobart Heald 1871 – 1883
James Dawson Heald 1874 – 1876
Janetta (Janie) Heald 1876 – 1908
Hettie Heald 1878 – 1939
William Raney Heald 1881 – 1958
Benjamin Carter Heald 1883 – 1963
Hettie was about 9 years old when her mother died on November 26, 1887.
On June 18, 1893, her father then married Fanny Ellen Nichols. Their children were:
Lucy Wright Heald 1895 – 1945
Hazel Margaret Heald 1901 – 1978
Charles Hobart Heald 1903 – 1909
-----
Ardmore Daily Ardmoreite
Friday, November 2, 1894
"Miss Hettie Heald, an accomplished young lady of Headton, is in the city the guest of her sister, Mrs. Walter Hardy."
Hettie was 18 years old when she married Ben Carter Collins, age 21, in Healdton, Carter Co, OK on November 17, 1896.
Their children were:
Ernest Berry Collins 1898 –
Henry Furman Collins 1899 – 1900
Baby Collins 1900 –
Vernon (Peck) Collins 1903 – 1973
Daniel Harding Collins 1905 – 1999
Sadly her first husband, Ben, a county sheriff, was assassinated on Aug. 1, 1906, when he was only 31 years old and she was left with several young children to raise; the youngest was about 14 months old.
Hettie's second marriage was to Rufus Henry Davis on August 23, 1914.
Newspaper articles over the years have helped provided a glimpse into Hettie's life. Unless otherwise indicated all the articles are from The Daily Ardmoreite, a local Carter Co, newspaper.
*****
On June 16, 1900,
Ben C. & Hettie Collins, ages 25 & 21, owned a farm in Healdton, Chickasaw Nation, I.T. They had been married three years; Hettie had given birth to a son, Earnest, age 2. Ben & Hettie were shown as 1/8 Chickasaw Indian.
Ardmore Daily Ardmoreite
Thursday, August 15, 1901
Durwood
"Ben Collins and family from Healdton passed through yesterday enroute to Colbert."
Monday, June 15, 1903
"Ben Collins, wife and family have gone to Colbert to visit relatives for a week or so."
Monday, October 5, 1903
Healdton
"Ben Collins and family went to Ardmore to the circus."
Tuesday, December 29, 1903
"Healdton
"There was a family reunion at the home of Grove Chase yesterday. Also one at the home of Ben Collins. All report a nice time."
Monday, January 25, 1904
"Healdton
Ben Collins has sold his home here to Mr. West. We learn that Mr. Jones from Hewitt will move into it."
Saturday, July 1, 1905
Healdton
"Ben Collins of Emet was in Ardmore today. He went to Cornish to visit the picnic."
Thursday, August 2, 1906
"Ben Collins Shot At Home
Was Waylaid and Death was Instantaneous.
Collins Was a Model Officer, Fearless in the Performance of His Duty. His Wife Witnessed Tragedy. Well Known in Ardmore.
Ardmore Special.
Milburn, I.T., Aug. 2. - Indian Policeman Ben Collins was waylaid and shot at his home five miles south of Milburn at 10 o'clock last night.
When his wife, who witnessed the tragedy from a short distance, reached Mr. Collins, he was dead. The nature of the wounds indicate that there were two parties to the assassination. Bloodhounds have been sent for and will be put on the trail early today.
News of the killing of Ben C.Collins reached here last night from his home at Emet by telephone. Collins was a United States Indian police and was formerly a deputy marshal. He was of fine build and a young man and made a daring officer. All the particulars surrounding the murder are not known her, but it is said that at 9 o'clock last night while Collins was standing in his door conversing with his wife, that a shot rang out and Collins fell mortally wounded to the floor. Two persons have been suspected of the crime and federal officers will make every effort to apprehend the guilty parties. Mrs. Walter Hardy and Mrs. W.R. Ingram of this city are sisters to Mrs. Collins. Mrs Ingram departed today for Emet. Ben Collins was well known throughout the Chickasaw Nation."
Friday, September 14, 1906
"Mrs. Ben Collins of Ardmore was in the city today on business with the Choctaw-Chickasaw paying party."
-----
Police Officer Ben C. Collins
United States Department of the Interior - Bureau of Indian AffairsU.S. GovernmentEnd of Watch: Wednesday, August 1, 1906
Biographical Info
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: Wednesday, August 1, 1906
Incident Location: Oklahoma
Weapon Used: Shotgun; 8 gauge
Suspect Info: Hung in 1909
Officer Collins was shot and killed in Oklahoma by a hit-man in retribution for the shooting of an armed fugitive. Officer Collins' murder happened in front of his home and witnessed by his wife.
The suspect was arrested in 1909 for another murder and hung by a lynch mob, along with three other men. The mob had broken into the jail to lynch the murderer of Marshal Zeke Putnam, of the Allen, Oklahoma, Police Department. The suspect was a cousin by marriage of the suspect that killed Deputy Sheriff John Turman in 1898.
Two of Officer Collins' nephews were also shot and killed in the line of duty while serving as police officers in Oklahoma. Patrolman Jim Keirsey, of the Seminole Police Department, was shot and killed on November 7, 1929, and Deputy William Keirsey, of the Carter County Sheriff's Department, was shot and killed on December 10, 1930.
-----
Ardmore Daily Ardmoreite
Monday, January 13, 1913
Healdton
"Mrs. Hettie Collins and little ones returned home this week to Colbert."
Hettie's second marriage was to Rufus Henry Davis on August 23, 1914.
Ardmore Daily Ardmoreite
Wednesday, August 26, 1914
"Married at Waurika
Mrs. Hettie Collins of Healdton and Mr. Henry Davis of the Healdton oil fields were married last Sunday afternoon in Waurika. They will make their home in this city. Mrs. Collins is the daughter of Judge C.H. Heald of Healdton and is a member of one of the most prominent Indian families in the state. She was the widow of the late Ben Collins, who was assassinated at his home near Emmet in August 1907, for which A. Washmood and others have been tried in the state courts."
Ardmore Daily Ardmoreite
Tuesday, September 8, 1914
"Mr. and Mrs. Henry Davis are home from a trip to Colorado Springs, Colo. They will make their home in Ardmore."
-----
Hettie was living in Cameron, TX when she died on May 11, 1939, News about Hettie's death was published in The Daily Ardmoreite on the day of her death.
Woman Known Here Passes
Mrs. Henry Davis of Heald Family Dies At Cameron, Texas
Mrs. Henry Davis died at her home in Cameron, Texas, Thursday morning at 1 o'clock, according to a message that came here to Dr. Walter Hardy. Mrs. Davis was born Hettie Heald. Her family gave their name to the town of Healdton. She was of Indian blood. Dr. Walter Hardy's first wife was a sister of Mrs. Davis. Another sister is Mrs. Mollie Ingram of Healdton, wife of William R. Ingram. Two brothers survive; they are Ben Heald and Will Heald, who reside in the state of Colorado.
Mrs. Davis first married Ben Collins, a colorful Indian officer, when this was Indian Territory. Because Collins shot Pete Pruitt at a picnic at Orr and made an invalid of Him, Collins was slain by the Miller gang who were afterward hanged at Ada in by a mob of citizens who became outraged at the killing of Gus Bobbit, another old deputy marshal.
Built Home in Ardmore
Mrs. Collins then married Henry Davis, who was active in oil development. they built the home at Fourth and I southwest, now owned by Denny Fitzgerald and his sister, Lillian. After leaving Ardmore the Davis family moved to Tyler, Texas, and then to Cameron. Two sons by Collins survive; they are Peck and Dan, both of whom are in business and are doing well. Peck Collins at one time possessed a nice oil fortune.
Funeral services will be held in Cameron. For a year before her passing she frequently consulted Dr. Hardy about her condition. Hear and kidney trouble was said to have made an invalid of her as they did of her husband, Henry Davis, who preceded her a couple of years."
Charles Hobart Heald (1843 - 1922)
Elizabeth Jane Guy Heald (1841 - 1887)
Charles and Elizabeth were married in Old Boggy Depot, I.T. on April 10, 1861. Their children, including Hettie, were:
Serena LeGrande Heald 1863 – 1865
Stella Wright Heald 1865 – 1866
Cyrus Harris Heald 1867 – 1867
Mary Eliza 'Molly' Heald 1870 – 1959
John Hobart Heald 1871 – 1883
James Dawson Heald 1874 – 1876
Janetta (Janie) Heald 1876 – 1908
Hettie Heald 1878 – 1939
William Raney Heald 1881 – 1958
Benjamin Carter Heald 1883 – 1963
Hettie was about 9 years old when her mother died on November 26, 1887.
On June 18, 1893, her father then married Fanny Ellen Nichols. Their children were:
Lucy Wright Heald 1895 – 1945
Hazel Margaret Heald 1901 – 1978
Charles Hobart Heald 1903 – 1909
-----
Ardmore Daily Ardmoreite
Friday, November 2, 1894
"Miss Hettie Heald, an accomplished young lady of Headton, is in the city the guest of her sister, Mrs. Walter Hardy."
Hettie was 18 years old when she married Ben Carter Collins, age 21, in Healdton, Carter Co, OK on November 17, 1896.
Their children were:
Ernest Berry Collins 1898 –
Henry Furman Collins 1899 – 1900
Baby Collins 1900 –
Vernon (Peck) Collins 1903 – 1973
Daniel Harding Collins 1905 – 1999
Sadly her first husband, Ben, a county sheriff, was assassinated on Aug. 1, 1906, when he was only 31 years old and she was left with several young children to raise; the youngest was about 14 months old.
Hettie's second marriage was to Rufus Henry Davis on August 23, 1914.
Newspaper articles over the years have helped provided a glimpse into Hettie's life. Unless otherwise indicated all the articles are from The Daily Ardmoreite, a local Carter Co, newspaper.
*****
On June 16, 1900,
Ben C. & Hettie Collins, ages 25 & 21, owned a farm in Healdton, Chickasaw Nation, I.T. They had been married three years; Hettie had given birth to a son, Earnest, age 2. Ben & Hettie were shown as 1/8 Chickasaw Indian.
Ardmore Daily Ardmoreite
Thursday, August 15, 1901
Durwood
"Ben Collins and family from Healdton passed through yesterday enroute to Colbert."
Monday, June 15, 1903
"Ben Collins, wife and family have gone to Colbert to visit relatives for a week or so."
Monday, October 5, 1903
Healdton
"Ben Collins and family went to Ardmore to the circus."
Tuesday, December 29, 1903
"Healdton
"There was a family reunion at the home of Grove Chase yesterday. Also one at the home of Ben Collins. All report a nice time."
Monday, January 25, 1904
"Healdton
Ben Collins has sold his home here to Mr. West. We learn that Mr. Jones from Hewitt will move into it."
Saturday, July 1, 1905
Healdton
"Ben Collins of Emet was in Ardmore today. He went to Cornish to visit the picnic."
Thursday, August 2, 1906
"Ben Collins Shot At Home
Was Waylaid and Death was Instantaneous.
Collins Was a Model Officer, Fearless in the Performance of His Duty. His Wife Witnessed Tragedy. Well Known in Ardmore.
Ardmore Special.
Milburn, I.T., Aug. 2. - Indian Policeman Ben Collins was waylaid and shot at his home five miles south of Milburn at 10 o'clock last night.
When his wife, who witnessed the tragedy from a short distance, reached Mr. Collins, he was dead. The nature of the wounds indicate that there were two parties to the assassination. Bloodhounds have been sent for and will be put on the trail early today.
News of the killing of Ben C.Collins reached here last night from his home at Emet by telephone. Collins was a United States Indian police and was formerly a deputy marshal. He was of fine build and a young man and made a daring officer. All the particulars surrounding the murder are not known her, but it is said that at 9 o'clock last night while Collins was standing in his door conversing with his wife, that a shot rang out and Collins fell mortally wounded to the floor. Two persons have been suspected of the crime and federal officers will make every effort to apprehend the guilty parties. Mrs. Walter Hardy and Mrs. W.R. Ingram of this city are sisters to Mrs. Collins. Mrs Ingram departed today for Emet. Ben Collins was well known throughout the Chickasaw Nation."
Friday, September 14, 1906
"Mrs. Ben Collins of Ardmore was in the city today on business with the Choctaw-Chickasaw paying party."
-----
Police Officer Ben C. Collins
United States Department of the Interior - Bureau of Indian AffairsU.S. GovernmentEnd of Watch: Wednesday, August 1, 1906
Biographical Info
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: Wednesday, August 1, 1906
Incident Location: Oklahoma
Weapon Used: Shotgun; 8 gauge
Suspect Info: Hung in 1909
Officer Collins was shot and killed in Oklahoma by a hit-man in retribution for the shooting of an armed fugitive. Officer Collins' murder happened in front of his home and witnessed by his wife.
The suspect was arrested in 1909 for another murder and hung by a lynch mob, along with three other men. The mob had broken into the jail to lynch the murderer of Marshal Zeke Putnam, of the Allen, Oklahoma, Police Department. The suspect was a cousin by marriage of the suspect that killed Deputy Sheriff John Turman in 1898.
Two of Officer Collins' nephews were also shot and killed in the line of duty while serving as police officers in Oklahoma. Patrolman Jim Keirsey, of the Seminole Police Department, was shot and killed on November 7, 1929, and Deputy William Keirsey, of the Carter County Sheriff's Department, was shot and killed on December 10, 1930.
-----
Ardmore Daily Ardmoreite
Monday, January 13, 1913
Healdton
"Mrs. Hettie Collins and little ones returned home this week to Colbert."
Hettie's second marriage was to Rufus Henry Davis on August 23, 1914.
Ardmore Daily Ardmoreite
Wednesday, August 26, 1914
"Married at Waurika
Mrs. Hettie Collins of Healdton and Mr. Henry Davis of the Healdton oil fields were married last Sunday afternoon in Waurika. They will make their home in this city. Mrs. Collins is the daughter of Judge C.H. Heald of Healdton and is a member of one of the most prominent Indian families in the state. She was the widow of the late Ben Collins, who was assassinated at his home near Emmet in August 1907, for which A. Washmood and others have been tried in the state courts."
Ardmore Daily Ardmoreite
Tuesday, September 8, 1914
"Mr. and Mrs. Henry Davis are home from a trip to Colorado Springs, Colo. They will make their home in Ardmore."
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Hettie was living in Cameron, TX when she died on May 11, 1939, News about Hettie's death was published in The Daily Ardmoreite on the day of her death.
Woman Known Here Passes
Mrs. Henry Davis of Heald Family Dies At Cameron, Texas
Mrs. Henry Davis died at her home in Cameron, Texas, Thursday morning at 1 o'clock, according to a message that came here to Dr. Walter Hardy. Mrs. Davis was born Hettie Heald. Her family gave their name to the town of Healdton. She was of Indian blood. Dr. Walter Hardy's first wife was a sister of Mrs. Davis. Another sister is Mrs. Mollie Ingram of Healdton, wife of William R. Ingram. Two brothers survive; they are Ben Heald and Will Heald, who reside in the state of Colorado.
Mrs. Davis first married Ben Collins, a colorful Indian officer, when this was Indian Territory. Because Collins shot Pete Pruitt at a picnic at Orr and made an invalid of Him, Collins was slain by the Miller gang who were afterward hanged at Ada in by a mob of citizens who became outraged at the killing of Gus Bobbit, another old deputy marshal.
Built Home in Ardmore
Mrs. Collins then married Henry Davis, who was active in oil development. they built the home at Fourth and I southwest, now owned by Denny Fitzgerald and his sister, Lillian. After leaving Ardmore the Davis family moved to Tyler, Texas, and then to Cameron. Two sons by Collins survive; they are Peck and Dan, both of whom are in business and are doing well. Peck Collins at one time possessed a nice oil fortune.
Funeral services will be held in Cameron. For a year before her passing she frequently consulted Dr. Hardy about her condition. Hear and kidney trouble was said to have made an invalid of her as they did of her husband, Henry Davis, who preceded her a couple of years."
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