Norman, Oklahoma
Norman is the county seat of Cleveland County, Oklahoma and is part of the Oklahoma City Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Norman is situated south of Oklahoma City and is the third largest city in the state. As of July 1, 2003, the city had 99,197 full-time residents. It is the county seat of Cleveland CountyTemplate:GR.
Norman is best known as the location of the University of Oklahoma, making it a center of culture, technology, and scientific research. Norman is one of the world's most prominent centers of meteorology. The city is home to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Severe Storms Laboratory, and the university's meteorology department is one of the most highly regarded in the world. Norman is the birthplace of Doppler radar.
Norman is also home to the university-operated Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, (one of the largest of its kind) and the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art, which made news in 2001 when it was given the Weitzenhoffer Collection, the single most important collection of impressionist art ever given to an American university, including works by Mary Cassatt, Vincent van Gogh, Paul Gauguin, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, and Camille Pissarro, among others.
Geography
Norman is located at 35°13'18" North, 97°25'6" West (35.221617, -97.418236)Template:GR.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 490.8 km² (189.5 mi²). 458.5 km² (177.0 mi²) of it is land and 32.4 km² (12.5 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 6.60% water.
Demographics
As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 95,694 people, 38,834 households, and 22,562 families residing in the city. The population density was 208.7/km² (540.6/mi²). There were 41,547 housing units at an average density of 90.6/km² (234.7/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 82.36% White, 4.26% African American, 4.45% Native American, 3.49% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 1.37% from other races, and 4.01% from two or more races. 3.89% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 38,834 households out of which 27.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.1% were married couples living together, 9.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.9% were non-families. 30.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.31 and the average family size was 2.93.
In the city the population was spread out with 21.2% under the age of 18, 21.4% from 18 to 24, 29.1% from 25 to 44, 19.3% from 45 to 64, and 9.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29 years. For every 100 females there were 101.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.7 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $36,713, and the median income for a family was $51,189. Males had a median income of $35,896 versus $26,394 for females. The per capita income for the city was $20,630. 15.0% of the population and 7.8% of families were below the poverty line. 11.4% of those under the age of 18 and 5.7% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.
History
The Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway planned Norman as a station site in Indian Territory in 1886-87, taking the name "Norman's Camp," a phrase that (the story goes) had been carved in a nearby tree 16 years earlier by the crew of a U.S. Land Office surveyor, Abner E. Norman, who camped nearby while mapping the area. The town itself, while platted by the railroad, wasn't settled until the Great Land Run of 1889, the mad dash by white settlers to claim the so-called Unassigned Lands at the center of Indian Territory. By nightfall on April 22, 1889, Norman probably had several hundred residents, camped in tents and covered wagons on town lots that wouldn't remain vacant for long.
Community events
- annual Mardi Gras parade (downtown Norman)
Notable residents and natives
Actors: James Garner, Jim Ross
Musicians and bands: Toby Keith, Vince Gill, Chainsaw Kittens, The Flaming Lips, Conway Twitty, Starlight Mints
Athletes: Barry Switzer, Bart Conner, Nadia Comaneci, Bob Stoops, Mark Bradley, Steve Williams
Writers: Martin Gardner
Politicians: David L. Boren
