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Norman

 
Dictionary: Nor·man2   (nôr'mən) pronunciation
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A city of central Oklahoma south of Oklahoma City. The University of Oklahoma opened here in 1892. Population: 103,000.

 

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Britannica Concise Encyclopedia: Norman
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Any of the Vikings, or Norsemen, who settled in northern France (or the Frankish kingdom) and their descendants. As pagan pirates from Denmark, Norway, and Iceland, they raided the European coast in the 8th century. They settled in the lower Seine valley by c. 900. In 911 they were granted territory around what is now Rouen by King Charles III and then extended their territory westward. They founded the duchy of Normandy, governed by a line of rulers who called themselves counts or dukes of Normandy. Though the Normans converted to Christianity and adopted the French language, they continued to display their Viking ancestors' recklessness and appetite for conquest. In the 11th century they seized England in the Norman Conquest and colonized southern Italy and Sicily. The Normans also participated in the reconquest of Spain and in the Crusades, and the Normans of Italy and Sicily were rivals of the Byzantine emperors.

For more information on Norman, visit Britannica.com.

 
Columbia Encyclopedia: Norman
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Norman, city (1990 pop. 80,071), seat of Cleveland co., central Okla.; inc. 1891. It is the center of a livestock region. Oil wells, food processing, and printing and publishing contribute to the economy, and there is diverse manufacturing (machinery, communication equipment, nutritional products, and consumer goods). Norman is the seat of the Univ. of Oklahoma. The city's population grew considerably in the late 20th cent.

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Wikipedia: Norman, Oklahoma
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Norman, Oklahoma
—  City  —
Location of Norman, Oklahoma
Coordinates: 35°13′18″N 97°25′6″W / 35.22167°N 97.41833°W / 35.22167; -97.41833
Country United States
State Oklahoma
County Cleveland
Government
 - Type Council-Manager
 - Mayor Cindy Rosenthal
 - City Manager Steve Lewis
Area
 - Total 189.5 sq mi (490.8 km2)
 - Land 177.0 sq mi (458.4 km2)
 - Water 12.5 sq mi (32.4 km2)
Elevation 1,171 ft (357 m)
Population (2009)
 - Total 110,478
 - Density 540.6/sq mi (208.7/km2)
Time zone Central (CST) (UTC-6)
 - Summer (DST) CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP codes 73000-73099
Area code(s) 405
FIPS code 40-52500[1]
GNIS feature ID 1095903[2]

Norman is the largest city in and the county seat of Cleveland County in the U.S. state of Oklahoma,[3] and is part of the Oklahoma City Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Norman is located approximately 20 miles south of downtown Oklahoma City and is the third largest city in the state behind Tulsa and Oklahoma City.[4] As of 2006, the city was estimated to have 102,827 full-time residents.[5] It is the business and employment center of Cleveland County.

Contents

Overview

Bizzell Library, University of Oklahoma

Norman is home to the University of Oklahoma, the largest university in the state with approximately 30,000 students enrolled.[6][7] The campus in Norman is a center for scientific and technological research, having contributed over $277 million to such programs in 2009 alone.[8] Norman also enjoys many cultural attractions that are funded by the university, such as the Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, and the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art. In 2000 the Fred Jones Museum made national and international news when it was given the Weitzenhoffer Collection, the largest collection of French Impressionist art ever given to an American University.[9][10][11] The collection includes works by Mary Cassatt, Vincent van Gogh, Paul Gauguin, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, and Camille Pissarro.

Significant housing developments around town include the recent addition of many student-oriented apartment complexes east of the university[12], as well as the more suburban and affluent Brookhaven to the west. Popular retail sites include Campus Corner, University North Park, and Brookhaven Villages.

Norman enjoys many tree-lined landscapes thanks in part to its participation in ReLeaf Norman and the Tree City USA programs.[13][14] To the east of Norman lies Lake Thunderbird, consisting of some 6,000-acres of lake and forests.

In 2008, Money Magazine ranked Norman as the 6th best place to live in the United States, the highest of any city in Oklahoma.[15] Norman also made the 2009 "11 Great Places You've (Maybe) Never Heard Of" list in Mother Earth News.[16]

Meteorology

Main article: National Weather Center
National Weather Center at the University of Oklahoma.

Norman is a prominent center of meteorological research, specifically severe weather. The National Weather Center, located on OU's Research Campus near State Highway 9 and Jenkins Avenue, houses several NOAA organizations, including the Storm Prediction Center and the National Severe Storms Laboratory, along with the University's weather-related units including the College of Atmospheric and Geographic Sciences and the Center for Analysis and Prediction of Storms. Private sector meteorological companies are located alongside the 2006 facility at "Partners Place".

Geography

Norman is located at 35°13′18″N 97°25′6″W / 35.22167°N 97.41833°W / 35.22167; -97.41833 (35.221617, -97.418236)[17].

The city has a total area of 189.51 square miles (490.8 km2), of which 177.01 square miles (458.5 km2) is land and 12.5 square miles (32 km2) or 6.60% is water[18]. Approximately 27 square miles (70 km2) are developed.

Elevation at the Max Westheimer Airport is 1,184 feet (361 m) above mean sea level. The lowest point within city limits is the Little River, a tributary of the Canadian River, just after it exits the Lake Thunderbird Dam.

The terrain in the undeveloped western parts of Norman is prairie and the eastern section, including the area surrounding Lake Thunderbird, is cross timbers forest.

Demographics

As of the census[1] of 2000, there were 95,694 people, 38,834 households, and 22,562 families residing in the city. The population density was 540.6 people per square mile (208.7/km²). There were 41,547 housing units at an average density of 234.7/sq mi (90.6/km²). 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. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.89% of the population.

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. About 7.8% of families and 15.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.4% of those under age 18 and 5.7% of those age 65 or over.

Abner Norman statue outside City Hall.

History

In 1870, the United States Land Office contracted with a professional engineer to survey much of Oklahoma territory. Abner E. Norman, a young surveyor, became chairman and leader of the central survey area in Indian Territory. The surveyor’s crew burned the words “NORMAN’S CAMP” into an elm tree near a watering hole to taunt their younger supervisor.[19] The Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway planned Norman as a station site in Indian Territory in 1886-87. The town itself, while platted by the railroad, wasn't settled until the Great Land Run of 1889. When the “SOONERS” (those who headed west before the official Land Run date of April 22, 1889) and the other settlers arrived in the heart of Oklahoma, they kept the name “NORMAN.”

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. Almost overnight, the settlement developed into a thriving town. It was near Norman, in 1895, that Doolin Gang members George "Bittercreek" Newcomb and Charlie Pierce were killed by the "Dunn Brothers", who were bounty hunters from Ingalls, Oklahoma.

Through the middle of the 20th century, Norman was a sundown town, from which African Americans were systematically excluded from living.[20] The city is also the original hometown of actor James Garner. On April 21, 2006, a ten-foot bronze statue of Garner as his 1957 television character Bret Maverick was unveiled near the center of town, with Garner present at the ceremony.

Business

Norman is the nation's center for the study of severe weather and is home of the National Storm Prediction Center, National Severe Storms Laboratory, the National Weather Center (a cooperative between the University of Oklahoma and the National Weather Service), and is the proposed location of a future National Weather Museum.[21] Because of this strong foundation in weather research, Norman is now home to many weather-related private businesses including Weathernews Americas, Inc., Vieux and Associates, Inc., Weather Decision Technologies, WeatherBank, Inc., and Computational Geosciences, Inc.[22] In addition, the state's center of geology-related study, the Oklahoma Geological Survey, is located in Norman.[23]

High-tech business is not limited to the weather-related in Norman. A recent promising addition to the local business landscape is SouthWest NanoTechnologies (SWeNT). SWeNT is a producer of single-walled carbon nanotubes, which are tiny hollow cylinders of carbon that exhibit extraordinary properties.[24] Applications include new thermal-optical coatings on aircraft, bullet-proof armor, lighter and more efficient wind turbine blades, touch-screen coatings, solar cells, next-generation flat-panel displays, and non-invasive cancer treatments.[25] With so many of these possible markets involving green technology, perhaps it is no coincidence that Norman is home to the Oklahoma Renewable Energy Council.[26]

In addition to the above, the local business community boasts many major employers, such as: York International/Johnson Controls, Hitachi, Astellas Pharma, Albon Engineering, Xyant Technology, Office Max's National Sales Center, Sitel (formerly ClientLogic), the USPS National Center for Employee Development, Sysco Foods, AT&T, and several research companies and smaller firms that take advantage of Norman's business climate.[27]

The nation's fourth-largest retail site[28], University North Park, is currently under construction in Norman along the I-35 corridor between Robinson Street and Tecumseh Road. When completed the project will feature a two mile stretch of parks, offices, and high-end retail. Recently completed projects include anchor tenants such as Super Target, Petco, Kohl's, Office Depot,[28] and a ten story Embassy Suites Hotel and Conference Center.[29]

Community events

Transportation

Air

Norman is served locally by Max Westheimer Airport, a general aviation airport run by the University of Oklahoma.[30] Major commercial air transportation is available at Will Rogers World Airport in Oklahoma City, approximately 20 miles north of Norman.

Public Transit

Cleveland Area Rapid Transit provides bus service to the Norman area on weekdays with some routes also running on Saturdays. A route also runs to Oklahoma City and connects with OKC's Metro Transit.[31] The service is operated by the University of Oklahoma and is free to faculty, staff, and students. The regular fare for all other riders is 50 cents.

Rail

Norman's Depot is served by Amtrak's Heartland Flyer providing daily round trip service to downtown Oklahoma City and Fort Worth, Texas.

Road

Norman is served by several major roadways.

Education

Colleges and universities

Career and Technical Education

Public primary and secondary schools

Private primary and secondary schools

  • Community Christian School - kindergarten through 12th grade
  • Robinson Street Christian School - kindergarten through 12th grade
  • Blue Eagle Christian Academy - kindergarten through 11th grade
  • All Saints Catholic School - pre-kindergarten through 8th grade
  • Norman Christian Academy - pre-kindergarten through 7th grade
  • Trinity Lutheran School - pre-kindergarten through 6th grade
  • Veritas Classical Christian Academy - pre-kindergarten through 10th grade

Miscellaneous Schools

  • Hollywood Cosmetology Center

Notable residents and natives

Actors

Candy Clark, Darryl Cox, James Garner (a statue of Garner as Bret Maverick was unveiled in Norman on April 21, 2006, with Garner present at the ceremony), Alice Ghostley[32], Milena Govich, Christian Kane, Doris Eaton Travis, Ed Harris[33]

Musicians and bands

Jesse Ed Davis, Chainsaw Kittens, Vince Gill, Toby Keith[34], Wayne Coyne[35], Yolanda Kondonassis, Starlight Mints, Evangelicals, Matthew Fletcher

Performers

Donny Vomit

Athletics

Dean Blevins, Dominic Cervi, Sherri Coale, Nadia Comaneci, Bart Conner, Tommie Harris, Cedric Jones, Jimmy McNatt, Steve Owens, Adrian Peterson, Jim Ross, Bob Stoops, Barry Switzer, Zac Taylor, Ron Tripp, J. C. Watts, Jason White, Roy Williams, Steve Williams, Mickey Tettleton Jackie Shipp

Writers

Martin Gardner[36], Harold Keith

Politicians

Carl Albert, David L. Boren, Jack Mildren, J. C. Watts

Scientists

Karl Guthe Jansky
David Deming

Designers

Kayne Gillaspie Sherri Hill Robert Bardell Ridner

Sister cities

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
  2. ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. http://geonames.usgs.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
  3. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Template.cfm?Section=Find_a_County&Template=/cffiles/counties/usamap.cfm. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
  4. ^ "Oklahoma by Place - GCT-T1-R. Population Estimates (geographies ranked by estimate)" (in English) (HTML). United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/GCTTable?_bm=y&-geo_id=04000US40&-_box_head_nbr=GCT-T1-R&-ds_name=PEP_2006_EST&-_lang=en&-format=ST-9S&-_sse=on. Retrieved 2007-07-20. 
  5. ^ "Norman city, Oklahoma" (in English) (HTML). United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/SAFFPopulation?_event=&geo_id=16000US4052500&_geoContext=01000US%7C04000US40%7C16000US4052500&_street=&_county=Norman+city&_cityTown=Norman+city&_state=04000US40&_zip=&_lang=en&_sse=on&ActiveGeoDiv=geoSelect&_useEV=&pctxt=fph&pgsl=160&_submenuId=population_0&ds_name=DEC_2000_SAFF&_ci_nbr=null&qr_name=&reg=%3Anull&_keyword=&_industry=. Retrieved 2007-07-20. 
  6. ^ "OU Facts" (in English) (HTML). OU. http://www.ou.edu/publicaffairs/oufacts.html. Retrieved 2009-08-29. 
  7. ^ "Summary of Oklahoma's Colleges, Universities, and Career Schools" (in English) (HTML). Education Portal. http://education-portal.com/articles/Oklahoma_(OK)%3A_Summary_of_Oklahoma%27s_Colleges%2C_Universities%2C_and_Career_Schools.html. Retrieved 2009-08-29. 
  8. ^ "OU Facts" (in English) (HTML). OU. http://www.ou.edu/publicaffairs/oufacts.html. Retrieved 2009-08-29. 
  9. ^ "Impressionists at the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art" (in English) (HTML). French Culture. http://www.frenchculture.org/spip.php?article453. Retrieved 2009-08-29. 
  10. ^ "Cityscape: Norman, OK" (in English) (HTML). NY Art Magazine. http://www.nyartsmagazine.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=4582&Itemid=705. Retrieved 2009-08-29. 
  11. ^ "Art museum drawing national attention" (in English) (HTML). OU Daily. http://oudaily.com/news/2006/aug/23/art-museum-drawing-national-attention. Retrieved 2009-08-29. 
  12. ^ "New Sites to Open" (in English) (HTML). OU Daily. http://oudaily.com/news/2004/apr/30/new-sites-to-open/. Retrieved 2009-08-29. 
  13. ^ "ReLeaf Norman" (in English) (HTML). City of Norman. http://www.ci.norman.ok.us/tips/ReLeafNorman/default.htm. Retrieved 2009-08-29. 
  14. ^ "Tree City/Tree Line USA Programs" (in English) (HTML). OK Dept. of Forestry. http://www.forestry.ok.gov/tree-citytree-line-usa-programs. Retrieved 2009-08-29. 
  15. ^ "Best Places to Live" (in English) (HTML). MONEY Magazine. http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag/bplive/2008/. Retrieved 2008-07-17. 
  16. ^ "11 Great Places You’ve (Maybe) Never Heard Of, 2009 Edition" (in English) (HTML). Mother Earth News. http://www.motherearthnews.com/Great-Places-2009.aspx. Retrieved 2009-11-07. 
  17. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2005-05-03. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/gazette.html. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
  18. ^ "Oklahoma by Place - GCT-PH1. Population, Housing Units, Area, and Density:  2000" (in English) (HTML). United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/GCTTable?_bm=y&-context=gct&-ds_name=DEC_2000_SF1_U&-mt_name=DEC_2000_SF1_U_GCTPH1_ST7&-CONTEXT=gct&-tree_id=4001&-geo_id=04000US40&-format=ST-7%7CST-7S&-_lang=en. Retrieved 2007-07-20. 
  19. ^ City of Norman's Website
  20. ^ Norman, Oklahoma page from James W. Loewen's Sundown Towns webpage
  21. ^ "National Weather Museum in the Works" (in English) (HTML). Denver Weather Examiner. http://www.examiner.com/x-219-Denver-Weather-Examiner~topic56390-weather-news. Retrieved 2009-01-11. 
  22. ^ Oklahoma Department of Commerce
  23. ^ Oklahoma Geological Survey
  24. ^ "A New Silicon Valley on the Oklahoma Prairie?" (in English) (HTML). Huffington Post. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/al-eisele/a-new-silicon-valley-on-t_b_132448.html. Retrieved 2009-02-07. 
  25. ^ "SWeNT Opens Commercial-Scale Nanotube Manufacturing Plant" (in English) (HTML). Nanotechnology Now. http://www.nanotech-now.com/news.cgi?story_id=30826. Retrieved 2009-02-07. 
  26. ^ Oklahoma Renewable Energy Council
  27. ^ Norman Chamber of Commerce
  28. ^ a b "Businesses Coming to University North Park" (in English) (HTML). The Norman Transcript. http://www.normantranscript.com/localnews/local_story_226234449. Retrieved 2009-01-11. 
  29. ^ "Embassy Suites Celebrates Grand Opening With United Way Benefit" (in English) (HTML). The Norman Transcript. http://www.normantranscript.com/localnews/local_story_347025000. Retrieved 2009-01-11. 
  30. ^ "Max Westheimer Airport". University of Oklahoma. http://airport.ou.edu. Retrieved 2007-08-14. 
  31. ^ "Norman CART". CART. http://cart.ou.edu/. Retrieved 2007-08-14. 
  32. ^ University of Oklahoma School of Drama (PDF)
  33. ^ Ed Harris Biography at Tiscali. Retrieved on May 14, 2008
  34. ^ "Toby Keith named to Hall of Fame". Norman Transcript. 2007-05-30. http://www.normantranscript.com/moorenews/local_story_150012331. Retrieved 2007-09-03. 
  35. ^ "Fearless Freaks". http://www.fearlessfreaks.com/. Retrieved 2008-04-11. 
  36. ^ Page 602 of "Interview with Martin Gardner" Notices of the AMS 6(52):602-611 June/July 2005.

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Municipalities of the Greater Oklahoma City Metropolitan Area
Population over 500,000
Population over 100,000
Norman
Population over 50,000
Population over 20,000
Population over 10,000
Population over 5,000
Population over 2,000
Population over 1,000
Population over 500
Population over 200
Agra • Arcadia • Asher • Byars • Cedar Valley • Cole • Coyle • Dibble • Johnson • Marshall • Mulhall • Orlando • Pocasset • St. Louis • Tribbey • Tryon • Wanette • Warwick
Population under 200
Unincorporated areas
Regional Government
Association of Central Oklahoma Governments
v • d • e
Municipalities and communities of
Cleveland County, Oklahoma
County seat: Norman
Cities

Lexington | Moore | Noble | Norman | Oklahoma City‡ | Purcell‡
Towns
Footnotes

‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties
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State of Oklahoma
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Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2007. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. © 2006 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
Columbia Encyclopedia. The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition Copyright © 2003, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. www.cc.columbia.edu/cu/cup/.  Read more
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