Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the
capital
Capital may refer to:
Common uses
* Capital city, a municipality of primary status
** List of national capital cities
* Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences
* Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used f ...
and largest city of the
U.S. state
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...
of
Oklahoma
Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...
. The
county seat
A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...
of
Oklahoma County
Oklahoma County is located in the central part of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. As of the 2010 census, the population was 718,633, making it the most populous county in Oklahoma. The county seat is Oklahoma City, the state capital and largest ci ...
,
it ranks
20th among United States cities in population, and is the 8th largest city in the
Southern United States
The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...
. The population grew following the 2010 census and reached 687,725 in the
2020 census.
The
Oklahoma City metropolitan area
The Oklahoma City metropolitan area is an urban region in the Southern United States. It is the largest metropolitan area in the state of Oklahoma and contains the state capital and principal city, Oklahoma City. It is often known as the Okla ...
had a population of 1,396,445,
[ ] and the Oklahoma City–
Shawnee
The Shawnee are an Algonquian-speaking indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands. In the 17th century they lived in Pennsylvania, and in the 18th century they were in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, with some bands in Kentucky a ...
Combined Statistical Area
Combined statistical area (CSA) is a United States Office of Management and Budget (OMB) term for a combination of adjacent metropolitan (MSA) and micropolitan statistical areas (µSA) across the 50 US states and the territory of Puerto Ric ...
had a population of 1,469,124,
making it Oklahoma's largest municipality and metropolitan area by population.
Oklahoma City's city limits extend somewhat into
Canadian
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
,
Cleveland
Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...
, and
Pottawatomie
The Potawatomi , also spelled Pottawatomi and Pottawatomie (among many variations), are a Native American people of the western Great Lakes region, upper Mississippi River and Great Plains. They traditionally speak the Potawatomi language, a m ...
counties, though much of those areas outside the core Oklahoma County area are suburban tracts or protected rural zones (
watershed). The city is the
eighth-largest in the United States by area including
consolidated city-counties
In United States local government, a consolidated city-county is formed when one or more cities and their surrounding county ( parish in Louisiana, borough in Alaska) merge into one unified jurisdiction. As such it has the governmental powers ...
; it is the second-largest, after
Houston
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
, not including consolidated cities. The city is also the second largest by area among state capital cities in the United States, after
Juneau, Alaska
The City and Borough of Juneau, more commonly known simply as Juneau ( ; tli, Dzánti K'ihéeni ), is the capital city of the state of Alaska. Located in the Gastineau Channel and the Alaskan panhandle, it is a unified municipality and the se ...
.
Oklahoma City has one of the world's largest livestock markets. Oil, natural gas,
petroleum product
Petroleum products are materials derived from crude oil (petroleum) as it is processed in oil refineries. Unlike petrochemicals, which are a collection of well-defined usually pure organic compounds, petroleum products are complex mixtures. The m ...
s, and related industries are its economy's largest sector. The city is in the middle of an active oil field and
oil derrick
A derrick is a lifting device composed at minimum of one guyed mast, as in a gin pole, which may be articulated over a load by adjusting its guys. Most derricks have at least two components, either a guyed mast or self-supporting tower, and ...
s dot the capitol grounds. The federal government employs a large number of workers at
Tinker Air Force Base
Tinker Air Force Base is a major United States Air Force base, with tenant U.S. Navy and other Department of Defense missions, located in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, surrounded by Del City, Oklahoma City, and Midwest City.
The base, origina ...
and the
United States Department of Transportation
The United States Department of Transportation (USDOT or DOT) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government. It is headed by the secretary of transportation, who reports directly to the President of the United States and ...
's
Mike Monroney Aeronautical Center
Mike Monroney Aeronautical Center is a regional office of the United States Federal Aviation Administration on the grounds of Will Rogers Airport in Oklahoma City. With around 7,500 direct federal employees, the Aeronautical Center is one of the ...
(which house offices of the
Federal Aviation Administration
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is the largest transportation agency of the U.S. government and regulates all aspects of civil aviation in the country as well as over surrounding international waters. Its powers include air traffic m ...
and the Transportation Department's Enterprise Service Center, respectively).
Oklahoma City is on the
I-35 Corridor
Interstate 35 (I-35) is a major Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates that end in a five, it is a major cross-country, north–south route. It stretches from Laredo, Texas, near the Mexico–United ...
, one of the primary travel corridors south into neighboring Texas and
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
and north towards
Wichita and
Kansas City
The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more ...
. Located in the state's
Frontier Country region, the city's northeast section lies in an ecological region known as the
Cross Timbers
The term Cross Timbers, also known as Ecoregion 29, Central Oklahoma/Texas Plains, is used to describe a strip of land in the United States that runs from southeastern Kansas across Central Oklahoma to Central Texas. Made up of a mix of prairie ...
. The city was founded during the
Land Run of 1889
The Oklahoma Land Rush of 1889 was the first land run into the Unassigned Lands of former Indian Territory, which had earlier been assigned to the Muscogee, Creek and Seminole peoples. The area that was opened to settlement included all or part ...
and grew to a population of over 10,000 within hours of its founding. It was the site of the
April 19, 1995, bombing of the
Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building
The Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building was a United States federal government complex located at 200 N.W. 5th Street in downtown Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. On April 19, 1995, at 9:02 a.m. the building was the target of the Oklahoma City bombing ...
, in which 168 people died, the deadliest terror attack in U.S. history until
the attacks of September 11, 2001, and the deadliest act of
domestic terrorism
Domestic terrorism or homegrown terrorism is a form of terrorism in which victims "within a country are targeted by a perpetrator with the same citizenship" as the victims.Gary M. Jackson, ''Predicting Malicious Behavior: Tools and Techniques ...
in U.S. history.
Since weather records have been kept beginning in 1890, Oklahoma City has been struck by 14 violent
tornado
A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the Earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. It is often referred to as a twister, whirlwind or cyclone, altho ...
es, 11 of which were rated F4 or EF4 on the
Fujita Fujita (written: , or ) is a Japanese surname. Notable people with the surname include:
*, Japanese handball player
*, Japanese long-distance runner
*Aya Fujita (born 1987), Japanese shogi player
*Emi Fujita (born 1963), Japanese singer
*, Japanes ...
and
Enhanced Fujita scale
The Enhanced Fujita scale (abbreviated as EF-Scale) rates tornado intensity based on the severity of the damage they cause. It is used in some countries, including the United States, Canada, China, and Mongolia.
The Enhanced Fujita scale repla ...
s, and one each rated F5 and EF5.
History
![Oklahoma1885](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/03/Oklahoma1885.jpg)
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, -
,
''Romanized:'' ogalahoma gaduhvi
, -
, chy, Ma'xepóno'e
, -
, del, Oklahoma-utènaii
, -
, iow, Chína Chége Itúⁿ
, -
, nv, Halgai Hóteeldi Kin Haalʼáhí
, -
, sac, Okonohômîheki
Oklahoma City was settled on April 22, 1889, when the area known as the "
Unassigned Lands
The Unassigned Lands in Oklahoma were in the center of the lands ceded to the United States by the Creek (Muskogee) and Seminole Indians following the Civil War and on which no other tribes had been settled. By 1883 it was bounded by the Chero ...
" was opened for settlement in an event known as "
The Land Run". Some 10,000
homesteaders
The Homestead Acts were several laws in the United States by which an applicant could acquire ownership of government land or the public domain, typically called a homestead. In all, more than of public land, or nearly 10 percent of th ...
settled the area that would become the capital of Oklahoma. The town grew quickly; the population doubled between 1890 and 1900. Early leaders of the development of the city included Anton Classen, John Shartel,
Henry Overholser
Henry Overholser (April 14, 1846 – August 25, 1915) was an American businessman, county commissioner, and important contributor to the development of Oklahoma City. He was the first to erect two-story buildings in the city, both of which were ...
,
Oscar Ameringer and
James W. Maney.
![Oklahoma City 1890](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/76/Oklahoma_City_1890.jpg)
By the time Oklahoma was admitted to the Union in 1907, Oklahoma City had surpassed
Guthrie, the territorial capital, as the new state's population center and commercial hub. Soon after, the capital was moved from Guthrie to Oklahoma City. Oklahoma City was a major stop on
Route 66
U.S. Route 66 or U.S. Highway 66 (US 66 or Route 66) was one of the original highways in the United States Numbered Highway System. It was established on November 11, 1926, with road signs erected the following year. The h ...
during the early part of the 20th century; it was prominently mentioned in
Bobby Troup
Robert William Troup Jr. (October 18, 1918 – February 7, 1999) was an American actor, jazz pianist, singer, and songwriter. He wrote the song " Route 66" and acted in the role of Dr. Joe Early with his wife Julie London in the television progr ...
's 1946 jazz song "
(Get Your Kicks on) Route 66
"(Get Your Kicks on) Route 66" is a popular rhythm and blues song, composed in 1946 by American songwriter Bobby Troup. The lyrics relate a westward roadtrip on U.S. Route 66, a highway which traversed the western two-thirds of the U.S. from Chi ...
" made famous by artist
Nat King Cole
Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. Cole's music career began after he dropped out of school at the age of 15, and continued f ...
.
Before
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, Oklahoma City developed major
stockyards, attracting jobs and revenue formerly in
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
and
Omaha, Nebraska
Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest cit ...
. With the 1928 discovery of oil within the city limits (including under the State Capitol), Oklahoma City became a major center of oil production. Post-war growth accompanied the construction of the
Interstate Highway System
The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, commonly known as the Interstate Highway System, is a network of controlled-access highways that forms part of the National Highway System in the United States. Th ...
, which made Oklahoma City a major interchange as the convergence of
I-35
Interstate 35 (I-35) is a major Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates that end in a five, it is a major cross-country, north–south route. It stretches from Laredo, Texas, near the Mexican border ...
,
I-40
Interstate 40 (I-40) is a major east–west Interstate Highway running through the south-central portion of the United States. At a length of , it is the third-longest Interstate Highway in the country, after I-90 and I-80. From west to ea ...
, and
I-44
Interstate 44 (I-44) is a major Interstate Highway in the central United States. Although it is nominally an east–west road as it is even-numbered, it follows a more southwest–northeast alignment. Its western terminus is in Wichita Fa ...
. It was also aided by the federal development of
Tinker Air Force Base
Tinker Air Force Base is a major United States Air Force base, with tenant U.S. Navy and other Department of Defense missions, located in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, surrounded by Del City, Oklahoma City, and Midwest City.
The base, origina ...
.
In 1950, the
Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...
reported the city's population as 8.6% black and 90.7% white.
Patience Latting
Patience Sewell Latting (August 27, 1918 – December 29, 2012) was an American politician who served as Mayor of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, from 1971 to 1983. Latting was the first female Mayor of Oklahoma City.
Early life
Latting was born in T ...
was elected
Mayor of Oklahoma City
The following persons have held the office of mayor of Oklahoma City. Mayors of Oklahoma City are elected to four year terms.
List of mayors
Provisional mayors following land run
Elected mayors following Oklahoma City's incorporation
^C ...
in 1971, becoming the city's first female mayor.
Latting was also the first woman to serve as mayor of a U.S. city with over 350,000 residents.
[
]
Like many other American cities, the center city population declined in the 1970s and 1980s as families followed newly constructed highways to move to newer housing in nearby suburbs. Urban renewal
Urban renewal (also called urban regeneration in the United Kingdom and urban redevelopment in the United States) is a program of land redevelopment often used to address urban decay in cities. Urban renewal involves the clearing out of blighte ...
projects in the 1970s, including the Pei Plan
The Pei Plan was an urban redevelopment initiative designed for downtown Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States, in the 1960s and 1970s. It is the informal name for two related commissions of noted architect and urban planner I. M. Pei — namel ...
, removed older structures but failed to spark much new development, leaving the city dotted with vacant lots used for parking. A notable exception was the city's construction of the Myriad Gardens and Crystal Bridge, a botanical garden and modernistic conservatory in the heart of downtown. Architecturally significant historic buildings lost to clearances were the Criterion Theater, the Baum Building, the Hales Building, and the Biltmore Hotel.
In 1993, the city passed a massive redevelopment package known as the Metropolitan Area Projects Metropolitan Area Projects Plan (MAPS) is a multi-year, municipal capital improvement program, consisting of a number of projects, originally conceived in the 1990s in Oklahoma City by its then mayor Ron Norick. A MAPS program features several inter ...
(MAPS), intended to rebuild the city's core with civic projects to establish more activities and life to downtown. The city added a new baseball park
A ballpark, or baseball park, is a type of sports venue where baseball is played. The playing field is divided into the infield, an area whose dimensions are rigidly defined, and the outfield, where dimensions can vary widely from place to pla ...
; a central library; renovations to the civic center
A civic center or civic centre is a prominent land area within a community that is constructed to be its focal point or center. It usually contains one or more dominant public buildings, which may also include a government building. Recently, the ...
, convention center
A convention center (American English; or conference centre in British English) is a large building that is designed to hold a convention, where individuals and groups gather to promote and share common interests. Convention centers typica ...
, and fairgrounds; and a water canal in the Bricktown entertainment district. Water taxis transport passengers within the district, adding color and activity along the canal. MAPS has become one of the most successful public-private partnerships undertaken in the U.S., exceeding $3 billion in private investment as of 2010. As a result of MAPS, the population living in downtown housing has exponentially increased, together with the demand for additional residential and retail amenities, such as grocery, services, and shops.
Since the MAPS projects' completion, the downtown area has seen continued development. Several downtown buildings are undergoing renovation/restoration. Notable among these was the restoration of the Skirvin Hotel in 2007. The famed First National Center
First National Center, formerly known as First National Bank Building, is a prominent mixed-use skyscraper in downtown Oklahoma City. The art deco tower is 406 feet (136 m) tall at the roof, and is 446 feet (150 m) at its spire and contains 33 ...
is being renovated.
Residents of Oklahoma City suffered substantial losses on April 19, 1995, when Timothy McVeigh
Timothy James McVeigh (April 23, 1968 – June 11, 2001) was an American domestic terrorist responsible for the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing that killed 168 people, 19 of whom were children, injured more than 680 others, and destroyed one-third o ...
detonated a bomb in front of the Murrah building. The building was destroyed (the remnants of which had to be imploded in a controlled demolition later that year), more than 100 nearby buildings suffered severe damage, and 168 people were killed. The site has been commemorated as the Oklahoma City National Memorial
The Oklahoma City National Memorial is a memorial in the United States that honors the victims, survivors, rescuers, and all who were affected by the Oklahoma City bombing on April 19, 1995. The memorial is located in downtown Oklahoma City on th ...
and Museum. Since its opening in 2000, over three million people have visited. Every year on April 19, survivors, families, and friends return to the memorial to read the names of each person lost. McVeigh was executed by lethal injection
Lethal injection is the practice of injecting one or more drugs into a person (typically a barbiturate, paralytic, and potassium solution) for the express purpose of causing rapid death. The main application for this procedure is capital puni ...
on June 11, 2001.
The "Core-to-Shore" project was created to relocate I-40 one mile (1.6 km) south and replace it with a boulevard
A boulevard is a type of broad avenue planted with rows of trees, or in parts of North America, any urban highway.
Boulevards were originally circumferential roads following the line of former city walls.
In American usage, boulevards may ...
to create a landscaped entrance to the city. This also allows the central portion of the city to expand south and connect with the shore of the Oklahoma River. Several elements of "Core to Shore" were included in the MAPS 3 proposal approved by voters in late 2009.
Geography
Oklahoma City lies along one of the primary corridors into Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
and Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
, and is a three-hour drive from the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex. The city is in the Frontier Country region in the center of the state, making it an ideal location for state government.
According to the United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...
, the city has a total area of , of which is land and is water.
Oklahoma City lies in the Sandstone Hills region of Oklahoma, known for hills of and two species of oak: blackjack oak
''Quercus marilandica'', the blackjack oak, is a small oak, one of the red oak group ''Quercus'' sect. ''Lobatae''. It is native to the eastern and central United States.
Description
''Quercus marilandica'' is a small deciduous tree growing to ...
(''Quercus marilandica'') and post oak
''Quercus stellata'', the post oak or iron oak, is a North American species of oak in the white oak section. It is a slow-growing oak that lives in dry areas on the edges of fields, tops of ridges also grows in poor soils, and is resistant to ro ...
(''Q. stellata''). The northeastern part of the city and its eastern suburbs fall into an ecological region known as the Cross Timbers
The term Cross Timbers, also known as Ecoregion 29, Central Oklahoma/Texas Plains, is used to describe a strip of land in the United States that runs from southeastern Kansas across Central Oklahoma to Central Texas. Made up of a mix of prairie ...
.
The city is roughly bisected by the North Canadian River
The North Canadian River is a river, long, in Oklahoma in the United States. It is a tributary of the Canadian River, draining an area of U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset/Watershed Boundary Dataset, area data covering North ...
(recently renamed the Oklahoma River inside city limits). The North Canadian once had sufficient flow to flood every year, wreaking destruction on surrounding areas, including the central business district and the original Oklahoma City Zoo. In the 1940s, a dam was built on the river to manage the flood control and reduce its level. In the 1990s, as part of the citywide revitalization project known as MAPS, the city built a series of low-water dams, returning water to the portion of the river flowing near downtown. The city has three large lakes: Lake Hefner
Lake Hefner is a reservoir in northwestern Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. It was built in the 1940s to expand the water supply for the city of Oklahoma City,[Lake Overholser
Lake Overholser is a reservoir within the city limits of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Lake Overholser is formed by Overholser Dam on the North Canadian River in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma. The lake is west of Bethany.](_blank)[Lake Stanley Draper
Lake Stanley Draper is a reservoir in southeast Oklahoma City, United States. It is one of three municipal reservoirs in the city. It was constructed in 1962-1963, and named for the long-time director of the Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce.] , in the city's sparsely populated far southeast portion.
The population density normally reported for Oklahoma City using the area of its city limits can be misleading. Its urbanized zone covers roughly resulting in a 2013 estimated density of , compared with larger rural watershed areas incorporated by the city, which cover the remaining of the city limits.[American Fact Finder Table GCT-PH1 retrieved on July 17, 2008]
Oklahoma City is one of the largest cities in the nation in compliance with the Clean Air Act.
Tallest buildings
Neighborhoods
Oklahoma City neighborhoods are extremely varied, with affluent historic neighborhoods located next to districts that have not wholly recovered from economic and social decline of the 1970s and 1980s.
The city is bisected geographically and culturally by the North Canadian River, which basically divides North Oklahoma City and South Oklahoma City. The north side is characterized by very diverse and fashionable urban neighborhoods near the city center and sprawling suburbs further north. South Oklahoma City is generally more blue collar working class and significantly more industrial, having grown up around the Stockyards and meat packing plants at the turn of the century, and is the center of the city's rapidly growing Latino community.
Downtown Oklahoma City
Downtown Oklahoma City is located at the geographic center of the Oklahoma City metropolitan area and contains the principal, central business district of the region. The CBD has over 51,000 workers and over of leasable office space to-date. Down ...
, which has 7,600 residents, is seeing an influx of new private investment and large scale public works projects, which have helped to resuscitate a central business district left almost deserted by the Oil Bust of the early 1980s. The centerpiece of downtown is the newly renovated Crystal Bridge and Myriad Botanical Gardens, one of the few elements of the Pei Plan
The Pei Plan was an urban redevelopment initiative designed for downtown Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States, in the 1960s and 1970s. It is the informal name for two related commissions of noted architect and urban planner I. M. Pei — namel ...
to be completed. In 2021 a massive new central park will link the gardens near the CBD and the new convention center to be built just south of it to the North Canadian River, as part of a massive works project known as "Core to Shore"; the new park is part of MAPS3, a collection of civic projects funded by a one-cent temporary (seven-year) sales tax increase.
Climate
Oklahoma City has a temperate humid subtropical climate
A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...
(Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Bernd Köppen (born 1951), German pianist and composer
* Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan
* Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author and ...
: Cfa), along with significant continental influences. The city features very hot, humid summers, and cool winters with occasional snowfall. Prolonged and severe droughts (sometimes leading to wildfires in the vicinity), as well as very heavy rainfall leading to flash flooding and flooding, occur with some regularity. Consistent winds, usually from the south or south-southeast during the summer, help temper the hotter weather. Consistent northerly winds during the winter can intensify cold periods. Severe ice storm
An ice storm, also known as a glaze event or a silver storm is a type of winter storm characterized by freezing rain. The U.S. National Weather Service defines an ice storm as a storm which results in the accumulation of at least of ice on ex ...
s and snowstorm
A winter storm is an event in which wind coincides with varieties of precipitation that only occur at freezing temperatures, such as snow, Rain and snow mixed, mixed snow and rain, or freezing rain. In temperate continental climates, these sto ...
s happen sporadically during the winter.
The average temperature is , with the monthly daily average ranging from in January to in July. Extremes range from on February 12, 1899 to on August 11, 1936, and August 3, 2012; the last sub-zero (Fahrenheit) reading was on February 16, 2021.[ Temperatures reach on 10.4 days of the year, on nearly 70 days, and fail to rise above freezing on 8.3 days.][ The city receives about of precipitation annually, of which is snow.
The report "Regional Climate Trends and Scenarios for the U.S. National Climate Assessment" ( NCA) from 2013 by NOAA, projects that parts of the Great Plains region can expect up to 30% (high emissions scenario based on CMIP3 and NARCCAP models) increase in extreme precipitation days by mid-century. This definition is based on days receiving more than one inch of rainfall.
]
Extreme weather
Oklahoma City has an active severe weather season from March through June, especially during April and May. Being in the center of what is colloquially referred to as Tornado Alley
Tornado Alley is a loosely defined area of the central United States where tornadoes are most frequent. The term was first used in 1952 as the title of a research project to study severe weather in areas of Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Kansas, So ...
, it is prone to especially frequent and severe tornadoes, as well as severe hail
Hail is a form of solid precipitation. It is distinct from ice pellets (American English "sleet"), though the two are often confused. It consists of balls or irregular lumps of ice, each of which is called a hailstone. Ice pellets generally fal ...
storms and occasional derecho
A ''derecho'' (, from es, derecho, link=no , 'straight') is a widespread, long-lived, straight-line wind storm that is associated with a fast-moving group of severe thunderstorms known as a mesoscale convective system.
Derechos can cause hurri ...
es. Tornadoes have occurred in every month of the year and a secondary smaller peak also occurs during autumn, especially October. The Oklahoma City metropolitan area is one of the most tornado-prone major cities in the world, with about 150 tornadoes striking within the city limits since 1890. Since the time weather records have been kept, Oklahoma City has been struck by 13 violent tornadoes, eleven rated F/EF4 and two rated F/EF5.
On May 3, 1999, parts of Oklahoma City and surrounding communities were impacted by a tornado. It was the last U.S. tornado to be given a rating of F5 on the Fujita scale
The Fujita scale (F-Scale; ), or Fujita–Pearson scale (FPP scale), is a scale for rating tornado intensity, based primarily on the damage tornadoes inflict on human-built structures and vegetation. The official Fujita scale category is determ ...
before the Enhanced Fujita scale
The Enhanced Fujita scale (abbreviated as EF-Scale) rates tornado intensity based on the severity of the damage they cause. It is used in some countries, including the United States, Canada, China, and Mongolia.
The Enhanced Fujita scale repla ...
replaced it in 2007. While the tornado was in the vicinity of Bridge Creek to the southwest, wind speeds of were estimated by a mobile Doppler radar, the highest wind speeds ever recorded on Earth. A second top-of-the-scale tornado occurred on May 20, 2013; South Oklahoma City, along with Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to:
*Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England
*Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England
*Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...
and Moore
Moore may refer to:
People
* Moore (surname)
** List of people with surname Moore
* Moore Crosthwaite (1907–1989), a British diplomat and ambassador
* Moore Disney (1765–1846), a senior officer in the British Army
* Moore Powell (died c. 1573 ...
, was hit by an EF5 tornado. The tornado was wide and killed 23 people. On May 31, less than two weeks after the May 20 event, another outbreak affected the Oklahoma City area. Within Oklahoma City, the system spawned an EF1 and an EF0 tornado, and in El Reno to the west, an EF3 tornado occurred. This lattermost tornado, which was heading in the direction of Oklahoma City before it dissipated, had a width of , making it the widest tornado ever recorded. Additionally, winds in excess of were measured, one of the two highest wind records for a tornado.
With of rainfall, May 2015 was by far Oklahoma City's record-wettest month since record-keeping began in 1890. Across Oklahoma and Texas generally, there was a record flooding in the latter part of the month.
Demographics
According to the 2020 census, the racial composition of Oklahoma City was as follows:
* White or European American: 49.5%
* Hispanic or Latino
''Hispanic'' and '' Latino'' are ethnonyms used to refer collectively to the inhabitants of the United States who are of Spanish or Latin American ancestry (). While the terms are sometimes used interchangeably, for example, by the United States ...
: 21.3%
* Black or African American: 13.8%
* Asian
Asian may refer to:
* Items from or related to the continent of Asia:
** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia
** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia
** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...
: 4.6%
* Native American: 2.8%
* Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander: 0.2%
* Other race: 0.4%
* Two or more races
2 (two) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 1 and preceding 3. It is the smallest and only even prime number. Because it forms the basis of a duality, it has religious and spiritual significance in many cultur ...
(non-Hispanic): 7.6%
In the 2010 census, there were 579,999 people, 230,233 households, and 144,120 families residing in the city. The population density was 956.4 inhabitants per square mile (321.9/km2). There were 256,930 housing units at an average density of 375.9 per square mile (145.1/km2).
Of Oklahoma City's 579,999 people, 44,541 reside in Canadian County, 63,723 reside in Cleveland County, 471,671 reside in Oklahoma County, and 64 reside in Pottawatomie County.
There were 230,233 households, 29.4% of which had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.4% were married couples living together, 13.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.4% were non-families. One person households account for 30.5% of all households, and 8.7% of all households had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 3.11.
The median income for a household in the city was $48,557 and the median income for a family was $62,527. The per capita income for the city was $26,208. 17.1% of the population and 12.4% of families were below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 23.0% of those under the age of 18 and 9.2% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.
In the 2000 Census, Oklahoma City's age composition was 25.5% under the age of 18, 10.7% from 18 to 24, 30.8% from 25 to 44, 21.5% from 45 to 64, and 11.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.7 males.
Oklahoma City has experienced significant population increases since the late 1990s. It is the first city in the state to record a population greater than 600,000 residents. It is also the first city in the Great Plains
The Great Plains (french: Grandes Plaines), sometimes simply "the Plains", is a broad expanse of flatland in North America. It is located west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains, much of it covered in prairie, steppe, an ...
region to record a population greater than 600,000 residents. It is the largest municipal population of the Great Plains
The Great Plains (french: Grandes Plaines), sometimes simply "the Plains", is a broad expanse of flatland in North America. It is located west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains, much of it covered in prairie, steppe, an ...
region (Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, North Dakota).
Metropolitan statistical area
Oklahoma City is the principal city of the eight-county Oklahoma City Metropolitan Statistical Area in Central Oklahoma and is the state's largest urbanized area. As of 2015, the metropolitan area was the 41st largest in the nation based on population.[ ]
Crime
Law enforcement claims Oklahoma City has traditionally been the territory of the notorious Juárez Cartel
The Juárez Cartel (Spanish: ''Cártel de Juárez''), also known as the Vicente Carrillo Fuentes Organization, is a Mexican drug cartel based in Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, across the Mexico—U.S. border from El Paso, Texas. The cartel is one ...
, but the Sinaloa Cartel
The Sinaloa Cartel ( es, link=no, Cártel de Sinaloa), also known as the CDS, the Guzmán-Loera Organization, the Pacific Cartel, the Federation and the Blood Alliance, is a large, international organized crime syndicate that specializes in il ...
has been reported as trying to establish a foothold in Oklahoma City. There are many rival gangs in Oklahoma City, one whose headquarters has been established in the city, the Southside Locos, traditionally known as Sureños
Sureños (; Spanish: ''Southerners''), Southern United Raza, Sur 13 or Sureños X3 are groups of loosely affiliated gangs that pay tribute to the Mexican Mafia while in U.S. state and federal correctional facilities. Many Sureño gangs have r ...
.
Oklahoma City also has its share of violent crimes, particularly in the 1970s. The worst occurred in 1978, when six employees of a Sirloin Stockade restaurant on the city's south side were murdered execution-style in the restaurant's freezer. An intensive investigation followed, and the three individuals involved, who also killed three others in Purcell, Oklahoma
Purcell is a city in and the county seat of McClain County, Oklahoma, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 6,651.
Founded in 1887, Purcell was a railroad town named after Edward B. Purcell, who was an official with th ...
, were identified. One, Harold Stafford, died in a motorcycle accident in Tulsa
Tulsa () is the second-largest city in the U.S. state, state of Oklahoma and List of United States cities by population, 47th-most populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. ...
not long after the restaurant murders. Another, Verna Stafford, was sentenced to life without parole after being granted a new trial after she had been sentenced to death. Roger Dale Stafford, considered the mastermind of the murder spree, was executed by lethal injection at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary
The Oklahoma State Penitentiary, nicknamed "Big Mac", is a prison of the Oklahoma Department of Corrections located in McAlester, Oklahoma, on . Opened in 1908 with 50 inmates in makeshift facilities, today the prison holds more than 750 male off ...
in 1995.
The Oklahoma City Police Department has a uniformed force of 1,169 officers and 300+ civilian employees. The department has a central police station and five substations covering 2,500 police reporting districts that average 1/4 square mile in size.
On April 19, 1995, the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building
The Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building was a United States federal government complex located at 200 N.W. 5th Street in downtown Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. On April 19, 1995, at 9:02 a.m. the building was the target of the Oklahoma City bombing ...
was destroyed by a fertilizer bomb manufactured and detonated by Timothy McVeigh
Timothy James McVeigh (April 23, 1968 – June 11, 2001) was an American domestic terrorist responsible for the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing that killed 168 people, 19 of whom were children, injured more than 680 others, and destroyed one-third o ...
. The blast and catastrophic collapse killed 168 people and injured over 680. The blast shock-wave destroyed or damaged 324 buildings within a 340-meter radius, destroyed or burned 86 cars, and shattered glass in 258 nearby buildings, causing at least an estimated $652 million worth of damage. McVeigh was convicted and subsequently executed by lethal injection on June 11, 2001.
Economy
The economy of Oklahoma City, once just a regional power center of government and energy exploration, has since diversified to include the sectors of information technology, services
Service may refer to:
Activities
* Administrative service, a required part of the workload of university faculty
* Civil service, the body of employees of a government
* Community service, volunteer service for the benefit of a community or a p ...
, health services, and administration. The city is headquarters to two Fortune 500
The ''Fortune'' 500 is an annual list compiled and published by ''Fortune'' magazine that ranks 500 of the largest United States corporations by total revenue for their respective fiscal years. The list includes publicly held companies, along ...
companies: Chesapeake Energy Chesapeake often refers to:
*Chesapeake people, a Native American tribe also known as the Chesepian
* The Chesapeake, a.k.a. Chesapeake Bay
*Delmarva Peninsula, also known as the Chesapeake Peninsula
Chesapeake may also refer to:
Populated plac ...
and Devon Energy
Devon Energy Corporation is an energy company engaged in hydrocarbon exploration in the United States. It is organized in Delaware and its corporate operative headquarters are in the 50-story Devon Energy Center in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Its ...
, as well as being home to Love's Travel Stops & Country Stores
Love's Travel Stops & Country Stores, doing business as Love's (or stylized as Loves), is an American family-owned chain of more than 500 truck stop and convenience stores in 41 states in the United States. The company is privately owned and he ...
, which is ranked thirteenth on Forbes
''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...
' list of private companies.
As of January 2020, the top 20 employers in the city were:
Other major corporations with a large presence (over 1,000 employees) in the city of Oklahoma City include the United Parcel Service
United Parcel Service (UPS, stylized as ups) is an American multinational corporation, multinational package delivery, shipping & receiving and supply chain management company founded in 1907. Originally known as the American Messenger Company ...
, Farmers Insurance Group
Farmers Insurance Group (informally Farmers) is an American insurer group of vehicles, homes and small businesses and also provides other insurance and financial services products. Farmers Insurance has more than 48,000 exclusive and independen ...
, Great Plains Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. Originally marketed as a temperance drink and intended as a patent medicine, it was invented in the late 19th century by John Stith Pemberton in Atlanta ...
Bottling Company, Deaconess Hospital, Johnson Controls
Johnson Controls International is an American
Irish-domiciled multinational conglomerate headquartered in Cork, Ireland, that produces fire, HVAC, and security equipment for buildings. As of mid-2019, it employed 105,000 people in around 2,0 ...
, MidFirst Bank
MidFirst Bank is a privately owned financial institution based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. It is the largest privately owned bank in the United States, with $34.7 billion in assets. Its primary markets include Oklahoma, Denver, Phoenix and Dallas ...
, Rose State College, and Continental Resources.
While not in the city limits, other large employers within the Oklahoma City MSA include United States Air Force – Tinker AFB (27,000); University of Oklahoma
The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two Territories became the state of Oklahom ...
(11,900); University of Central Oklahoma
The University of Central Oklahoma (UCO or Central State) is a public university in Edmond, Oklahoma. It is the third largest university in Oklahoma, with more than 17,000 students and approximately 434 full-time and 400 adjunct faculty. Founde ...
(2,900); and Norman Regional Hospital
Norman Regional Hospital is a 324-bed general hospital that serves Norman, Oklahoma
Norman () is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Oklahoma, with a population of 128,097 as of 2021. It is the largest city and the county seat of Cleve ...
(2,800).
According to the Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce, the metropolitan area's economic output grew by 33% between 2001 and 2005 due chiefly to economic diversification. Its gross metropolitan product
Gross metropolitan product (GMP) is a monetary measure of the value of all final goods and services produced within a metropolitan statistical area during a specified period (''e.g.'', a quarter, a year). GMP estimates are commonly used to compare ...
(GMP) was $43.1 billion in 2005 and grew to $61.1 billion in 2009. By 2016 the GMP had grown to $73.8 billion.
In 2008, ''Forbes'' magazine reported that the city had falling unemployment, one of the strongest housing markets in the country and solid growth in energy, agriculture, and manufacturing. However, during the early 1980s, Oklahoma City had one of the worst job and housing markets due to the bankruptcy of Penn Square Bank
Penn Square Bank was a small commercial bank located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The bank made a large number of poorly underwritten energy-related loans that it sold to other banks. Losses on these loans led to significant financial problems in th ...
in 1982 and then the post-1985 crash in oil prices (oil bust).
Business districts
Business and entertainment districts (and to a lesser extent local neighborhoods) tend to maintain their boundaries and character through the application of zoning regulations and business improvement districts (districts where property owners agree to a property tax surcharge to support additional services for the community). Through zoning regulations, historic districts, and other special zoning districts, including overlay districts, are well established. Oklahoma City has three business improvement districts, including one encompassing the central business district
A central business district (CBD) is the commercial and business centre of a city. It contains commercial space and offices, and in larger cities will often be described as a financial district. Geographically, it often coincides with the "city ...
.
Culture
Museums and theaters
The Donald W. Reynolds Visual Arts Center is the new downtown home for the Oklahoma City Museum of Art
Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New M ...
. The museum features visiting exhibits, original selections from its own collection, a theater showing a variety of foreign, independent, and classic films each week, and a restaurant. OKCMOA is also home to the most comprehensive collection of Chihuly glass in the world including the 55-foot Eleanor Blake Kirkpatrick Memorial Tower in the Museum's atrium. The art deco Civic Center Music Hall
The Civic Center Music Hall is a performing arts center located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. It was constructed in 1937 as Municipal Auditorium and renamed in 1966. The facility includes the Thelma Gaylord Performing Arts Theatre, the Freede Little ...
, which was totally renovated in 2001, has performances from the Oklahoma City Ballet, the Oklahoma City Opera, the Oklahoma City Philharmonic
The Oklahoma City Philharmonic is an American symphony orchestra in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
History
As is the case with many American symphony orchestras, the Oklahoma City Philharmonic owes a degree of its heritage to two predecessor professi ...
, and also various concerts and traveling Broadway shows
Broadway theatre,Although ''theater'' is generally the spelling for this common noun in the United States (see American and British English spelling differences), 130 of the 144 extant and extinct Broadway venues use (used) the spelling ''Th ...
.
Other theaters include Lyric Theatre, Jewel Box Theatre, Kirkpatrick Auditorium, the Poteet Theatre, the Oklahoma City Community College Bruce Owen Theater, and the 488-seat Petree Recital Hall, at the Oklahoma City University
Oklahoma City University (OCU) is a private university historically affiliated with the United Methodist Church and located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
The university offers undergraduate bachelor's degrees, graduate master's degrees and doctor ...
campus. The university also opened the Wanda L Bass School of Music and auditorium in April 2006.
The Oklahoma Contemporary
Oklahoma Contemporary is a Contemporary Art Museum in downtown Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. It is a non-profit museum which was founded in 1989.
Architectural Digest noted at 2020 the opening of the museum's opening: "What was born in 1989 as a mode ...
Arts Center (formerly City Arts Center), moved downtown in 2020, near Campbell Art Park at 11th and Broadway, after being at the Oklahoma State Fair
The Oklahoma State Fair is a fair and exposition in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. It takes place in mid-September each year, and along with the Tulsa State Fair
The Tulsa State Fair is an annual event held at Expo Square in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The mode ...
fairgrounds since 1989. It features exhibitions, performances, classes, workshops, camps, and weekly programs.
The Science Museum Oklahoma
Science Museum Oklahoma is a science museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The museum is home to the Kirkpatrick Planetarium, the International Gymnastics Hall of Fame and a number of specialized galleries. The facility covers over 390,000 square ...
(formerly Kirkpatrick Science and Air Space Museum at Omniplex) houses exhibits on science, aviation, and an IMAX
IMAX is a proprietary system of high-resolution cameras, film formats, film projectors, and theaters known for having very large screens with a tall aspect ratio (approximately either 1.43:1 or 1.90:1) and steep stadium seating.
Graeme F ...
theater. The museum formerly housed the International Photography Hall of Fame (IPHF) that exhibits photographs and artifacts from a large collection of cameras and other artifacts preserving the history of photography. IPHF honors those who have made significant contributions to the art and/or science of photography and relocated to St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the Greater St. Louis, ...
in 2013.
The Museum of Osteology
The Museum of Osteology, located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S., is a private museum devoted to the study of bones and skeletons ( osteology). This museum displays over 450 skeletons of animal species from all over the world. With another 7,00 ...
houses more than 300 real animal skeletons. Focusing on the form and function of the skeletal system, this museum displays hundreds of skulls and skeletons from all corners of the world. Exhibits include adaptation, locomotion, classification, and diversity of the vertebrate kingdom. The Museum of Osteology is the only one of its kind in America.
The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum
The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum is a museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States, with more than 28,000 American West, Western and Native Americans in the United States, American Indian art works and Artifact (archaeology), ar ...
has galleries of western art and is home to the Hall of Great Western Performers
The Hall of Great Western Performers is a Hall of Fame at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum. It is located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma and sometimes referred to as the "Western Performers Hall of Fame". It is a presentation that explo ...
. Opening in September 2021, the city will also be home to the First Americans Museum that began construction in 2009 (although completion of the facility has been held up due to insufficient funding), on the south side of Interstate 40, southeast from Bricktown.
The Oklahoma City National Memorial
The Oklahoma City National Memorial is a memorial in the United States that honors the victims, survivors, rescuers, and all who were affected by the Oklahoma City bombing on April 19, 1995. The memorial is located in downtown Oklahoma City on th ...
in the northern part of Oklahoma City's downtown was created as the inscription on its eastern gate of the Memorial reads, "to honor the victims, survivors, rescuers, and all who were changed forever on April 19, 1995"; the memorial was built on the land formerly occupied by the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building complex prior to its 1995 bombing. The outdoor Symbolic Memorial can be visited 24 hours a day for free, and the adjacent Memorial Museum, in the former ''Journal Record'' building damaged by the bombing, can be entered for a small fee. The site is also home to the National Memorial Institute for the Prevention of Terrorism, a non-partisan, nonprofit think tank
A think tank, or policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governmenta ...
devoted to the prevention of terrorism.
The American Banjo Museum in the Bricktown Entertainment district is dedicated to preserving and promoting the music and heritage of the banjo. Its collection is valued at $3.5 million, and an interpretive exhibit tells the evolution of the banjo from its roots in American slavery, to bluegrass, to folk, and to world music.
The Oklahoma History Center is the history museum of the state of Oklahoma. Across the street from the governor's mansion at 800 Nazih Zuhdi Drive in northeast Oklahoma City, the museum opened in 2005 and is operated by the Oklahoma Historical Society
The Oklahoma Historical Society (OHS) is an agency of the government of Oklahoma dedicated to promotion and preservation of Oklahoma's history and its people by collecting, interpreting, and disseminating knowledge and artifacts of Oklahoma. ...
. It preserves the history of Oklahoma from the prehistoric to the present day.
The Oklahoma State Firefighters Museum The Oklahoma State Firefighters Museum is a museum owned and administered by the Oklahoma State Firefighters Association (OSFA). The museum is financed by the dues collected from more than 9,000 firefighters, and is located at 2716 N.E. 50th Street ...
contains early colonial firefighting tools, the first fire station in Oklahoma, and modern fire trucks.
Sports
Oklahoma City is home to several professional sports teams, including the Oklahoma City Thunder
The Oklahoma City Thunder are an American professional basketball team based in Oklahoma City. The Thunder compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. The team plays i ...
of the National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United S ...
. The Thunder is the city's second "permanent" major professional sports franchise after the now-defunct AFL
AFL may refer to:
Sports
* American Football League (AFL), a name shared by several separate and unrelated professional American football leagues:
** American Football League (1926) (a.k.a. "AFL I"), first rival of the National Football Leagu ...
Oklahoma Wranglers
The Oklahoma Wranglers were a professional arena football team based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. They were members of the Central (1996–1997) and Western (1998–2001) Division of the American Conference of the Arena Football League (AFL). The ...
and is the third major-league team to call the city home when considering the temporary hosting of the New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets
Hurricane Katrina devastated the city of New Orleans on August 29, 2005, and caused extensive damage to the New Orleans Arena. As a result, the National Basketball Association (NBA)'s New Orleans Hornets were unable to play any home games at th ...
for the 2005–06 and 2006–07 NBA seasons. However, the Thunder
Thunder is the sound caused by lightning. Depending upon the distance from and nature of the lightning, it can range from a long, low rumble to a sudden, loud crack. The sudden increase in temperature and hence pressure caused by the lightning pr ...
were formerly the Sonics
Sonic or Sonics may refer to:
Companies
*Sonic Drive-In, an American drive-in fast-food restaurant chain
*Sonic (ISP), an Internet provider and CLEC, serving more than 100 California communities
*Sonic Foundry, a computer software company whic ...
prior to the movement of the Sonics to OKC in 2008.
Other professional sports clubs in Oklahoma City include the Oklahoma City Dodgers
The Oklahoma City Dodgers are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers. They are located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and play their home games at Chickasaw Bricktown Bal ...
, the Triple-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...
, the Oklahoma City Energy FC
Oklahoma City Energy Football Club is an American professional soccer club based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The club is a member of the USL Championship, the second division of the American soccer league system.
History
Oklahoma City businessma ...
of the United Soccer League
United Soccer League (USL), formerly known as United Soccer Leagues, is a Association football, soccer league in the United States and Canada. It organizes several men's and women's leagues, both professional and amateur. Men's leagues curren ...
, and the Crusaders of Oklahoma Rugby Football Club of USA Rugby
USA Rugby (officially the United States of America Rugby Football Union, Ltd.) is the national governing body for the sport of rugby union in the United States. Its role is to achieve and maintain “high levels of quality in all aspects of rugb ...
. The Oklahoma City Blazers, a name used for decades of the city's hockey team in the Central Hockey League
The Central Hockey League (CHL) was a North American mid-level minor professional ice hockey league which operated from 1992 until 2014. It was founded by Ray Miron and Bill Levins and later sold to Global Entertainment Corporation, which opera ...
has been used for a junior team in the Western States Hockey League
The Western States Hockey League (WSHL) was a junior ice hockey league established in 1993. It was sanctioned by the United Hockey Union, the junior hockey branch of the Amateur Athletic Union. Previously, it was sanctioned by USA Hockey from 199 ...
since 2014.
The Paycom Center
Paycom Center (originally known as the Ford Center from 2002 to 2010, Oklahoma City Arena from 2010 to 2011, and Chesapeake Energy Arena from 2011 to 2021) is an arena located in Downtown Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States. It opened in 200 ...
in downtown
''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business distric ...
is the main multipurpose arena in the city which hosts concerts, NHL
The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...
exhibition games, and many of the city's pro sports teams. In 2008, the Oklahoma City Thunder became the major tenant. Nearby in Bricktown, the Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark
Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark opened in 1998 in downtown Oklahoma City's Bricktown Entertainment District, replacing All Sports Stadium. It is the home of the Oklahoma City Dodgers, the Triple-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers Major League Bas ...
is the home to the city's baseball team, the Dodgers. "The Brick," as it is locally known, is considered one of the finest minor league parks in the nation.
Oklahoma City is the annual host of the Big 12 baseball tournament
The Big 12 Conference baseball tournament (sometimes known simply as the Big 12 tournament) is the conference championship tournament in baseball for the Big 12 Conference. Going back to the original format abandoned in 2005, the tournament cons ...
, the World Cup of Softball The USA Softball International Cup previously known as the World Cup of Softball, is an annual softball tournament. The first eight World Cups were held at the ASA Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The competition is governed by USA ...
, and the annual NCAA Women's College World Series. The city has held the 2005 NCAA Men's Basketball
In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...
First
First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1).
First or 1st may also refer to:
*World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement
Arts and media Music
* 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...
and Second round
The second (symbol: s) is the unit of time in the International System of Units (SI), historically defined as of a day – this factor derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes and finally to 60 seconds e ...
and hosted the Big 12
The Big 12 Conference is a college athletic conference headquartered in Irving, Texas, USA. It consists of ten full-member universities. It is a member of Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) for all sports. Its fo ...
Men's and women's basketball tournaments in 2007 and 2009. The major universities in the area – University of Oklahoma
The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two Territories became the state of Oklahom ...
, Oklahoma City University
Oklahoma City University (OCU) is a private university historically affiliated with the United Methodist Church and located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
The university offers undergraduate bachelor's degrees, graduate master's degrees and doctor ...
, and Oklahoma State University
Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New ...
– often schedule major basketball games and other sporting events at Paycom Center
Paycom Center (originally known as the Ford Center from 2002 to 2010, Oklahoma City Arena from 2010 to 2011, and Chesapeake Energy Arena from 2011 to 2021) is an arena located in Downtown Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States. It opened in 200 ...
and Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark, although most home games are played at their campus stadiums.
Other major sporting events include Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse racing circuits at Remington Park
Remington Park is a horse racing track and casino located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Built in 1988 by Edward J. DeBartolo Sr., it was the first world-class pari-mutuel track in Oklahoma. Since 2010, Global Gaming RP has owned and operated the ra ...
and numerous horse show
A horse show is a judged exhibition of horses and ponies. Many different horse breeds and equestrian disciplines hold competitions worldwide, from local to the international levels. Most horse shows run from one to three days, sometimes longer fo ...
s and equine events that take place at the state fairgrounds each year. There are numerous golf courses and country clubs spread around the city.
High school football
The state of Oklahoma hosts a highly competitive high school football culture, with many teams in the Oklahoma City metropolitan area
The Oklahoma City metropolitan area is an urban region in the Southern United States. It is the largest metropolitan area in the state of Oklahoma and contains the state capital and principal city, Oklahoma City. It is often known as the Okla ...
. The Oklahoma Secondary School Activities Association (OSSAA) organizes high school football into eight distinct classes based on the size of school enrollment. Beginning with the largest, the classes are: 6A, 5A, 4A, 3A, 2A, A, B, and C. Class 6A is broken into two divisions. Oklahoma City area schools in this division include Edmond Memorial, Mustang, Moore, Yukon, Deer Creek, Edmond North, Edmond Santa Fe, Norman North, Westmoore, Southmoore, Putnam City North, Norman, Putnam City, Putnam City West, U.S. Grant, Capitol Hill, Northwest Classen, and Midwest City.
Oklahoma City Thunder
The Oklahoma City Thunder
The Oklahoma City Thunder are an American professional basketball team based in Oklahoma City. The Thunder compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. The team plays i ...
of the National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United S ...
(NBA) has called Oklahoma City home since the 2008–09 season, when owner Clay Bennett relocated the franchise from Seattle
Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
, Washington
Washington commonly refers to:
* Washington (state), United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A metonym for the federal government of the United States
** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...
. The Thunder play home games at the Paycom Center
Paycom Center (originally known as the Ford Center from 2002 to 2010, Oklahoma City Arena from 2010 to 2011, and Chesapeake Energy Arena from 2011 to 2021) is an arena located in Downtown Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States. It opened in 200 ...
in downtown Oklahoma City. The Thunder is known by several nicknames, including "OKC Thunder" and simply "OKC," and its mascot is Rumble the Bison
Rumble the Bison is the official mascot of the Oklahoma City Thunder, a National Basketball Association (NBA) franchise based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. He is an anthropomorphic bison and his name derives from the sound that thunder makes. Rumbl ...
.
After arriving in Oklahoma City for the 2008–09 season, the Oklahoma City Thunder secured a berth (8th) in the 2010 NBA Playoffs the next year after boasting its first 50-win season, winning two games in the first round against the Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Lakers play their ...
. In 2012, Oklahoma City made it to the NBA Finals
The NBA Finals is the annual championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Eastern and Western Conference champions play a best-of-seven game series to determine the league champion. The team that wins the series is awa ...
, but lost to the Miami Heat
The Miami Heat are an American professional basketball team based in Miami. The Heat compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern Conference Southeast Division (NBA), Southe ...
in five games. In 2013 the Thunder reached the Western Conference semi-finals without All-Star guard Russell Westbrook
Russell Westbrook III (born November 12, 1988) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A member of the NBA 75th Anniversary Team, he is a nine-time NBA All-Star and ...
, who was injured in their first round series against the Houston Rockets
The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston. The Rockets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member team of the league's Western Conference Southwest Division. The team plays its ho ...
, only to lose to the Memphis Grizzlies
The Memphis Grizzlies (referred to locally as the Grizz) are an American professional basketball team based in Memphis, Tennessee. The Grizzlies compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference ...
. In 2014 Oklahoma City again reached the NBA's Western Conference Finals but eventually lost to the San Antonio Spurs
The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio. The Spurs compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference Southwest Division ( ...
in six games.
The Oklahoma City Thunder has been regarded by sports analysts as one of the elite franchises of the NBA's Western Conference and that of a media darling as the future of the league. Oklahoma City earned Northwest Division titles every year from 2011 to 2014, and again in 2016, and has consistently improved its win record to 59-wins in 2014. The Thunder is led by second year head coach Mark Daigneault and was anchored by All-Star point guard Russell Westbrook prior to a July 2019 trade that sent him to the Houston Rockets.
Hornets
In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina was a destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that caused over 1,800 fatalities and $125 billion in damage in late August 2005, especially in the city of New Orleans and the surrounding areas. It was at the time the cost ...
, the NBA's New Orleans Hornets temporarily relocated to the Ford Center, playing the majority of its home games there during the 2005–06 and 2006–07 seasons. The team became the first NBA franchise to play regular-season games in the state of Oklahoma. The team was known as the New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets while playing in Oklahoma City.
The team ultimately returned to New Orleans full-time for the 2007–08 season. The Hornets played their final home game in Oklahoma City during the exhibition season on October 9, 2007, against the Houston Rockets
The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston. The Rockets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member team of the league's Western Conference Southwest Division. The team plays its ho ...
.
Professional sports teams
Parks and recreation
One of the more prominent landmarks downtown is the Crystal Bridge at the Myriad Botanical Gardens
The Myriad Botanical Gardens is a botanical garden and interactive urban park located in downtown Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, on the southwest corner of Reno and Robinson. The Gardens is home to multiple tiers of densely landscaped areas that surro ...
, a large downtown urban park. Designed by I. M. Pei
Ieoh Ming Pei
– website of Pei Cobb Freed & Partners ( ; ; April 26, 1917 – May 16, 2019) was ...
, the Crystal Bridge is a tropical conservatory in the area. The park has an amphitheater, known as the Water Stage. In 2007, following a renovation of the stage, Oklahoma Shakespeare in the Park relocated to the Myriad Gardens. The Myriad Gardens had a massive renovation in conjunction with the Devon Tower directly north of it.
The Oklahoma City Zoo and Botanical Garden
The Oklahoma City Zoo and Botanical Garden is a zoo and botanical garden located in Oklahoma City's Adventure District in northeast Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
The zoo covers and is home to more than 1,900 animals. It is open every day except Than ...
is home to numerous natural habitats, WPA
WPA may refer to:
Computing
*Wi-Fi Protected Access, a wireless encryption standard
*Windows Product Activation, in Microsoft software licensing
* Wireless Public Alerting (Alert Ready), emergency alerts over LTE in Canada
* Windows Performance An ...
era architecture and landscaping, and hosts major touring concerts during the summer at its amphitheater. Oklahoma City also has two amusement parks, Six Flags Frontier City theme park and Six Flags Hurricane Harbor Oklahoma City
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor Oklahoma City (often shortened to Hurricane Harbor OKC) is a water theme park in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma built in 1981. Built by the Herschend Family Entertainment Corporation and originally known as White Water, the wat ...
water park. Frontier City is an 'Old West'-themed amusement park. The park also features a recreation of a western gunfight at the 'OK Corral' and many shops that line the "Western" town's main street. Frontier City also hosts a national concert circuit at its amphitheater during the summer.
Oklahoma City also has a combination racetrack and casino open year-round, Remington Park
Remington Park is a horse racing track and casino located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Built in 1988 by Edward J. DeBartolo Sr., it was the first world-class pari-mutuel track in Oklahoma. Since 2010, Global Gaming RP has owned and operated the ra ...
, which hosts both Quarter Horse
The American Quarter Horse, or Quarter Horse, is an American breed of horse that excels at sprinting short distances. Its name is derived from its ability to outrun other horse breeds in races of a quarter mile or less; some have been clocked at s ...
(March – June) and Thoroughbred
The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are c ...
(August – December) seasons.
Walking trails line Lake Hefner and Lake Overholser in the northwest part of the city and downtown at the canal and the Oklahoma River
The North Canadian River is a river, long, in Oklahoma in the United States. It is a tributary of the Canadian River, draining an area of U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset/Watershed Boundary Dataset, area data covering North ...
. The majority of the east shore area is taken up by parks and trails, including a new leashless dog park and the postwar-era Stars and Stripes Park. Lake Stanley Draper is the city's largest and most remote lake.
Oklahoma City has a major park in each quadrant of the city, going back to the first parks masterplan. Will Rogers Park, Lincoln Park, Trosper Park, and Woodson Park were once connected by the Grand Boulevard loop, some sections of which no longer exist. Martin Park Nature Center is a natural habitat in far northwest Oklahoma City. Will Rogers Park is home to the Lycan Conservatory, the Rose Garden, and Butterfly Garden, all built in the WPA era. Oklahoma City is home to the American Banjo Museum, which houses a large collection of highly decorated banjos from the early 20th century and exhibits on the history of the banjo and its place in American history. Concerts and lectures are also held there.
In April 2005, the Oklahoma City Skate Park at Wiley Post Park was renamed the Mat Hoffman Action Sports Park to recognize Mat Hoffman
Mat Hoffman (born January 9, 1972) is an American BMX rider who is considered one of the best vert ramp riders in the history of the sport. He is nicknamed "The Condor" and runs the BMX Freestyle brand Hoffman BMX Bikes based out of ...
, an Oklahoma City area resident and businessman that was instrumental in the design of the skate park and is a 10-time BMX World Vert champion. In March 2009, the Mat Hoffman Action Sports Park was named by the National Geographic Society
The National Geographic Society (NGS), headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States, is one of the largest non-profit scientific and educational organizations in the world.
Founded in 1888, its interests include geography, archaeology, and ...
Travel Guide as one of the "Ten Best."
Government
The City of Oklahoma City has operated under a council-manager form of city government since 1927. David Holt assumed the office of Mayor on April 10, 2018 after being elected two months earlier. Eight councilpersons represent each of the eight wards of Oklahoma City. The City Council
A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counc ...
appointed current City Manager Craig Freeman on November 20, 2018. Freeman took office on January 2, 2018, succeeding James D. Couch, who had served in the role since 2000. Prior to becoming City Manager, Craig Freeman served as Finance Director for the city.
Politics
Similar to many American cities, Oklahoma City is politically conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...
in its suburbs, and liberal
Liberal or liberalism may refer to:
Politics
* a supporter of liberalism
** Liberalism by country
* an adherent of a Liberal Party
* Liberalism (international relations)
* Sexually liberal feminism
* Social liberalism
Arts, entertainment and m ...
in the central city. In the United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...
, it is represented by Republicans Stephanie Bice
Stephanie Irene Bice (née Asady; born November 11, 1973) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for Oklahoma's 5th congressional district since 2021. A member of the Republican Party, she is the first Iranian American to ...
and Tom Cole
Thomas Jeffery Cole (born April 28, 1949) is the U.S. representative for , serving since 2003. He is a member of the Republican Party and serves as Deputy Minority Whip. The chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) fr ...
of the 5th and 4th districts, respectively. The city has called on residents to vote for sales tax-based projects to revitalize parts of the city. The Bricktown district is the best example of such an initiative. In the recent MAPS 3 vote, the city's fraternal order of police criticized the project proposals for not doing enough to expand the police presence to keep up with the growing residential population and increased commercial activity. In September 2013, Oklahoma City area attorney David Slane announced he would pursue legal action regarding MAPS3, on claims the multiple projects that made up the plan violate a state constitutional law limiting voter ballot issues to a single subject.
International relations
Consulates
Twin towns – sister cities
Oklahoma City's sister cities
A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties.
While there are early examples of inter ...
are:
* Haikou
Haikou (; ), also spelled as Hoikow is the capital and most populous city of the Chinese province of Hainan. Haikou city is situated on the northern coast of Hainan, by the mouth of the Nandu River. The northern part of the city is on the Ha ...
, China
* Kigali
Kigali () is the Capital (political), capital and largest city of Rwanda. It is near the nation's geographic centre in a region of rolling hills, with a series of valleys and ridges joined by steep slopes. As a primate city, Kigali has been Rwa ...
, Rwanda
* Piura
Piura is a city in northwestern Peru located in the Sechura Desert on the Piura River. It is the capital of the Piura Region and the Piura Province. Its population was 484,475 as of 2017.
It was here that Spanish Conqueror Francisco Pizarro fou ...
, Peru
* Puebla
Puebla ( en, colony, settlement), officially Free and Sovereign State of Puebla ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Puebla), is one of the 32 states which comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 217 municipalities and its cap ...
, Mexico
* Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...
, Brazil
* Tainan
Tainan (), officially Tainan City, is a Special municipality (Taiwan), special municipality in southern Taiwan facing the Taiwan Strait on its western coast. Tainan is the oldest city on the island and also commonly known as the "Capital City" ...
, Taiwan
* Taipei
Taipei (), officially Taipei City, is the capital and a special municipality of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Located in Northern Taiwan, Taipei City is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City that sits about southwest of the n ...
, Taiwan
* Ulyanovsk
Ulyanovsk, known until 1924 as Simbirsk, is a city and the administrative center of Ulyanovsk Oblast, Russia, located on the Volga River east of Moscow. Population:
The city, founded as Simbirsk (), was the birthplace of Vladimir Lenin (born ...
, Russia (suspended August, 2022)
Education
Higher education
The city is home to several colleges and universities. Oklahoma City University
Oklahoma City University (OCU) is a private university historically affiliated with the United Methodist Church and located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
The university offers undergraduate bachelor's degrees, graduate master's degrees and doctor ...
, formerly known as Epworth University
Oklahoma City University (OCU) is a private university historically affiliated with the United Methodist Church and located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
The university offers undergraduate bachelor's degrees, graduate master's degrees and doctor ...
, was founded by the United Methodist Church
The United Methodist Church (UMC) is a worldwide mainline Protestant denomination based in the United States, and a major part of Methodism. In the 19th century, its main predecessor, the Methodist Episcopal Church, was a leader in evangelical ...
on September 1, 1904, and is known for its performing arts, science, mass communications, business, law
Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...
, and athletic programs. OCU has its main campus in the north-central section of the city, near the city's Asia District area. OCU Law is located in the Midtown district near downtown, in the old Central High School building.
The University of Oklahoma
The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two Territories became the state of Oklahom ...
has several institutions of higher learning in the city and metropolitan area, with OU Medicine
OU Health is the combination of OU Medical Center – Oklahoma City & Edmond, the Children's Hospital, OU Physicians, OU Children's Physicians, the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine, and the Peggy and Charles Stephenson Oklahoma Cancer ...
and the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center
The University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center is a public medical school in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. It is the health sciences branch of the University of Oklahoma and serves as the primary place of instruction for many of Oklahoma's health p ...
campuses east of downtown in the Oklahoma Health Center district, and the main campus to the south in the suburb of Norman
Norman or Normans may refer to:
Ethnic and cultural identity
* The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries
** People or things connected with the Norm ...
. OU Medical Center hosts the state's only Level-One trauma center
A trauma center (or trauma centre) is a hospital equipped and staffed to provide care for patients suffering from major trauma, major traumatic injuries such as Falling (accident), falls, motor vehicle collisions, or gunshot wounds. A trauma cent ...
. OU Health Sciences Center is one of the nation's largest independent medical centers, employing more than 12,000 people. OU is one of only four major universities in the nation to operate six medical schools.
The third-largest university in the state, the University of Central Oklahoma
The University of Central Oklahoma (UCO or Central State) is a public university in Edmond, Oklahoma. It is the third largest university in Oklahoma, with more than 17,000 students and approximately 434 full-time and 400 adjunct faculty. Founde ...
, is just north of the city in the suburb of Edmond
Edmond is a given name related to Edmund. Persons named Edmond include:
* Edmond Canaple (1797–1876), French politician
* Edmond Chehade (born 1993), Lebanese footballer
* Edmond Conn (1914–1998), American farmer, businessman, and politician
...
. Oklahoma Christian University
Oklahoma Christian University (OC) is a private Christian university in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. It was founded in 1950 by members of the Churches of Christ.
History
Oklahoma Christian University, originally named Central Christian College, w ...
, one of the state's private liberal arts institutions, is just south of the Edmond border, inside the Oklahoma City limits.
Oklahoma City Community College
Oklahoma City Community College (OCCC) is a public community college in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The college was founded in 1972 as South Oklahoma City Junior College. OCCC has a current enrollment of 18,549 students and is the second largest co ...
in south Oklahoma City is the second-largest community college in the state. Rose State College
Rose State College is a public community college in Midwest City, Oklahoma.
History
Rose State College was originally named Oscar Rose Junior CollegeBritton, Terry D.,Rose State College" Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture' (accessed M ...
is east of Oklahoma City in suburban Midwest City
Midwest City is a city in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, United States, and a part of the Oklahoma City metropolitan area. As of the 2010 census, the population was 54,371, making it the eighth largest city in the state.
The city was developed in r ...
. Oklahoma State University–Oklahoma City
Oklahoma State University–Oklahoma City (OSU-OKC) is a public university in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. It is part of the Oklahoma State University System. Founded in 1961 as a branch of Oklahoma State University–Stillwater, its name changed f ...
is in the "Furniture District" on the Westside. Northeast of the city is Langston University
Langston University (LU) is a public land-grant historically black university in Langston, Oklahoma. It is the only historically black college in the state. Though located in a rural setting east of Guthrie, Langston also serves an urban missio ...
, the state's historically black college
Historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are institutions of higher education in the United States that were established before the Civil Rights Act of 1964 with the intention of primarily serving the African-American community. Mo ...
(HBCU). Langston also has an urban campus in the eastside section of the city. Southern Nazarene University
Southern Nazarene University (SNU) is a private Nazarene university in Bethany, Oklahoma.
History
The history of the institution is one of various mergers and, therefore, one of differing institutions. While SNU claims its founding date as ...
, which was founded by the Church of the Nazarene
The Church of the Nazarene is an evangelical Christian denomination that emerged in North America from the 19th-century Wesleyan-Holiness movement within Methodism. It is headquartered in Lenexa within Johnson County, Kansas. With its members co ...
, is a university in suburban Bethany
Bethany ( grc-gre, Βηθανία,Murphy-O'Connor, 2008, p152/ref> Syriac: ܒܝܬ ܥܢܝܐ ''Bēṯ ʿAnyā'') or what is locally known as Al-Eizariya or al-Azariya ( ar, العيزرية, " laceof Lazarus"), is a Palestinian town in the West B ...
, which is surrounded by the Oklahoma City city limits.
Although technically not a university, the FAA's Mike Monroney Aeronautical Center
Mike Monroney Aeronautical Center is a regional office of the United States Federal Aviation Administration on the grounds of Will Rogers Airport in Oklahoma City. With around 7,500 direct federal employees, the Aeronautical Center is one of the ...
has many aspects of an institution of higher learning. Its FAA Academy is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission
The Higher Learning Commission (HLC) is an institutional accreditor in the United States. It has historically accredited post-secondary education institutions in the central United States: Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa ...
. Its Civil Aerospace Medical Institute
Civil Aerospace Medical Institute (CAMI) is the medical certification, education, research, and occupational medicine wing of the Office of Aerospace Medicine (AAM) under the auspices of the Federal Aviation Administration Office of Aviation Safet ...
(CAMI) has a medical education division responsible for aeromedical education in general as well as the education of aviation medical examiners in the U.S. and 93 other countries. In addition, The National Academy of Science
The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the Natio ...
offers Research Associateship Programs for fellowship and other grants for CAMI research.
Primary and secondary
Oklahoma City is home to the state's largest school district, Oklahoma City Public Schools
The Oklahoma City Public Schools, abbreviated OKCPS, is a multicultural public school district serving most of the urban area of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. It is the second largest primary and secondary education district in the state of Oklahoma, ...
. The district's Classen School of Advanced Studies
Classen School of Advanced Studies, often referred to as Classen SAS, CSAS or simply Classen, is a public speciality school serving students in grades 9–12 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The Oklahoma City Public Schools program participates in th ...
and Harding Charter Preparatory High School rank high among public schools nationally according to a formula that looks at the number of Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate and/or Cambridge tests taken by the school's students divided by the number of graduating seniors. In addition, OKCPS's Belle Isle Enterprise Middle School was named the top middle school in the state according to the Academic Performance Index, and recently received the Blue Ribbon School
The National Blue Ribbon Schools Program is a United States Department of Education award program that recognizes exemplary public and non-public schools on a yearly basis. Using standards of excellence evidenced by student achievement measures, ...
Award, in 2004 and again in 2011. KIPP Reach College Preparatory School in Oklahoma City received the 2012 National Blue Ribbon along with its school leader, Tracy McDaniel Sr., being awarded the Terrel H. Bell Award for Outstanding Leadership.
The Oklahoma School of Science and Mathematics
The Oklahoma School of Science and Mathematics (OSSM) is a two-year, public residential high school located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Established by the Oklahoma state legislature in 1983, the school was designed to educate academically gifted ...
, a school for some of the state's most gifted math and science pupils, is also in Oklahoma City.
Due to Oklahoma City's explosive growth, parts of several suburban districts spill into the city, including Putnam City School District
The Putnam City School District is a school district based in northwest Oklahoma City, Oklahoma suburb of Warr Acres, Oklahoma (United States). It serves approximately 40,000 students and includes 42 schools.[Moore Public Schools
The Moore Public School District, also known as Moore Public Schools, is a public school district in Moore, Oklahoma. The school district is the third largest in the state of Oklahoma, after Oklahoma City Public Schools and Tulsa Public Schools ...]
in the south, and Mid-Del School District
The Mid-Del School District is a school district based in the Oklahoma City metropolitan area. It serves all of Midwest City and Del City, as well as a portion of Oklahoma City. As of 2007, the school district served more than 14,500 K-12 studen ...
in the southeast. The city also boasts a number of private and parochial schools. Casady School
Casady School is an independent, coeducational, college-preparatory school located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, founded in 1947 by Bishop Thomas Casady and the Episcopal Diocese of Oklahoma. Casady serves children in grades pre-kindergarten throug ...
and Heritage Hall School are both examples of a private college preparatory school with vigorous academics that range among the top in Oklahoma. Providence Hall Classical Christian School, Providence Hall is a Protestant school. Two prominent schools of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Oklahoma City, Archdiocese of Oklahoma City include Bishop McGuinness High School (Oklahoma), Bishop McGuinness High School and Mount St. Mary High School (Oklahoma), Mount Saint Mary High School. Other private schools include the Advanced Science and Technology Education Center and Crossings Christian School.
CareerTech
Oklahoma City has several public career and technology education schools associated with the Oklahoma Department of Career and Technology Education, the largest of which are Metro Technology Center and Francis Tuttle Technology Center.
Private career and technology education schools in Oklahoma City include Oklahoma Technology Institute, Platt College, Vatterott College, and Heritage College. The Dale Rogers Training Center in Oklahoma City is a nonprofit vocational training center for individuals with disabilities.
Media
Print
''The Oklahoman'' is Oklahoma City's major daily newspaper and is the most widely circulated in the state. NewsOK.com is the Oklahoman's online presence. ''Oklahoma Gazette'' is Oklahoma City's independent newsweekly, featuring such staples as local commentary, feature stories, restaurant reviews, and movie listings and music and entertainment. ''The Journal Record'' is the city's daily business newspaper, and ''okcBIZ'' is a monthly publication that covers business news affecting those who live and work in Central Oklahoma.
Numerous community and international newspapers cater to the city's ethnic mosaic, such as ''Black Chronicle, The Black Chronicle'', headquartered in the Eastside, Oklahoma City, Eastside, the OK VIETIMES and ''Oklahoma Chinese Times'', in Asia District, and various Hispanic community publications. ''The Campus'' is the student newspaper at Oklahoma City University. Gay publications include ''The Gayly Oklahoman''.
An upscale lifestyle publication called ''405 Magazine'' (formerly Slice Magazine) is circulated throughout the metropolitan area. In addition, there is a magazine published by ''Back40 Design Group'' called ''The Edmond Outlook''. It contains local commentary and human interest pieces direct-mailed to over 50,000 Edmond residents.
''Ready Player One'' is set in Oklahoma City in the year 2045.
Broadcast
Oklahoma City was home to several pioneers in radio and television broadcasting. Oklahoma City's WKY Radio was the first radio station transmitting west of the Mississippi River and the third radio station in the United States.[Oklahoma Fast Facts and Trivia](_blank)
. Retrieved January 26, 2009. WKY received its federal license in 1921 and has continually broadcast under the same call letters since 1922. In 1928, WKY was purchased by Edward K. Gaylord, E.K. Gaylord's Oklahoma Publishing Company and affiliated with the NBC Red Network; in 1949, WKY-TV (channel 4) went on the air and later became the first independently owned television station in the U.S. to broadcast in color. In mid-2002, WKY radio was purchased outright by Citadel Broadcasting, who was bought out by Cumulus Broadcasting in 2011. The Gaylord family earlier sold WKY-TV in 1976, which has gone through a succession of owners (what is now KFOR-TV is owned by Nexstar Media Group as of October 2019).
The major U.S. broadcast television networks have network affiliate, affiliates in the Oklahoma City media market, market (ranked 41st for television by Nielsen Media Research, Nielsen and 48th for radio by Arbitron, covering a 34-county area serving the central, north-central and west-central sections of Oklahoma); including NBC affiliate KFOR-TV (channel 4), American Broadcasting Company, ABC affiliate KOCO-TV (channel 5), CBS affiliate KWTV-DT (channel 9, the Flagship (broadcasting), flagship of locally based Griffin Communications), PBS station KETA-TV (channel 13, the flagship of the state-run Oklahoma Educational Television Authority, OETA member network), Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox affiliate KOKH-TV (channel 25), The CW, CW affiliate KOCB (channel 34), Independent station (North America), independent station KAUT-TV (channel 43), MyNetworkTV affiliate KSBI, KSBI-TV (channel 52), and Ion Television owned-and-operated station KOPX-TV (channel 62). The market is also home to several religious stations including Trinity Broadcasting Network, TBN owned-and-operated station KTBO-TV (channel 14) and Norman-based Daystar (TV network), Daystar owned-and-operated station KOCM (channel 46).
Despite the market's geographical size, none of the English-language commercial affiliates in the Oklahoma City designated market area operate full-power satellite stations covering the far northwestern part of the state (requiring cable or satellite to view them), though KFOR-TV, KOCO-TV, KWTV-DT, and KOKH-TV each operate low-power translators in that portion of the market. Oklahoma City is one of the few markets between Chicago and Dallas to have affiliates of two or more of the major Spanish-language broadcast networks: Telemundo affiliate KTUZ-TV (channel 30), Woodward, Oklahoma, Woodward-based Univision affiliate KUOK 35 (whose translator KUOK-CD, channel 36, serves the immediate Oklahoma City area), Azteca (TV network), Azteca affiliate KOHC-CD (channel 45) and Estrella TV affiliate KOCY-LD (channel 48).
Infrastructure
Fire department
Oklahoma City is protected by the Oklahoma City Fire Department (OKCFD), which employs 1015 paid, professional firefighters. The current Chief of Department is Richard Kelley, the department is also commanded by three Deputy Chiefs, who – along with the department chief – oversee the Operational Services, Prevention Services, and Support Services bureaus. The OKCFD operates out of 37 fire stations throughout the city in six battalions. The OKCFD operates a fire apparatus fleet of 36 engine companies (including 30 paramedic engines), 13 ladder companies, 16 brush pumper units, six water tankers, two hazardous materials units, one Technical Rescue Unit, one Air Supply Unit, six Arson Investigation Units, and one Rehabilitation Unit along with several special units. Each engine Company is staffed with a driver, an officer, and one to two firefighters, while each ladder company is staffed with a driver, an officer, and one firefighter. Minimum staffing each shift is 213 personnel. The Oklahoma City Fire Department responds to over 70,000 emergency calls annually.
Transportation
Highway
Oklahoma City is an integral point on the Interstate Highway System, United States Interstate Network, with three major interstate highways – Interstate 35 in Oklahoma, Interstate 35, Interstate 40 in Oklahoma, Interstate 40, and Interstate 44 in Oklahoma, Interstate 44 – bisecting the city. Interstate 240 (Oklahoma), Interstate 240 connects Interstate 40 in Oklahoma, Interstate 40 and Interstate 44 in Oklahoma, Interstate 44 in south Oklahoma City, while Interstate 235 (Oklahoma), Interstate 235 spurs from Interstate 44 in north-central Oklahoma City into downtown.
Major state expressways through the city include Lake Hefner Parkway (Oklahoma State Highway 74, SH-74), the John Kilpatrick Turnpike, Kilpatrick Turnpike, Airport Road (Oklahoma State Highway 152, SH-152), and U.S. Route 77 in Oklahoma, Broadway Extension (U.S. Route 77 in Oklahoma, US-77) which continues from I-235 connecting Central Oklahoma City to Edmond. Lake Hefner Parkway runs through northwest Oklahoma City, while Airport Road runs through southwest Oklahoma City and leads to Will Rogers World Airport. The Kilpatrick Turnpike loops around north and west Oklahoma City.
Oklahoma City also has several major national and state highways within its city limits. Shields Boulevard (US-77) continues from E.K. Gaylord Boulevard in downtown Oklahoma City and runs south eventually connecting to I-35 near the suburb of Moore, Oklahoma. Northwest Expressway (Oklahoma State Highway 3) runs from North Classen Boulevard in north-central Oklahoma City to the northwestern suburbs.
Oklahoma City is traversed by the following major expressways:
* Interstate 35 in Oklahoma, Interstate 35
* Interstate 40 in Oklahoma, Interstate 40 (Crosstown Expressway, Stanley Draper Expressway, Tinker Diagonal, Tom Stead Memorial Highway)
* Interstate 44 in Oklahoma, Interstate 44 (Turner Turnpike, Belle Isle Freeway, Will Rogers Expressway, H.E. Bailey Turnpike)
* Interstate 235 in Oklahoma, Interstate 235 (Centennial Expressway) / U.S. Route 77 in Oklahoma, U.S. 77 (Broadway Extension)
* Interstate 240 in Oklahoma, Interstate 240 (Southwest Expressway)
* Oklahoma State Highway 74, Lake Hefner Parkway (State Highway 74)
* Oklahoma State Highway 152, Airport Road (State Highway 152)
* Kilpatrick Turnpike
Air
Oklahoma City is served by two primary airports, Will Rogers World Airport and the much smaller Wiley Post Airport (incidentally, the two honorees died in the same plane crash in Alaska) Will Rogers World Airport is the state's busiest commercial airport, with 4,341,159 passengers served in 2018, a historic record.
Tinker Air Force Base
Tinker Air Force Base is a major United States Air Force base, with tenant U.S. Navy and other Department of Defense missions, located in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, surrounded by Del City, Oklahoma City, and Midwest City.
The base, origina ...
, in southeast Oklahoma City, is the largest military air depot in the nation; a major maintenance and deployment facility for the United States Navy, Navy and the United States Air Force, Air Force, and the second largest military institution in the state (after Fort Sill in Lawton, Oklahoma, Lawton).
Rail and intercity bus
Amtrak has a station downtown at the Santa Fe Depot (Oklahoma City), Santa Fe Depot, with daily service to Fort Worth, Texas, Fort Worth and the nation's rail network via the Heartland Flyer. Oklahoma City once was the crossroads of several interstate passenger railroads, at the Santa Fe Depot, the Union Station, and at the station of the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad. But service at that level has long since been discontinued. However, several proposals to extend the current train service have been made, including a plan to extend the Heartland Flyer to Newton, Kansas, which is currently being connected through Amtrak Thruway Motorcoach. Freight service is provided by BNSF, Union Pacific, and Stillwater Central.
Greyhound Lines, Greyhound and several other Intercity bus service, intercity bus companies serve Oklahoma City at the Union Station (Oklahoma City), Union Bus Station in downtown.
Public transit
Embark (transit authority), Embark (formerly Metro Transit) is the city's public transit company. The main transfer terminal is downtown at NW 5th Street and Hudson Avenue. Embark maintains limited coverage of the city's main street grid using a Spoke-hub distribution paradigm, hub-and-spoke system from the main terminal, making many journeys impractical due to the rather small number of bus routes offered and that most trips require a transfer downtown. The city has recognized transit as a major issue for the rapidly growing and urbanizing city and has initiated several studies in recent times to improve upon the existing bus system starting with a plan known as the Fixed Guideway Study. This study identified several potential commuter transit routes from the suburbs into downtown OKC as well as feeder-line bus and/or rail routes throughout the city.
Though Oklahoma City has no light rail or commuter rail service, city residents identified improved transit as one of their top priorities, and from the fruits of the Fixed Guideway and other studies city leaders strongly desire to incorporate urban rail transit into the region's future transportation plans. The greater Oklahoma City metropolitan transit plan identified from the Fixed Guideway Study includes a tram, streetcar system in the downtown area, to be fed by enhanced city bus service and commuter rail from the suburbs including Edmond
Edmond is a given name related to Edmund. Persons named Edmond include:
* Edmond Canaple (1797–1876), French politician
* Edmond Chehade (born 1993), Lebanese footballer
* Edmond Conn (1914–1998), American farmer, businessman, and politician
...
, Norman
Norman or Normans may refer to:
Ethnic and cultural identity
* The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries
** People or things connected with the Norm ...
, and Midwest City
Midwest City is a city in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, United States, and a part of the Oklahoma City metropolitan area. As of the 2010 census, the population was 54,371, making it the eighth largest city in the state.
The city was developed in r ...
. There is a significant push for a commuter rail line connecting downtown OKC with the eastern suburbs of Del City, Oklahoma, Del City, Midwest City
Midwest City is a city in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, United States, and a part of the Oklahoma City metropolitan area. As of the 2010 census, the population was 54,371, making it the eighth largest city in the state.
The city was developed in r ...
, and Tinker Air Force Base
Tinker Air Force Base is a major United States Air Force base, with tenant U.S. Navy and other Department of Defense missions, located in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, surrounded by Del City, Oklahoma City, and Midwest City.
The base, origina ...
. In addition to commuter rail, a short heritage rail line that would run from Bricktown just a few blocks away from the Amtrak station to the Adventure District in northeast Oklahoma City is under reconstruction.
In December 2009, Oklahoma City voters passed MAPS 3, the $777 million (7-year, 1-cent tax) initiative, which would generate funding (approx. $130 million) for the modern Oklahoma City Streetcar system in downtown Oklahoma City and the establishment of a transit hub.
On September 10, 2013, the federal government announced that Oklahoma City would receive a $13.8-million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation's Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery, TIGER program. This was the first-ever grant for Oklahoma City for a rail-based initiative and is thought to be somewhat of a turning point by city leaders who have applied for grants in the past, only to continuously be denied. It is believed the city will use the TIGER grant along with approximately $10 million from the MAPS 3 Transit budget to revitalize the city's Amtrak station becoming an Intermodal Transportation Hub, taking over the role of the existing transit hub at NW 5th/Hudson Ave.
Construction of the Oklahoma City Streetcar system in Downtown OKC began in early 2017, and the system opened for service in December 2018. Also known as the Maps 3 Streetcar, it connects the areas of Bricktown, Midtown and Downtown. The system serves the greater Downtown Oklahoma City, Downtown area using modern, low-floor streetcars. The initial system consists of two lines that connecting Oklahoma City's Central Business District with the entertainment district, Bricktown, and the Midtown District. Expansion to other districts surrounding downtown as well as more routes in the CBD is already underway.
Walkability
A 2013 study by Walk Score ranked Oklahoma City the 43rd most walkable out of the 50 largest U.S. cities. Oklahoma City has 18 neighborhoods with a Walk Score above 60, mainly close to the downtown core.
Health
Oklahoma City and the surrounding metropolitan area are home to a number of health care facilities and specialty hospitals. In Oklahoma City's MidTown district near downtown resides the state's oldest and largest single site hospital, St. Anthony Hospital (Oklahoma City), St. Anthony Hospital and Physicians Medical Center.
OU Medicine
OU Health is the combination of OU Medical Center – Oklahoma City & Edmond, the Children's Hospital, OU Physicians, OU Children's Physicians, the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine, and the Peggy and Charles Stephenson Oklahoma Cancer ...
, an academic medical institution on the campus of The University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center
The University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center is a public medical school in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. It is the health sciences branch of the University of Oklahoma and serves as the primary place of instruction for many of Oklahoma's health p ...
, is home to OU Medical Center. OU Medicine operates Oklahoma's only level-one trauma center at the OU Medical Center and the state's only level-one trauma center for children at Children's Hospital at OU Medicine, both of which are in the Oklahoma Health Center district. Other medical facilities operated by OU Medicine include OU Physicians and OU Children's Physicians, the OU College of Medicine, the Oklahoma Cancer Center and OU Medical Center Edmond, the latter in the northern suburb of Edmond
Edmond is a given name related to Edmund. Persons named Edmond include:
* Edmond Canaple (1797–1876), French politician
* Edmond Chehade (born 1993), Lebanese footballer
* Edmond Conn (1914–1998), American farmer, businessman, and politician
...
.
INTEGRIS Health owns several hospitals, including INTEGRIS Baptist Medical Center, the INTEGRIS Cancer Institute of Oklahoma, and the INTEGRIS Southwest Medical Center. INTEGRIS Health operates hospitals, rehabilitation centers, physician clinics, mental health facilities, independent living centers, and home health agencies throughout much of Oklahoma. INTEGRIS Baptist Medical Center was named in ''U.S. News & World Report''s 2012 list of Best Hospitals. INTEGRIS Baptist Medical Center ranks high-performing in the following categories: Cardiology and Heart Surgery; Diabetes and Endocrinology; Ear, Nose and Throat; Gastroenterology; Geriatrics; Nephrology; Orthopedics; Pulmonology and Urology.
The Midwest Regional Medical Center is in the suburb of Midwest City
Midwest City is a city in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, United States, and a part of the Oklahoma City metropolitan area. As of the 2010 census, the population was 54,371, making it the eighth largest city in the state.
The city was developed in r ...
; other major hospitals in the city include the Oklahoma Heart Hospital and the Mercy Health Center. There are 347 physicians for every 100,000 people in the city.[Best Places to Live in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma – Health](_blank)
(Retrieved May 6, 2010).
In the American College of Sports Medicine's annual ranking of the United States' 50 most populous metropolitan areas on the basis of community health, Oklahoma City took last place in 2010, falling five places from its 2009 rank of 45. The ACSM's report, published as part of its ACSM American Fitness Index, American Fitness Index program, cited, among other things, the poor diet of residents, low levels of physical fitness, higher incidences of obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease than the national average, low access to recreational facilities like swimming pools and baseball diamonds, the paucity of parks and low investment by the city in their development, the high percentage of households below the poverty level, and the lack of state-mandated physical education curriculum as contributing factors.
Notable people
See also
* Coyle v. Smith
* History of Oklahoma
* List of mayors of Oklahoma City
Notes
References
External links
Official city website
Oklahoma City tourism information
Convention & Visitors' Bureau
Oklahoma City Historic Film Row District website
OKC.NET
cultural commentary about Oklahoma City
, mayor during the Oklahoma City bombing
{{Authority control
Oklahoma City,
Cities in Oklahoma
Cities in Canadian County, Oklahoma
Cities in Cleveland County, Oklahoma
Cities in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma
Cities in Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma
County seats in Oklahoma
Oklahoma City metropolitan area
Populated places established in 1889
1889 establishments in Indian Territory