Норман, Оклахома: История, Наука и Культура города Сунеров

Norman ('/n//ɔr//m//ən/) is the 3rd most populous city in the U. S. state of Oklahoma, with a population of 128,026 as of the 2020 census. It is the most populous city and the county seat of Cleveland County and the second most populous city in the Oklahoma City metropolitan area after the state capital, Oklahoma City, 20 miles (32 kilometers) north of Norman. The city was settled during the Land Run of 1889, which opened the former Unassigned Lands of Indian Territory to American pioneer settlement. It was named in honor of Abner Norman, the area's initial land surveyor, and was formally incorporated on May 13, 1891. Norman has prominent higher education and related research industries, as it is home to the University of Oklahoma, the largest university in the state, with nearly 32,000 students. The university is well known for its sporting events by teams under the banner of the nickname "Sooners", with over 85,000 people routinely attending football games. The university is home to several museums, including the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art, which contains the largest collection of French Impressionist art ever given to an American university, as well as the Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History. Norman's National Weather Center (NWC) houses a unique collection of university, state, federal, and private sector organizations that work together to improve the understanding of events related to the Earth's atmosphere. Norman lies within Tornado Alley, a geographic region colloquially known for frequent and intense tornadic activity. The Storm Prediction Center (SPC), a branch of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) that delivers forecasts for severe thunderstorms, tornadoes, and other high impact hazardous weather in the contiguous United States, is located at the NWC. Additionally, research is conducted at the co located National Severe Storms Laboratory (NSSL), which operates various experimental weather radars and develops innovative tools, applications, and techniques aimed at improving forecasts and warnings of severe weather.

The Oklahoma region became part of the United States with the Louisiana Purchase in 1803. Before the American Civil War, the U. S. government began relocating the Five Civilized Tribes—the five Native American tribes that the United States officially recognized via treaty—to Oklahoma. Treaties of 1832 and 1833 assigned the area known today as Norman to the Creek Nation. After the Civil War, the Creeks were accused of aiding the Confederacy; as a result they ceded the region back to the United States in 1866. In 1887, the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway began service to the area, early settlers decided to keep the name "Norman." The new Norman was a sundown town. African Americans were not allowed to live within the city limits or stay overnight until the early 1960s, nor could they study at the University of Oklahoma. In 2020, the Norman City Council issued an apology. Norman has grown throughout the decades. By 1902 the downtown district contained two banks, two hotels, a flour mill, and other businesses; by 1913 over 3,700 people lived in Norman when the Oklahoma Railway Company decided to extend its interurban streetcar running from Oklahoma City to Moore into Norman, spurring additional population growth. The rail lines eventually transitioned to freight during the 1940s as the United States Numbered Highway system developed. The population reached 11,429 in 1940. With the completion of Interstate 35 in June 1959, Norman found its role as a bedroom community to Oklahoma City increasing rapidly; in 1960 Norman's population was 33,412 but by the end of the decade had grown to 52,117. Today the airstrip is called the University of Oklahoma Westheimer Airport. Following the war the remaining military presence and post war veterans who came to Norman to get an education again grew the city's population, which was 27,006 by 1950. The center of this large incorporated area is from the center of Oklahoma City, and separated primarily by Moore, is in the Oklahoma City metropolitan area.

Norman and the surrounding areas are mostly flat with an elevation near 356.92 m. The terrain in the western section of Norman is prairie, while the eastern section, including the area surrounding Lake Thunderbird, consists of some of lakes and Cross Timbers forest. The area consists of restaurants, art galleries, and other businesses;

Hall Park is an area northeast of downtown Norman that was originally an independent township; in 2005 it was annexed into Norman, becoming one of its neighborhoods. The area is home to many middle class suburban homes and is historically important in that it was advertised as the United States' first "all electric town." The university itself has a unique Gothic inspired architecture known as "Cherokee Gothic," so named by architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Churches and houses in the surrounding neighborhoods can be described as neo Gothic or Queen Anne in style. Norman has two city designated historic preservation districts in the area: the Miller Historic District, bounded by Symmes St., Classen Blvd., and Miller Ave.; The neighborhoods to the east of the campus are home to many students, both in residential housing and high rise condos/apartments. Norman enjoys many tree lined landscapes, participating in the ReLeaf Norman and Tree City USA programs.

Norman falls within a temperate, humid subtropical climate region that is identified as "Cfa" class on the Köppen climate classification. On average Norman receives about of precipitation per year; Consistent winds, averaging near and usually from the south to southeast, help to temper hotter weather during the summer and intensify cold periods during the winter. The risk for tornadoes is greatest in the springtime months of March through June when the majority of all reported tornadoes occur. There have been several other tornado events in recent years. On May 10, 2010, numerous tornadoes occurred in Cleveland County, resulting in the loss of multiple homes and businesses within Norman city limits. Weak tornadoes also struck Norman on April 13, 2012 and May 6, 2015.

As of the census of 2010, there were 110,925 people, 44,661 households, and 24,913 families residing within the city. By population, Norman was the third largest city in Oklahoma and the 225th largest city in the United States. The population density was Males had a median income of $41,859 versus $35,777 for females. The campus is a center for scientific and technological research, having contributed over $277 million to such programs in 2009. the city is also the location of the National Weather Museum & Science Center. As a result of this ongoing academic and public weather research, several private meteorological businesses are present in the city, including Weathernews Americas, Inc., Vieux and Associates, Inc., Verisk Analytics, Pivotal Weather, and DTN (formerly Weather Decision Technologies). In addition to weather, Norman is a center for other scientific ventures, public and private. The Oklahoma Geological Survey, which conducts geological research, and the Oklahoma Renewable Energy Council, which is a public private alliance that fosters renewable energy technology with the aim of establishing more viable applications, make the city their home. Southwest NanoTechnologies is a producer of single walled carbon nanotubes. Bergey Windpower is a supplier of small wind turbines. Other major employers in the city include Norman Regional Health System, Norman Public Schools, Johnson Controls, Griffin Memorial Hospital, Hitachi, Astellas Pharma Technologies, Albon Engineering, Xyant Technology, MSCI, SITEL, the United States Postal Service National Center for Employee Development, Sysco Corporation, and AT&T.

Norman enjoys many cultural attractions that are funded by the university. The Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art made national and international news in 2000 when it was given the Weitzenhoffer Collection, the largest collection of French Impressionist art ever given to an American university. The collection includes works by Mary Cassatt, Claude Monet, Vincent van Gogh, Paul Gauguin, Pierre Auguste Renoir, and Camille Pissarro. The Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History is a museum containing over of exhibits ranging from archaeology, paleontology, ethnology, herpetology, ornithology, and Native American studies. Its exhibits are intended to immerse visitors in the state's long history. The museum features many complete collections of dinosaur fossils and is also noted for its Paleozoic collection, considered to be one of the largest and most important in existence. The Moore Lindsay House is a Queen Anne style home built prior to 1900 by prominent Norman home builder William Moore; Located at 508 N. Peters, the Moore Lindsay House's architecture is representative of Norman during the Victorian era. Catlett Music Center at the University of Oklahoma features many orchestral and jazz performances and the Weitzenhoffer Family College of Fine Arts' Schools of Dance, Drama, and Musical Theatre offer many student programs throughout the year. The city is also home to many privately funded galleries and performance sites.

Norman hosts many free festivals and community events that occur throughout the year. The Norman Medieval Fair is a celebration of medieval themed games, art, and culture, with highlights of jousting, human chessmatch combats & other combat shows, and several musical & dance acts. The event is typically held during the last weekend of March or first weekend of April in Reaves Park, near the university. It has been held annually in Norman since 1976 and was originally a forum for the English Department at the University of Oklahoma. It is the largest weekend event held in the state of Oklahoma, with over 325,000 people in attendance in 2006 and growing yearly. Events Media Network has named Medieval Fair one of the top 100 events in the United States. Norman Music Festival is an annual weekend music festival held in April in downtown Norman. Established in 2008, the event had over 26,000 people in attendance during the 2009 festival. Originally a one day event, the festival has quickly grown so large that it is now an all weekend concert series. The festival highlights both local musicians and internationally acclaimed artists and features many forms and styles of music. Groovefest is a music festival hosted annually at Andrews Park. On the last Sunday in September, the music festival is held to help raise awareness about human rights. The event was established in 1986 by the University of Oklahoma chapter of Amnesty International. The Chocolate Festival, the only fundraiser of the year for the city's Firehouse Arts Center, was ranked No. 3 for food festivals across America by the Food Network. This festival offers various chocolate tasting sessions, chocolate art competitions and exhibits, chocolate dessert competitions and more. It has been an annual tradition since 1983. The National Weather Festival takes place at the National Weather Service every fall, featuring food trucks, weather balloon launches, educational booths, and meet and greets with local meteorologists. Jazz in June is a music festival held the last full weekend in June at various venues across Norman. The festival features both jazz and blues musical performances as well as jazz educational clinics taught by professional musicians appearing in the festival and post concert jam sessions at local venues which bring headliners and local artists together. Jazz in June, one of the major cultural events in the state as well as the City of Norman, attracts a combined concert audience of 50,000 drawn from throughout the state, region and nation. Another 100,000 or more enjoy these same performances through post festival broadcasts on KGOU Public Radio as well as other public radio stations throughout the state, region and nation. May Fair is an arts festival held every year during the first weekend in May at Andrews Park. It features top area performers, fine art, crafts, and food. Summer Breeze Concert Series is a series of concerts held from Spring to Fall at various park venues across Norman. The series is sponsored by the Performing Arts Studio. Midsummer Nights' Fair is a nighttime arts festival held during two evenings in June. The fair features art, music, and food and is held outside the Firehouse Art Center located in Lions Park. The Norman Mardi Gras parade is a celebration of Mardi Gras occurring on the Saturday closest to Fat Tuesday. The parade is held in downtown Norman and features themed costumes and floats. The Main Street Christmas Holiday Parade is a celebration of Christmas and the holiday season held every December in downtown Norman. The parade features holiday themed costumes and floats.

Norman is served by three public libraries, Norman Public Library Central, Norman Public Library East, and Norman Public Library West, all of which are part of the 12 branch Pioneer Library System which serves the entirety of Cleveland County, McClain County and Pottawatomie County in Central Oklahoma. The library has a reciprocal agreement with the Metropolitan Library System of Oklahoma City through which those eligible for a library card in one system are also eligible in the other. Cardholders are also able to borrow books unavailable in the PLS collection through the use of Interlibrary Loan. Books can be reserved and shipped to a local library free of charge. In addition to books, the library maintains a collection of periodicals, DVD videos, audio books, e books and research materials. In addition to books, the library maintains over 5181.60 m in length of manuscripts and archives, 1.6 million photographs, and more than 1.5 million maps. and has played in four BCS National Championship Games since 1998. During football season, the Oklahoma Sooners football program contributes significantly to Norman's economy. During game day weekends, Norman sees an influx out of town traffic from all over the country with over 80,000 people routinely attending football games. Norman's local businesses, especially areas around campus and Campus Corner, benefit greatly from the game day traffic alone. The program ranks in the top 10 of ESPN's top college football money makers with home games generating revenues at approximately $59 million and game day operating expenses at about $6.1 million. In 1951 and 1994 its baseball team won the NCAA national championship, and the women's softball team won the national championship in 2000, 2013, 2016, 2017, 2021, 2022, and 2023. The men's and women's gymnastics teams have won ten national championships since 2001. Other university men's sports include: basketball, cross country, golf, gymnastics, football, Ultimate Frisbee, tennis, track and field, and wrestling. The OU Sooners men's hockey team competes in the American College Hockey Association, at the "club" level, but has yet to apply for higher level play. Due to the lack of a rink in Norman, the team plays at the Blazers Ice Centre in south Oklahoma City. Women's sports include: basketball, cross country, golf, gymnastics, football, Ultimate Frisbee, rowing, soccer, softball, tennis, track and field, and volleyball.

Norman's Parks and Recreation Department facilitates 55 neighborhood and community parks, three recreation centers, a golf course and driving range, three disc golf courses, a complete swim complex with waterslides, a wading pool, 32 tennis courts, and three special services centers (that offer cultural arts and senior citizen activities). Griffin Community Park Sports Complex includes 16 soccer fields, 14 baseball/softball fields, and four football fields.

The University of Oklahoma is the largest university in the state of Oklahoma, with approximately 30,000 students enrolled. The university includes Norman, Oklahoma City and, Tulsa campuses with the main campus located in Norman. The school is ranked first per capita among public universities in enrollment of National Merit Scholars PC Magazine and the Princeton Review rated it one of the "20 Most Wired Colleges" in both 2006 and 2008, while the Carnegie Foundation classifies it as a research university with "highest research activity." The school is well known for its athletic programs, having won many awards including seven NCAA Division I National Football Championships.

Scheduled air transport, major commercial air transportation is available at Will Rogers World Airport in Oklahoma City, located approximately northwest of Norman. The airport serves more than 3.78 million passengers per year. Norman is served locally by Max Westheimer Airport, a general aviation airport run by the University of Oklahoma. The airport is one of only two airports in the Oklahoma City metropolitan area designated as a reliever airport to Will Rogers World Airport. Max Westheimer Airport is capable of handling aircraft up through and including executive class jet aircraft.

The Cleveland Area Rapid Transit, operated by the University of Oklahoma, provides bus service throughout the Norman area. CART also provides service to the Social Security Administration offices in Moore, as well as to Oklahoma City's EMBARK transit hub downtown. In 2008, CART became the 39th public transportation system in the United States to be featured on Google Transit, a website that allows transportation users to electronically plan their travel routes. In 2010, CART buses were modified to include a GPS tracking system that allows riders to see the location of buses and their predicted arrival times via the CART and Google websites. CART buses transport more than 1.3 million travelers annually.

The predominant form of transportation in Norman is roads and highways with 80.0% of all residents driving alone to work, 9.0% carpooling, and just 1.3% taking public transportation. As of 2007, Interstate 35 alone was handling over 99,000 vehicles per day. Other major highways include State Highway 9, a portion of which serves 28,000 vehicles per day, and U. S. Highway 77, which serves more than 25,000 vehicles per day. Norman is served by two major federal highways: Natural gas is provided by Oklahoma Natural Gas.

In 2010, drinking water in Normal was identified as levels of hexavalent chromium 3 and 6 near the higher end of the acceptable EPA limit. The Garber Wellington Aquifer, which is known to have elevated levels of heavy metals, was identified as a possible source. The city responded by building new wells and removing old ones.

Norman Regional Health System is a multi campus system that provides medical services in Norman and throughout south central Oklahoma. Its Porter Avenue campus, located north of downtown Norman, is a 337 bed general hospital providing a wide range of services including acute care. It provides a 152 bed facility specializing in cardiology, cardiovascular services, as well as women's and children's services.