Cleveland County
County
Cleveland County Courthouse
Cleveland County Courthouse
Map of Oklahoma highlighting Cleveland County
Location within the U.S. state of Oklahoma
Map of the United States highlighting Oklahoma
Oklahoma's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 35°12′N 97°20′W / 35.2°N 97.33°W / 35.2; -97.33
Country United States
State Oklahoma
Founded1890
Named forGrover Cleveland
SeatNorman
Largest cityNorman
Area
 • Total558 sq mi (1,450 km2)
 • Land539 sq mi (1,400 km2)
 • Water19 sq mi (50 km2)  3.5%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total295,528
 • Density548.6/sq mi (211.8/km2)
Time zoneUTC−6 (Central)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district4th
Websitewww.clevelandcountyok.com

Cleveland County is a county in the central part of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The population was 295,528 at the 2020 United States census,[1] making it the third-most populous county in Oklahoma. Its county seat is Norman.[2] The county was named for U.S. President Grover Cleveland.[3]

Cleveland County is part of the Oklahoma City metropolitan statistical area.

History

Originally occupied by the Quapaw tribe, the Quapaw ceded the area to the U.S. Government soon after the Louisiana Purchase in 1818. During the late 1820s and 1830s, the area was given to the Creek and Seminole tribes after their forced removal from the southeastern United States. An agreement between the two tribes resulted in this area being part of the Seminole Nation, located west of the Creek Nation.

In 1866, these tribes were forced to cede the area to the Federal Government; the professed rationale was their siding with the Confederacy during the American Civil War.[4] The area became part of the Unassigned Lands and was opened for white settlement on April 22, 1889.

After the passage of the Organic Act in 1890, Cleveland County was organized as County 3 (of 7)[5] and Norman became the county seat. For a short time, Cleveland County was known as Little River County, until an election in 1890. The voters selected the name Cleveland in honor of President Grover Cleveland over the name Lincoln.[3]

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 558 square miles (1,450 km2), of which 539 square miles (1,400 km2) is land and 19 square miles (49 km2) (3.5%) is water.[6] It is the eighth smallest county in the state.[7]

Cleveland County contains the reservoir Lake Thunderbird 5,349 acres (21.65 km2), constructed between 1962 and 1965. Its waters covered the previous settlement of Denver.[8][9]

Cleveland County is the origin of the Little River, a tributary of the Canadian River, 90 miles (140 km) long. The Canadian River defines the southern border of Cleveland County.

Adjacent counties

Demographics

Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
18906,605—
190016,388148.1%
191018,84315.0%
192019,3892.9%
193024,94828.7%
194027,72811.1%
195041,44349.5%
196047,60014.9%
197081,83971.9%
1980133,17362.7%
1990174,25330.8%
2000208,01619.4%
2010255,75522.9%
2020295,52815.6%
2022 (est.)299,587[10]1.4%
US Decennial Census[11]
1790-1960[12] 1900-1990[13]
1990-2000[14] 2010-2019[1]
Age pyramid for Cleveland County, Oklahoma, based on census 2000 data.

As of the 2010 United States census,[15] there were 255,755 people, 98,306 households, and 64,182 families in the county. The population density was 458 inhabitants per square mile (177/km2). There were 104,821 housing units at an average density of 188 units per square mile (73 units/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 79.3% white, 4.2% black or African American, 4.7% Native American, 3.8% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 2.3% from other races, and 5.6% from two or more races. 7.0% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. By 2020, its population was 295,528 with a 2022 census-estimated population of 299,587. As of 2021's census estimates, its racial makeup was 69.5% non-Hispanic white, 5.7% African American, 5.6% Native American, 4.7% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 6.3% multiracial, and 9.9% Hispanic or Latino of any race.[16]

As of 2010, were 98,306 households, of which almost half (49.9%) included married couples living together and more than a third (34.7%) were non-families. Almost a third (32.9%) included children under the age of 18, 10.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 4.7% had a male householder with no wife present. More than a fourth (25.9%) of households consisted of a sole individual and 6.9% were individuals 65 years of age or older living alone. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 3.02.

As of 2010, the county population contained 23.1% under the age of 18, 14.2% from 18 to 24, 28.1% from 25 to 44, 24.4% from 45 to 64, and 10.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32.7 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.1 males.

As of 2010, the median income for a household in the county was $53,759, and the median income for a family was $67,412. Males had a median income of $45,580 versus $34,801 for females. The per capita income for the county was $26,640. About 7.2% of families and 12.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.7% of those under age 18 and 5.8% of those age 65 or over. As of 2021, its median household income was $67,068 and the poverty rate was 12.3%.[16]

Politics

Cleveland County is rather conservative for a county influenced by a college town. While most such counties swung heavily to the Democrats in the 1990s, Cleveland County has gone Republican in all but one presidential election since 1952, and last went Democratic for president in 1964. However, the county leans much less Republican than the state as a whole; in 2020, Joe Biden became the first Democrat to win more than 40% of the county's vote since Jimmy Carter in 1976, only losing the county by 14 percentage points, compared to a 33-point loss statewide.

The county backed Democratic candidate Joy Hofmeister with nearly 52% of the vote in the 2022 gubernatorial election.[17]

Voter registration and party enrollment as of May 31, 2023[18]
Party Number of voters Percentage
Republican 80,888 47.45%
Democratic 52,119 30.58%
Others/Unaffiliated 37,452 21.97%
Total 170,459 100%
United States presidential election results for Cleveland County, Oklahoma[19]
Year Republican Democratic Third party
No. %No. %No. %
2020 66,677 55.67% 49,827 41.60% 3,274 2.73%
2016 62,538 57.14% 38,829 35.48% 8,083 7.39%
2012 59,116 62.97% 34,771 37.03% 0 0.00%
2008 64,749 62.00% 39,681 38.00% 0 0.00%
2004 65,720 65.90% 34,007 34.10% 0 0.00%
2000 47,393 62.22% 27,792 36.49% 986 1.29%
1996 36,457 52.24% 26,038 37.31% 7,288 10.44%
1992 35,561 44.10% 24,404 30.27% 20,664 25.63%
1988 36,313 61.62% 22,067 37.44% 553 0.94%
1984 42,806 71.70% 16,512 27.66% 387 0.65%
1980 31,178 61.86% 14,536 28.84% 4,687 9.30%
1976 22,098 51.06% 20,054 46.33% 1,129 2.61%
1972 25,777 68.71% 11,126 29.66% 615 1.64%
1968 12,446 48.29% 8,617 33.43% 4,711 18.28%
1964 9,656 45.43% 11,599 54.57% 0 0.00%
1960 9,292 59.23% 6,397 40.77% 0 0.00%
1956 7,766 56.47% 5,987 43.53% 0 0.00%
1952 8,149 56.83% 6,190 43.17% 0 0.00%
1948 3,671 35.90% 6,556 64.10% 0 0.00%
1944 3,642 40.91% 5,240 58.86% 21 0.24%
1940 3,660 37.93% 5,933 61.48% 57 0.59%
1936 2,643 29.30% 6,304 69.87% 75 0.83%
1932 1,868 23.84% 5,969 76.16% 0 0.00%
1928 3,738 61.35% 2,291 37.60% 64 1.05%
1924 1,672 33.39% 2,841 56.73% 495 9.88%
1920 2,283 45.80% 2,397 48.08% 305 6.12%
1916 885 27.36% 1,753 54.19% 597 18.45%
1912 938 32.74% 1,471 51.34% 456 15.92%

Education

The University of Oklahoma is located in Norman. It is the largest university in Oklahoma with approximately 30,000 students.

K-12 school districts

School districts include:[20]

Libraries

Pioneer Library System operates branch libraries in ten cities in Cleveland, McClain and Pottawatomie counties.[21]

Transportation

Airports

The University of Oklahoma Westheimer Airport is owned by the University of Oklahoma. It is located 3 nautical miles (5.6 km) northwest of Norman.

Major highways

US 77 James C. Nance Bridge between Lexington and Purcell

The US 77 James C. Nance Memorial Bridge linking Lexington and Purcell was originally built as a circa 1938 deck truss two-lane bridge and in 2019 rebuilt as a concrete pier four-lane bridge [22] crossing the Canadian River between Purcell and Lexington, Oklahoma. The bridge carries U.S. Route 77 (US-77) and Oklahoma State Highway 39 (SH-39) from McClain County to Cleveland County. The bridge is named for James C. Nance, longtime community newspaper chain publisher and Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives, President Pro Tem of Oklahoma State Senate and Uniform Law Commissioner.

The Nance bridge allows travel time from Purcell (west side of the Canadian River) to Lexington (east side of the river) to be only three minutes by car, according to google maps. When the bridge was closed for emergency repairs, the same trip was 43 minutes when rerouted north to the nearest bridge, or one hour, four minutes when rerouted southeast to the nearest bridge.

The 1938 construction of this bridge enabled communities from West and Southwest (Byars, Cole, Dibble, Paoli, Pauls Valley, Purcell, Rosedale, and Wayne) side of the river to reach the communities on the East side of the river (Lexington, Slaughterville, and Wanette). Traffic using the bridge allows trade and commerce to freely flow in this retail trade area of southern McClain County, southern Cleveland County, Southern Pottawatomie County, and northern areas of Garvin County, and the eastern portion of Grady County. The bridge, rebuilt in 2019, features the same design elements with concrete post and wrought iron railings with protected turn lane and sidewalks.[22]

According to the Oklahoma Department of Transportation, "History was made Friday July 26, 2019 in Purcell and Lexington, just as it was more than 80 years ago when the two cities celebrated the grand opening of a new bridge connecting their communities. The new US 77 Purcell/Lexington James C. Nance Bridge that links the twin cities, located less than one mile apart, fully opened to traffic with much fanfare on Friday, July 26, 2019, the culmination of a major two-year, expedited reconstruction project."[22]

Communities

NRHP sites

The following sites in Cleveland County are listed on the National Register of Historic Places:

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "State & County QuickFacts". US Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 6, 2011. Retrieved November 8, 2013.
  2. ↑ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  3. 1 2 Wilson, Linda D. "Cleveland County," Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture, 2009. Accessed March 28, 2015.
  4. ↑ "Abrogation of treaties (25 USC Sec. 72) Codification R.S. Sec. 2080 derived from act July 5, 1862, ch. 135, Sec. 1, 12 Stat. 528". Archived from the original on 17 March 2012. Retrieved 8 April 2022.
  5. ↑ Norman County. "History: The Namesake". Retrieved 8 April 2022.
  6. ↑ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". US Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved February 18, 2015.
  7. ↑ Norman County. "History: By The Numbers". Retrieved 8 April 2022.
  8. ↑ Sharon McAllister (31 March 2001). "1915 Atlas - Cleveland County OK". Maps 'n' More. OKGenWeb. Retrieved 8 April 2022.
  9. ↑ Cleveland County, Oklahoma. Google Maps. Accessed 8 April 2022
  10. ↑ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2022". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved June 26, 2023.
  11. ↑ "US Decennial Census". US Census Bureau. Retrieved February 18, 2016.
  12. ↑ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Archived from the original on August 11, 2012. Retrieved February 18, 2015.
  13. ↑ Forstall, Richard L., ed. (March 27, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". US Census Bureau. Retrieved February 18, 2015.
  14. ↑ "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). US Census Bureau. April 2, 2001. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2010-03-27. Retrieved February 18, 2015.
  15. ↑ "US Census website". US Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
  16. 1 2 "QuickFacts: Cleveland County, Oklahoma". U.S. Census Bureau.
  17. ↑ "Oklahoma Election Results". The New York Times. 2022-11-08. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-08-23.
  18. ↑ "Voter Registration Totals". OK Elections Interactive Statistics Beta. May 31, 2023. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
  19. ↑ Leip, David. "Atlas of US Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved March 28, 2018.
  20. ↑ "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Cleveland County, OK" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2022-10-10. Retrieved 2022-07-23. - Text list
  21. ↑ "Pioneer Library System to buy Borders bookstore building in Norman". NewsOK. The Oklahoman. September 27, 2011. Retrieved October 25, 2011.
  22. 1 2 3 Department of Transportation, website. . "US-77 James C. Nance Bridge between Purcell and Lexington". Accessed July 26, 2019.

35°12′N 97°20′W / 35.20°N 97.33°W / 35.20; -97.33

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