User:Janeway216/Tulsa draft

Tulsa is the second-largest city in Oklahoma. As of the revised 2004 census report, the city had a total population of 387,807, with 881,815 in the metropolitan area. Tulsa is the 45th largest city in the United States and the 93rd largest city in North America. It is the county seat of Tulsa County.

1 History of Tulsa
2 Geography and climate
3 Business and economy
4 People and culture
5 Government and politics
6 Education
7 Transportation
8 Tulsa in entertainment
9 Sister cities
10 See also
11 Notes
12 External links

[edit] History of Tulsa

Main article: History of Tulsa, Oklahoma

What was to ultimately become Tulsa was first a part of Indian Territory. The Lochapoka Creek settled the current Tulsa area between 1828 and 1836 after they had been driven from their native Alabama. Much of modern Tulsa is located in the Creek Nation, with parts located in the Cherokee Nation and Osage Nation.

In August, 1882, the St. Louis and San Francisco Railway, later called the Frisco, completed the extension of its line to Tulsa to serve the cattle business, the city's first industry. Tulsa, during this time, was referred to as "Tulsey Town."

Tulsa changed from a small Indian town to a boomtown with the discovery of oil in 1901 at Red Fork, a small community southwest of Tulsa. Wildcatters and investors flooded into the city and the town began to take shape. In 1905, the Glenn Pool oil field was discovered. This laid the foundation for Tulsa to become a world leader in oil and many oil and gas businesses. By the time Oklahoma achieved statehood in 1907, Tulsa had a population of 7,298.

By 1920 the population boomed to 72,000. The second surge of oil discoveries occurred between 1915 and 1930 and firmly established Tulsa as the "Oil Capital of the World." Another community that flourished in Tulsa during the oil boom was Greenwood. Known nationally as "Black Wall Street," the neighborhood was a hotbed of jazz and blues in the 1920s. In 1921, the Tulsa Race Riot occurred, one of the nation's worst acts of racial violence.

Especially since World War II, the aviation and aerospace industries have also been an important part of the Tulsa economy.

Following the "Oil Bust" of 1982-84, the title of "Oil Capital of the World" was relinquished to Houston. City leaders worked to diversify the city away from a largely petroleum-based economy.

Many key families and people played important roles in the history of Tulsa including the Perryman Family, the Phillips family (Frank Phillips, who founded Phillips Petroleum Company, and his brother Waite Phillips), J. Paul Getty, William G. Skelly, the Warren family, the Murphy family, the LaFortune Family, the Bartlett family, Thomas Gilcrease, and Charles Page.

[edit] Geography and climate

[edit] Geography

Tulsa is located at 36°7'53" North, 95°56'14" West (36.131294, -95.937332)^[1] in the northeastern corner of the state, some 99 miles northeast of Oklahoma City.

Tulsa is the primary city in the region of Oklahoma known as Green Country, due to the dense green vegetation in the area. The city is heavily wooded and split by the Arkansas River. Tulsa is also near the heart of Tornado Alley, a region known to experience more tornadoes on average than any other area in the world.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 483.9 km² (186.8 mi²). 473.1 km² (182.6 mi²) of it is land and 10.9 km² (4.2 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 2.24% water.

[edit] Climate

Tulsa lies along the Arkansas River at an elevation of 700 feet (213 m) above sea level. At latitude 36 degrees, Tulsa is far enough north often to escape protracted periods of heat in summer, yet far enough south usually to miss the extreme cold of winter. The influence of warm, moist air from the Gulf of Mexico is often noted, frequently creating high humidity. Generally the winter months are mild, and although temperatures occasionally fall below -20°C (0°F), they seldom stay there for a very long period of time. Temperatures of 40°C (100°F) or higher are often observed from July to early September, but are sometimes accompanied by a good southerly breeze. The fall season is long with a number of pleasant, sunny days and cool nights. Primarily during the spring and early summer months, the Tulsa area is often subjected to thunderstorms, some of which contain large hail, damaging winds and an occasional tornado. The spring and early summer thunderstorm pattern also provides the area with a disproportionate share of its annual rainfall, which averages around 1000 mm (42 inches). Due to frequent periods of very heavy rainfall, Tulsa has one of the most extensive flood control systems in the nation.

[edit] Districts and neighborhoods

Tulsa stretches over 181 square miles, an area roughly three times the size of Washington DC. The city is divided into several districts.

[edit] Downtown

Downtown Tulsa

Much of Downtown Tulsa was built during the Oil Boom in the 1920s and 1930s, and the area features several Art Deco landmarks, including the Midcontinent Tower, Boston Avenue Methodist Church, and the Tulsa National Bank buildings. Oilman Waite Phillips left a significant architectural impact on downtown Tulsa through the Philtower and Philcade buildings. Other notable Tulsa buildings include the Atlas Life building, and the Mayo Hotel, which once served as home to J. Paul Getty.

Boston Avenue Methodist Church

Downtown Tulsa is in the northwest quadrant of the city and includes many large office towers. At 667 ft, the BOK Tower (formerly One Willliams Center) is the tallest building in any of the five "plains states" (Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota). It was designed in 1975 by Minoru Yamasaki & Associates, the same architect who designed the World Trade Center in New York. The structure strongly resembles a tower from the World Trade Center, although at half scale.

The Brady Arts District is north of downtown and is home to several entertainment and arts venues. The district focuses around the Brady Theater, built in 1914. The theater is nicknamed the "Old Lady on Brady" and is rumored to be haunted by the ghost of Enrico Caruso, who caught a cold while performing in 1920 that led to his 1921 death of pleurisy.

Image:CainsBallroom.jpg

Cain's Ballroom

Another venue in the area is the Cain's Ballroom, known as the home of Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys. Wills's style of music became known as western swing and the ballroom is still associated with it. Famously, the Sex Pistols played the Cain's as part of their 1978 North American tour; it was the penultimate show before Johnny Rotten quit the band. The Brady district is also the location of many local artists' galleries, restaurants, and bars.

The Greenwood Historical District is east of the Brady District and was the site of the 1921 Tulsa Race Riot. During the riot, thirty-five blocks of businesses and residences were burned in this district, 800 people were injured, and as many as 10,000 people were left homeless. As of 2004, two blocks of the old neighborhood have been restored and are part of the Greenwood Historical District. It is now home to the Greenwood Cultural Center, the Tulsa Race Riot Memorial, and the Oklahoma Jazz Hall of Fame.

[edit] Midtown

Midtown is a largely residential district in the heart of the city. The area consists mostly of homes built in the early 1900's. The area includes several parks and shopping centers.

Skelly Mansion, Maple Ridge

Woodward Park and the Tulsa Garden Center are on the western end of Tulsa, near the Maple Ridge neighborhood, former home of Tulsa's oil barons. The Philbrook Museum of Art is also in the area. East of Woodward Park is the historic Swan Lake neighborhood; St. John Medical Center, the area's second largest hospital; and the Utica Square shopping center.

Swan Lake

Two other noted shopping and entertainment districts in Midtown are the Brookside district and Cherry Street district. Brookside runs along Peoria in the southern part of Midtown, while the Cherry Street district runs along 15th Street, on the northern side of Midtown. Both are trendy mixes of local boutiques, restaurants, art galleries and antique shops.

The Tulsa State Fairgrounds, now called Expo Square, is located in northeast Midtown, slightly southeast of the University of Tulsa. The Expo Center, one of the largest clearspan buildings in the world, is on the south side of the fairgrounds. The Golden Driller, a 76 ft (23 m) tall statue of a roughneck, stands in front of the building. The statue was built for the International Petroleum Expo in 1966. The site is also home to the minor league baseball team the Tulsa Drillers, who play at Drillers Stadium, and the NBDL basketball team the Tulsa 66ers, who play at the Expo Square Pavilion.

[edit] South Tulsa

South Tulsa is generally the area south of 51st Street and north of 121st Street, bounded on the west by the Arkansas River, and on the east by Mingo Road. The area saw a population boom in the last ten to fifteen years, and traffic and commercial services have increased correspondingly. The area is for the most part not part of the Tulsa Public Schools district, served instead by Jenks Public Schools and Union Public Schools, both affluent suburban school districts.

The western half of the district centers around the Southern Hills neighborhood and Southern Hills Country Club, home to several major golf championships, including four U.S. Opens. The Oral Roberts University campus and the former City of Faith Medical and Research Center complex are also in the area. St. Francis Hospital, hub of the St. Francis Health System, is located in the center of the district.

The eastern half of the district is dominated by the 71st Street retail corridor, stretching into the Broken Arrow. Woodland Hills Mall, the largest mall in northeast Oklahoma, is located on 71st Street near Memorial Drive, and is surrounded by chain big box stores and restaurants.

South Tulsa has slowly grown to the point where there is little defined border between the city of Tulsa and its suburbs of Broken Arrow, Jenks, Bixby, and Glenpool.

[edit] East Tulsa

East Tulsa is a more suburban and heavily residential area of the city. The region includes several growing multi-ethnic communities with booming Hispanic and Asian populations. Eastland Mall is on the east side of the city. Redbud Valley Nature Preserve is located on the outskirts of the city, near Catoosa.

[edit] North Tulsa

North Tulsa, an older section of town, is home to a large percentage of Tulsa's African-American community. Tulsa International Airport is located on the east side of North Tulsa, near Spartan School of Aeronautics and the American Airlines aircraft maintenance facility, a major Tulsa employer. The Mohawk Park complex, home of the Tulsa Zoo, the Oxley Nature Center and the Tulsa Air and Space Center and Planetarium, is north of the airport.

The Gilcrease Museum, created in 1955 from the private art collection of oilman Thomas Gilcrease, is northwest of downtown. The Gilcrease collection specializes in Western American and Indian American art.

[edit] West Tulsa

West Tulsa is a more industrial area, home to the Sinclair and Sun refineries. The city abuts the suburb of Sand Springs on the north.

The Arkansas River in Tulsa

The Arkansas River runs through the west side of Tulsa, and the land along its banks forms the River Parks system. The entire system is more than 20 miles long, along both sides of the river, and features a number of trails, picnic areas, and playgrounds. The system also incorporates the Turkey Mountain Urban Wilderness Area. The festival park on the river's west bank is home to Tulsa's Oktoberfest, notable for having introduced the Chicken Dance to American culture in 1981.^[2]

[edit] Business and economy

Tulsa, while no longer the Oil Capital of the World, is still an important energy center. Other important industries include aerospace, telecom, high tech, insurance, car rental companies, and river transportation.

Some major companies based in Tulsa include the Bama Companies, Bank of Oklahoma, Dollar Thrifty Automotive, Helmerich and Payne, John Zink Co, The Nordam Group, Syntroleum, and the Williams Companies. Other companies with a significant presence in the area include American Airlines, the Boeing Company, Cingular Wireless, and Whirlpool Corporation.

[edit] People and culture

[edit] Demographics

[edit] Population

As of the census^[3] of 2000, there were 393,049 people, 165,743 households, and 99,114 families residing in the city. The population density was 830.9/km² (2,152.0/mi²). There were 179,405 housing units at an average density of 379.2/km² (982.3/mi²).

[edit] Diversity

The racial makeup of the city was 70.09% Caucasian, 15.47% African American, 4.72% Native American, 1.82% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 3.45% from other races, and 4.40% from two or more races. At least 7.15% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race, with more unregistered living within the city.

[edit] Family

There were 165,743 households out of which 28.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.1% were married couples living together, 12.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.2% were non-families. 33.9% of all households are made up of only one person, and 9.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.31 people and the average family size was 2.98.

[edit] Age

In the city, the population is spread-out with 24.8% of the population under the age of 18, 10.9% from 18 to 24, 29.9% from 25 to 44, 21.5% from 45 to 64, and 12.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 93.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.4 males.

[edit] Income

The median income for a household in the city was $35,316, and the median income for a family was $44,518. Males had a median income of $32,779 versus $25,587 for females. The per capita income for the city was $21,534. 14.1% of the population and 10.9% of families were below the poverty line. 20.5% of those under the age of 18 and 8.3% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.

[edit] Tulsa Metro Area

The Tulsa Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) consists of seven counties in northeastern Oklahoma and more than twenty outlying cities and towns.

[edit] Counties

[edit] Cities and towns

North: Dewey, Bartlesville, Pawhuska, Oologah, Skiatook, Collinsville, Owasso
West: Pawnee, Bristow, Cleveland, Kellyville, Sand Springs, Mannford, Sapulpa
East: Claremore, Catoosa, Broken Arrow, Wagoner, Coweta, Inola
South: Jenks, Glenpool, Bixby, Mounds, Beggs, Okmulgee, Henryetta

The Tulsa-Bartlesville consolidated metropolitan area (CMSA) is created by adding the Bartlesville, Oklahoma micropolitan area which consists of Washington County in northeastern Oklahoma.

Also nearby and part of Tulsa’s media market but not part of Tulsa’s CMSA is Muskogee, Oklahoma.

[edit] Media

[edit] Print

Tulsa is served by one major daily newspaper, the Tulsa World. Regional newspapers available in the area include the Dallas Morning News and The Oklahoman, Oklahoma City's major daily newspaper. Smaller weekly papers include the Tulsa Free Press and Urban Tulsa.

[edit] Broadcast

All the major U.S. television networks are represented in Tulsa: NBC (KJRH, channel 2), CBS (KOTV, channel 6), ABC (KTUL, channel 8), PBS (KOED, channel 11), The WB (KWBT, channel 19), Fox (KOKI, channel 23), and UPN (KTFO, channel 41). Cable television service in the area is provided by Cox Communications.

As in most major American cities, local radio stations in the Tulsa area are controlled by a small handful of large broadcasting companies.

Further information: Broadcast Media in Tulsa

[edit] Museums and cultural centers

The Philbrook Museum of Art

Tulsa is home to several museums and cultural centers. Two notable museums, the Gilcrease Museum and Philbrook Museum of Art, were created from the private art collections of major oilmen.

The Philbrook Museum of Art was originally built as the residence of oil pioneer Waite Phillips in 1927, but he deeded it to the city in 1938 to be used for cultural purposes. The museum and grounds opened in 1938 and features works by a variety of painters and sculptors.

The Gilcrease Museum was founded in 1955 after Thomas Gilcrease sold his extensive art collection to the city in order to cover his debts. The museum is known for its collection of Western American and American Indian art.

Other museums and cultural centers in the area include the Sherwin Miller Museum of Jewish Art, the Greenwood Cultural Center and the Tulsa Historical Center. Both the J.M. Davis Arms and Historical Museum, home of the largest private gun collection in the world, and the Will Rogers Memorial are in Claremore.

[edit] Performing arts

Tulsa features several performing arts corps, including the Theatre Tulsa theater company, the Tulsa Ballet Theater, the Tulsa Symphony Orchestra and the Tulsa Opera company. The major performance venue in the city is the Tulsa Performing Arts Center, located downtown and designed by Minoru Yamasaki. The PAC also attracts touring companies and performances.

Tulsa Events Center model

The City of Tulsa broke ground in 2005 on a new 18,000 seat events center, designed by architect César Pelli. When completed, the center will be known as the BOk Center after Tulsa-based Bank of Oklahoma Financial.

The Discoveryland! Ampitheatre outside of town is known for staging performances of Rodgers and Hammerstein's musical Oklahoma! continuously throughout the summer.

[edit] Fairs and events

The city is host to various fairs and events throughout the year. Some of the biggest festivals include:

Mayfest, an arts and culture festival
Juneteenth, a blues and jazz festival
The Gatesway Balloon Festival
The Tulsa State Fair
The Tulsa Oktoberfest

[edit] Faith and worship

Tulsa, located in the Bible Belt, is home to many churches and the ministries of some Charismatic Evangelical televangelists. Kenneth Hagin's Rhema Bible Church is based in Broken Arrow, while Billy Joe and Sharon Daugherty's Victory Christian Center and Carlton Pearson's Higher Dimensions is located in South Tulsa. In addition, Oral Roberts chose Tulsa as the site of his eponymous university and the failed City of Faith project.

Some of the churches in downtown Tulsa are examples of Art Deco design, particularly Boston Avenue Methodist Church, designed by Adah Robinson and Bruce Goff.

[edit] Sports and gaming

Club	Sport	League	Venue
Tulsa Drillers	Minor league baseball	Texas League	Drillers Stadium
Tulsa 66ers	Basketball	NBA Development League	Expo Square Pavilion
Tulsa Talons	Arena football	af2	Tulsa Convention Center
Tulsa Oilers	Ice hockey	Central Hockey League	Tulsa Convention Center

Tulsa has a long history of sports. The Tulsa Oilers AAA minor league baseball team played in the city until 1976, when the franchise moved to New Orleans. The North American Soccer League team the Tulsa Roughnecks played from 1978 until the league folded in 1984. Various hockey teams called the Oilers have played on and off in the city since 1928.

In addition, the University of Tulsa fields NCAA Division I football, soccer, and basketball teams, who play as the Golden Hurricane.

[edit] Indian gaming

Although gambling is illegal in the state of Oklahoma, the state has a number of independently administrated Indian reservations that allow gambling. Both the Cherokee Nation and the Creek Nation have territory adjoining Tulsa, and have long offered Indian gaming. As a result of a recent compact with the various Native American tribes, the tribal gaming facilities and bingo halls are expanding to offer table games and slot machines.

Tulsa also has horse racing at the Fair Meadows race track, on the grounds of the Expo Center.

[edit] Government and politics

Please help improve this section by expanding it.
Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion.

[edit] Education

[edit] Public K-12

Tulsa is covered by several school districts, largely because the city grew out to meet suburbs that already had established school systems. Tulsa Public Schools is the largest district and the largest school district in Oklahoma, but other large districts include Bixby Public Schools, Broken Arrow Public Schools, Catoosa Public Schools, Claremore Publich Schools, Collinsville Public Schools, Glenpool Public Schools, Jenks Public Schools, Owasso Public Schools, Sand Springs Public Schools, Sapulpa Public Schools, Skiatook Public Schools, and Union Public Schools.

Broken Arrow, Jenks, Owasso, and Union school districts are statistically and by reputation the best in the metro area. Each of the public districts in the county has a single high school, except for Tulsa Public Schools, which has nine. Tulsa Public Schools also has several charter schools.

[edit] Private K-12

There are multiple private elementary and middle schools in the Tulsa metropolitan area. Most are affiliated with a specific religion or place of worship. The best known are:

Bishop Kelley High School (9-12) (Catholic, Lasallian)
Cascia Hall Preparatory School (6-12) (Catholic, Augustinian)
Holland Hall School (Pre-12) (Episcopal)
Monte Cassino School (Pre-8) (Catholic, Benedictine)
Victory Christian School (K-12) (Victory Christian Center Church, interdenominational)

Other private schools in the Tulsa area include many parochial elementary schools, each affiliated with a parish in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Tulsa. Such Diocesan schools differ from the privatetly owned, Catholic institutions of Cascia Hall and Monte Cassino.

[edit] Higher learning

The metro Tulsa area is home to a variety of colleges and universities, including:

Langston University - Tulsa campus
Northeastern State University - Broken Arrow campus
University of Oklahoma - Schusterman Center
Oklahoma State University College of Osteopathic Medicine
Oklahoma State University - Tulsa
Oral Roberts University
Phillips Theological Seminary
RHEMA Bible Training Center - Broken Arrow
Rogers State University - Claremore
Spartan School of Aeronautics
St. Gregory's University
University of Tulsa
Tulsa Community College
Tulsa Technology Center

[edit] Transportation

[edit] Air

Tulsa is served by Tulsa International Airport. Eleven commercial airlines and several charter airlines serve nearly 3 million travelers annually to almost 70 departures every day.

[edit] Land

Several important highways pass through Tulsa, including Interstate 44, US 412, US 64, US 75, and State Highway 51, called the Broken Arrow Expressway. Interstate 244 and the unsigned Interstate 444 form a loop around downtown. US 169 is a major transportation corridor in East Tulsa. State Highway 11 connects to Tulsa International Airport, while the Creek Turnpike toll road is a bypass of I-44 to the south of the city.

Tulsa was also served by historic Route 66, and there are numerous reminders of this left in the city, especially along 11th Street and Admiral Place. Cyrus Avery, known as "The Father of Route 66," resided in Tulsa.

[edit] Water

East of Tulsa, in Catoosa, the Tulsa Port of Catoosa is the head of navigation for the McClellan-Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System (MKARNS), connecting barge traffic from Tulsa to the Mississippi River. This port is the farthest inland port in the United States.

[edit] Tulsa in entertainment

Tulsa has also been featured or mentioned in books, film, songs, and on television.

[edit] Books

The Outsiders, by S. E. Hinton
Rumble Fish, by S. E. Hinton
Tex, by S. E. Hinton
That Was Then, This is Now", by S.E. Hinton
The Hot Kid, by Elmore Leonard

[edit] Movies

Keys to Tulsa (1997) [3], directed by Leslie Greif
The Tulsa Lynching of 1921: A Hidden Story (2000) (TV)[4], directed by Michael Wilkerson
The Outsiders (1983)[5], directed by Francis Ford Coppola
Rumble Fish (1983)[6], directed by Francis Ford Coppola
Take Me Back to Tulsa (1944)[7], directed by Josef Berne
Tex (1982)[8], directed by Tim Hunter
Tulsa, Toyko, and the Middle of Nowhere (1997)[9]
Tulsa (1949)[10], directed by Stuart Heisler
The Tulsa Kid (1940)[11], directed by George Sherman
Twister (1996)[12], directed by Jan de Bont
UHF (1989)[13], directed by Jay Levey

[edit] Television

Friends, the character Chandler from the television series was sent to Tulsa for one season
Rodney, the ABC show is based in Tulsa and stars Tulsa comedian Rodney Carrington.

[edit] Songs

"24 Hours from Tulsa" by Gene Pitney
"Take me Back to Tulsa" by Bob Wills
"Tell Me Something Bad About Tulsa" by George Strait
"Tulsa Time" by Don Williams and also performed by Eric Clapton
"Tulsa Shuffle" by The Tractors
"The Tulsa Trap" by Aqueduct

[edit] Sister cities

The city of Tulsa currently has eight sister cities across the globe [14]. They are:

[edit] See also

[edit] Notes

^ US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990. United States Census Bureau (2005-05-03). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
^ The original German song was called "Der Ententanz", the Duck Dance, but when it came time for the Heilbronn Band to perform, there were no duck costumes available. Organizers were able to locate a chicken costume, however, and the dance spread as the Chicken Dance. It is still known in some places as the Duck Dance. [1] [2].
^ American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.