Newcastle, Oklahoma

History

The city was incorporated as South Newcastle in 1962, then a petition to change the name to Newcastle in 1965.

The city limits of Newcastle encompassed just a few square miles until around 1960, when Oklahoma City began annexing huge chunks of land across the river. Newcastle expanded, as did Tuttle and Blanchard, to prevent the city from trying to move across the river. The population grew very little until the mid-1970s, when Oklahoma City began expanding past SW 74th Street, populating near the I-44 corridor.

In the 1980s, the city annexed the territory that lies near Norman (north of State Highway 9).

Tornadoes

On May 3, 1999, an F5 tornado struck parts of Newcastle and resulted in the destruction of several homes in the city limits. Greater destruction occurred in Bridge Creek and Moore.

In 2011, a tornado ripped through parts of Newcastle. There were an estimated 160 homes either damaged or destroyed and over 20 businesses damaged. However, there was no loss of life.

On May 20, 2013, another violent tornado damaged a small part of Newcastle, and did a large amount of damage to neighboring Moore and southern Oklahoma City.

Geography

Newcastle is located at 35°14′50.82″N 97°36′.22″W (35.145082, -97.360022). According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 62.5 square miles (162 km²), of which, 55.8 square miles (145 km²) of it is land and 6.7 square miles (17 km²) of it (6.01%) is water.

Newcastle is considered to be part of a rapidly growing area of northern McClain and Grady Counties. Newcastle also is a part of an area known as the "Tri-City Area" with Tuttle and Blanchard. Newcastle also serves as the largest incorporated community in McClain County.

Demographics

As of the census of 2010, there were 7,685 people, 2,839 households, and 2,271 families residing in the city. The population density was 122.9 people per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was 84.53% White, 0.53% African American, 5.26% Native American, 0.32% Asian and 10.30% from other races from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.31% of the population.

There were 2,540 households out of which 20.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 72.5% were married couples living together, 7.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 16.5% were non-families. 14.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.75 and the average family size was 3.02.

In the city, the population was spread out with 20.6% under the age of 18, 7.56% from 18 to 24, 29.58% from 25 to 44, 28.24% from 45 to 64, and 8.39% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. Females represented 49.84% of the population with a median age of 43 and males represented 50.16% of the population with a median age of 39 years.

The median income for a household in the city was $74,167, and the median income for a family was $77,064. Males had a median income of $55,875 versus $37,889 for females. The per capita income for the city was $29,538. About 6.2% of families and 7.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.6% of those under age 18 and 2.9% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The Newcastle School District consists of four school buildings, including the Newcastle Early Childhood Center (ECC)(Grades PreK-1st), Newcastle Elementary School(Grades 2nd-5th), Newcastle Middle School (Grades 6th-8th), and Newcastle High School (Grades 9-12). Schools are located along and just off the main street. School colors include a royal blue and black, with the mascot being a "Newcastle Racer".

Children attend class four days a week (Monday through Thursday) and attend school on a Friday when they are out in a Monday.

Library

The Newcastle Branch, a part of the Pioneer Library System serves south central Oklahoma City metropolitan area cities and towns.