Noble is a city in Cleveland County,

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

, United States, and is part of the

Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Oklahoma, most populous city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat ...

Metropolitan Area. The population was 6,985 at the 2020 census, a 7.8% increase from 2010. Noble is Cleveland County's third-largest city behind

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 9th and 10th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norma ...

and

Moore Moore may refer to: Language * Mooré language, spoken in West Africa People * Moore (surname) ** List of people with surname Moore * Moore Crosthwaite (1907–1989), a British diplomat and ambassador * Moore Disney (1765–1846), a senior ...

History

On April 22, 1889, the day the first Oklahoma "Land Run" opened the Unassigned Lands in the middle of

Indian Territory Indian Territory and the Indian Territories are terms that generally described an evolving land area set aside by the Federal government of the United States, United States government for the relocation of Native Americans in the United States, ...

to settlers, J.W. Klinglesmith, Albert Rennie and several other businessmen forded the

South Canadian River The Canadian River is the longest tributary of the Arkansas River in the United States. It is about long, starting in Colorado and traveling through New Mexico, the Texas Panhandle, and Oklahoma. The drainage area is about .Secretary of the Interior Secretary of the Interior may refer to: * Secretary of the Interior (Mexico) * Interior Secretary of Pakistan * Secretary of the Interior and Local Government (Philippines) * United States Secretary of the Interior See also

*Interior ministry ...

John Noble, who was instrumental in opening the Unassigned Lands to settlement. The group had great plans for Noble, hoping it would become the future

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

. The

Santa Fe Railroad The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often referred to as the Santa Fe or AT&SF, was one of the largest Class 1 railroads in the United States between 1859 and 1996. The Santa Fe was a pioneer in intermodal freight transport; at variou ...

completed a railroad depot in Noble in August 1889. For several years, Noble was a major shipping point for cattle and other goods from both sides of the Canadian River. Business prospered even more when Charles Edwin Garee built a new suspension toll bridge across the Canadian River in 1898. The suspension bridge washed out in 1904 and other communities began developing nearby. The last passenger train stopped in Noble in 1944 and the depot was moved.

Rose Rock Capital of the World

Noble considers itself to be the "

Rose Rock A desert rose, sand rose, Sahara rose, rose rock, selenite rose, gypsum rose, or baryte rose is an intricate rose-like formation of crystal clusters of gypsum or baryte, which include abundant sand grains. The "petals" are crystals flattened ...

Capital of the World", as the concentration of

barium sulfate Barium sulfate (or sulphate) is the inorganic compound with the chemical formula Ba SO4. It is a white crystalline solid that is odorless and insoluble in water. It occurs in nature as the mineral barite, which is the main commercial source of ...

in the soil is believed to be higher there than anywhere else, causing the formation of rose rocks. Similar formations are found throughout Cleveland County and the

Wichita Wichita ( ) may refer to: People *Wichita people, a Native American tribe *Wichita language, the language of the tribe Places in the United States * Wichita, Kansas, a city located in Sedgwick County * Wichita County, Kansas, a county in wester ...

and

Ouachita Mountains The Ouachita Mountains (), simply referred to as the Ouachitas, are a mountain range in western Arkansas and southeastern Oklahoma. They are formed by a thick succession of highly deformed Paleozoic strata constituting the Ouachita Fold and Thru ...

. Noble sets aside the first Saturday each May to celebrate its annual Rose Rock Festival. Local geologist Joe Stine and his wife opened the Timberlake Rose Rock Museum in 1986 and closed it in 2019.

Geography

Noble is located along the southwest edge of Cleveland County. It is bordered to the north by

, to the east by Slaughterville, and to the west by the

Canadian River The Canadian River is the longest tributary of the Arkansas River in the United States. It is about long, starting in Colorado and traveling through New Mexico, the Texas Panhandle, and Oklahoma. The drainage area is about .McClain County.

U.S. Route 77 U.S. Route 77 (US 77) is a major north–south United States Numbered Highway which extends for in the central United States. As of 2005, Its southern terminus is in Brownsville, Texas, at Veteran's International Bridge on the U.S.-Mexico borde ...

passes through Noble, leading north to the center of

and south to

Purcell Henry Purcell (, rare: ; September 1659 – 21 November 1695) was an English composer of Baroque music, most remembered for his more than 100 songs; a tragic opera, ''Dido and Aeneas''; and his incidental music to a version of Shakespeare's ...

. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, Noble has a total area of , of which is land and , or 1.72%, is water.

Demographics

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2010, there were 6,480 people, 1,956 households, and 1,486 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 2,134 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 90.30%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.19%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 4.87%

Native American Native Americans or Native American usually refers to Native Americans in the United States. Related terms and peoples include: Ethnic groups * Indigenous peoples of the Americas, the pre-Columbian peoples of North, South, and Central America ...

, 0.25% Asian, 0.02%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 0.38% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), ...

, and 3.99% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 2.74% of the population. There were 1,956 households, out of which 40.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.5% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 13.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.0% were non-families. 21.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.63 and the average family size was 3.03. In the city, the population was spread out, with 28.6% under the age of 18, 8.2% from 18 to 24, 31.5% from 25 to 44, 20.8% from 45 to 64, and 11.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.9 males. The median income for a household in the city was $35,250, and the median income for a family was $40,533. Males had a median income of $30,417 versus $23,690 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the city was $16,732. About 4.5% of families and 6.5% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 5.5% of those under age 18 and 10.8% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Gary Hayes was elected mayor in March 2006. There are four City Council members and one mayor. The mayor is elected every three years, starting in 1991. Hayes ran unopposed in 2018. Gary Hayes did not run for reelection in 2021. Reverend Phil Freeman was elected mayor in 2021.

Education

The Noble Public Schools' district (Independent #40 as numbered by the state) covers a huge area, stretching west to east across south-central Cleveland County between Norman and Little Axe school districts to the north and Lexington's to the south. Currently the district has three elementary schools, one middle school, and one high school. The elementary school for children in kindergarten through first grade is the Katherine I. Daily Elementary School, named after the longtime principal. The current principal of "K.I.D.," as it is commonly called, is Janice Busick. The next school in the Noble Public School system is the John Hubbard Elementary School, named for the longtime district superintendent from the 1950s-70s, and educates children in second and third grade. Nathan Gray is the principal. Following their two years at Hubbard, children attend the Pioneer Intermediate School for fourth and fifth grades. Pioneer formerly educated sixth graders; however, they now attend the recently completed Noble Middle School. Nathan Gray is the principal and is serving his 4th year in this position. Until recently, children went to Noble Junior High for seventh through eighth grade. However, the building that used to be the junior high is now Noble Public School's administration building. Noble Middle School was built, and educates students in sixth through eighth grade. When the superintendent, Curtis Inge, died they renamed the school The Curtis Inge Middle School. The principal is Roger Clements and assistant principal is Kristal Standridge. Noble High School, with the Bears as its mascot, is where children finish their secondary education in Noble. The schools' athletic programs compete in Oklahoma's class 5A in most sports, including football, basketball, baseball, and golf. The wrestling team competes in class 4A. Frank Solomon is the head principal while Steve Barrett and Mike Barefoot serve as assistant principals. Noble High is also home to many clubs, programs and extra-curricular activities, such as a class 5A marching band under the direction of Fred Queen, or BotBall led by Cole, which earned the Rookie Team Award at GCER 2019. Over the decades since the district and High School grew to their modern size in the 1970s, various programs in newspaper, yearbook, vocal music, Student Council, FFA and others have held statewide office and been leaders in their fields. The Noble Public Schools Foundation Board for Academic Excellence has initiated a "50 for 50" campaign to raise $50,000 a year for endowment to benefit Noble students by funding teacher grants. As of June 2015 they have raised over $165,000.00. The Noble Public Schools' district is far larger in area than the boundary limits of the City of Noble proper, owing to the closure and consolidation of all the original small dependent schools in the 1940s-60s. This means that students come from the north half of Slaughterville as well as Noble and unincorporated areas, and even a strip of rural south Norman. Formally dating to only 1970, the Town of Slaughterville never carved out its own school district, and its residents' children attend either Noble, Lexington, or are home-schooled.

Notable people

Al Benton John Alton Benton (March 18, 1911 – April 14, 1968) was an American professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Philadelphia Athletics, Detroit Tigers, Cleveland Indians, and Boston Red Sox. The right-hande ...

, baseball player * Bill Nations, dentist and politician *

Brandon Harper Brandon Scott Harper (born April 29, 1976) is an American former professional baseball catcher, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Washington Nationals. His entire big league career consists of 18 games played, in . Personal life ...

, Football Player

References

External links

City of Noble official website

Noble Chamber of Commerce

Noble Public Library
{{authority control Oklahoma City metropolitan area Cities in Oklahoma Cities in Cleveland County, Oklahoma