Our History

Long before the first porch light went on here, this was a vision. C.B. Warr, one of Oklahoma City's most prolific developers, saw the promise in this ground west of downtown and began shaping it into a neighborhood in 1933. He would go on to build much of what we call home just before and through the years of World War II, and what he started here became the blueprint for his later work across the city, including Mayfair Heights and the community that would eventually become Warr Acres.

But in truth, our story started even earlier than that. Cleveland Elementary opened its doors in 1928, five years before the neighborhood around it took shape. It wasn't an afterthought. It was the anchor, the reason families were drawn west in the first place, and it has remained the heart of this community ever since.

Because our homes were built gradually across more than a decade, we carry a wonderful mix of architectural eras within our borders. Art Deco and Tudor Revivals from the 1930s stand alongside Colonial Revivals from the years just after the war. Local architects were part of that story too. Among them was B. Gaylord Noftsger, one of Oklahoma's first licensed architects, whose work still stands today across the city, including the historic Union Bus Station downtown.

Neighborhood lore holds that he built and lived in a home of his own right here on NW 26th Street in 1937, a fitting tribute from a man who spent his career shaping how Oklahoma City looks and feels.

By 1982, the neighbors who loved these streets, this architecture, and this sense of place came together to establish our Urban Conservation District, ensuring that what was built with such care would be protected for generations still to come. That same spirit lives on today. Every member who joins us, every neighbor who shows up, helps keep that integrity strong, carrying the original vision forward for the next generation of Cleveland UCD families.