Founder George Epperly's dream of Del City came to life in 1948. It is the proud home of two-time Olympic gold medalist wrestler John Smith. Exhibits, such as the Oklahoma County & Western Museum, Del City Preservation & Historical Society, and War Memorial, reflect a rich history and honor veterans and hometown soldiers who lost their lives serving the United States.
Traditional annual events include the Annual Del City/Shriners Armed Forces Day Parade held in May each year. This event has more than a 20-year history and is one of the largest, ongoing parades in the State of Oklahoma: A Christmas Lighting and Halloween Bash. Year round outdoor recreational activities are also available to outdoor enthusiasts at any of the three Bicycle/Pedestrian Trails located off Interstate 40 in Ray Trent Park, near Tinker Air Force Base along Sooner Road, or at the 60 acre (240,000 m²) Eagle Lake location with picnic and fishing on Reno Avenue, located only two miles from urban downtown Oklahoma City and the newly redone water park behind the Del City Community Center on SE 15th Street. Del City has low tremor earthquakes on a regular basis, and recently (03-08-2009 at 8:10am) had an 3.4 magnitude earthquake located three miles down at the intersection on S.E. 15th and Bryant.
As of the census of 2000, there were 22,128 people, 9,045 households, and 6,186 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,935.8 people per square mile (1,133.1/km²). There were 9,725 housing units at an average density of 1,290.2/sq mi (498.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 74.24% White, 14.04% African American, 4.26% Native American, 1.58% Asian, 0.11% Pacific Islander, 1.83% from other races, and 3.95% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.71% of the population.
There were 9,045 households out of which 31.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.6% were married couples living together, 16.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.6% were non-families. 27.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 2.96.
In the city the population was spread out with 26.3% under the age of 18, 10.3% from 18 to 24, 27.5% from 25 to 44, 21.3% from 45 to 64, and 14.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 90.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.3 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $32,218, and the median income for a family was $36,515. Males had a median income of $28,806 versus $21,997 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,717. About 10.5% of families and 13.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.8% of those under age 18 and 7.2% of those age 65 or over.