Bethany is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Washington County, Oregon, United States. It is situated north of U.S. Route 26 near Beaverton, approximately four miles northwest of Cedar Mill, and is within the Portland metropolitan area. As of the 2010 Census, the community had 20,646 residents. Fire protection and EMS services are provided through Tualatin Valley Fire and Rescue.HistoryThe name Bethany was first applied to a crossroads trading center about two miles northeast of the current location, where a Presbyterian church stands today. The area was first settled by Ulrich Gerber, who came from Switzerland in the mid-1870s. Gerber helped establish the first post office in the area in 1878, about a mile east of the current Bethany School, and suggested the name Bethany. "Bethany" is a Hebrew word, originally applied to a place in Palestine near Jerusalem, and used as a place name all over the United States, especially in connection with a church. The post office was discontinued in 1904. The area's first public library was opened in July 2007 by a non-profit organization named the Cedar Mill Community Library Association, which has operated a library in nearby Cedar Mill since 1976. It is considered a branch of that library and is named the Cedar Mill Community Library @ Bethany. The area became a census-designated place after the 2010 Census.
