Bethesda is located in the traditional territory of the indigenous Native Piscataway and Nacotchtank at the time of European colonization. Fur trader Henry Fleet became the first European to visit the area, reaching it by sailing up the Potomac River. He stayed with the Piscataway tribe from 1623 to 1627, either as a guest or prisoner (historical accounts differ). Fleet eventually secured funding for another expedition to the region and was later granted proprietary rights to 2,000 acres of land in the nascent colony and became a member of Maryland's colonial legislature.[7] Raids from the Senecas and Susquehannock resulted in the creation of the Maryland division of Rangers in 1694 to patrol the frontier.[7]
Most settlers in colonial Maryland were tenant farmers who paid their rent in tobacco, and colonists continued to expand farther north in search of fertile land. Henry Darnall (1645–1711) surveyed a 710-acre (290-hectare) area in 1694 which became the first land grant in Bethesda.[7] Tobacco farming was the primary way of life in Bethesda throughout the 1700s. The city avoided seeing action during the Revolutionary War, although it became a supply region for the fledgling Continental Navy. The establishment of Washington, D.C., in 1790 deprived Montgomery County of its economic center at Georgetown, although the event had little effect on the small farmers throughout Bethesda.[7]
Between 1805 and 1821, Bethesda became a rural way station after the development of the Washington and Rockville Turnpike, which carried tobacco and other products between Georgetown and Rockville, and north to Frederick. The Bethesda Meeting House, a Presbyterian church, was built in 1820. The church burned in 1849 and was rebuilt the same year about 100 yards (91 m) south, and its former location became the Cemetery of the Bethesda Meeting House.
In 1852, the postmaster general established a post office in the area and appointed Rev. A. R. Smith its first postmaster.[8] By 1862, a small settlement had grown around a store and tollhouse along the turnpike known as "Darcy's Store" for the store's owner, William E. Darcy. It consisted of a blacksmith shop, a church and school, and a few houses and stores. In 1871, postmaster Robert Franck renamed the settlement for the church.[9]
A streetcar line was established in 1890 and suburbanization increased in the early 1900s, and Bethesda grew in population. Communities near railroad lines had grown the fastest during the 19th century.[7] In 1910, the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad completed its Georgetown Branch line from Silver Spring to Georgetown, including a storage yard there and multiple sidings serving industries in Bethesda. B&O successor CSX ceased train service on the line in 1985, so the county transformed it into a trail in the rails-to-trails movement. The tracks were removed in 1994, and the first part of the trail was opened in 1998; it has become the most used rail-trail in the United States, averaging over one million users per year.[10]
Before the passage of the Fair Housing Act of 1968, restrictive covenants were used in Bethesda to exclude racial and ethnic minorities—primarily African-Americans, but also Asian-Americans and ethnic groups regarded as "Semitic", including Armenians, Jews, Iranians, Greeks, Turks, and Syrians.[12] One 1938 restrictive covenant in the Bradley Woods subdivision of Bethesda said, "No part of the land hereby conveyed, shall ever be used, or occupied by or sold, demised, transferred, conveyed, unto, or in trust for, leased, or rented, or given to negroes, or any person or persons of negro blood or extraction or to any person of the Semitic Race, blood, or origin, which racial description shall be deemed to include Armenians, Jews, Hebrews, Persians, Syrians, Greeks and Turks, or to any person of the Mongolian Race, blood, or origin, which racial description shall be deemed to include Chinese, Japanese, and Mongolians, except that this paragraph shall not be held to exclude partial occupancy of the premises by domestic servants of the purchaser or purchasers."[13] In practice, covenants excluding "Semitic races" were generally used to exclude Jews as Montgomery County did not have notable Armenian, Greek, Syrian, or Turkish populations at the time.[14]
World War II and the subsequent expansion of government fed the rapid growth of Bethesda. Both the National Naval Medical Center (1940–42) and the NIH complex (1948) were built just to the north of the developing downtown, and this drew government contractors, medical professionals, and other businesses to the area.
Bethesda became the major urban core and employment center of southwestern Montgomery County.[9] This recent vigorous growth followed the 1984 expansion of Metrorail with a station in Bethesda. The Bethesda Metro Center was built over the Red line metro rail, which opened up further commercial and residential development in the immediate vicinity.[15] In the 2000s, the strict height limits on construction in the District of Columbia led to the development of mid-and high-rise office and residential towers around the Bethesda Metro stop.[citation needed]
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 13.2 square miles (34 km2), of which 13.1 square miles (34 km2) is land and 0.1 square miles (0.26 km2) (0.38%) is water. The main commercial corridor that passes through Bethesda is Maryland Route 355 (known as Wisconsin Avenue in Bethesda and as Rockville Pike and Hungerford Drive in more northern communities), which, to the north, connects Bethesda with the communities of North Bethesda and Rockville, ending, after several name changes, in Frederick. Toward the South, Rockville Pike becomes Wisconsin Avenue near the NIH Campus and continues beyond Bethesda through Chevy Chase, Friendship Heights and into Washington, D.C., ending in Georgetown.
The area commonly known as Downtown Bethesda is centered at the intersection of Wisconsin Avenue, Old Georgetown Road and East-West Highway. This intersection is about two and one-half miles from Washington, D.C.'s western boundary, making Bethesda a close-in suburb of the nation's capital. Other focal points of downtown Bethesda include the Woodmont Triangle, bordered by Old Georgetown Road (Maryland Route 187), Woodmont and Rugby Avenues, and the Bethesda Row, centered at the intersection of Woodmont Avenue and Bethesda Avenue. Much of the dense construction in that area followed the opening of the Bethesda station on the Red Line of the Washington Metro rapid transit system, also located at this intersection and the centerpiece of the Bethesda Metro Center development. The Medical Center Metro stop lies about 0.7 miles north of the Bethesda stop, Medical Center, which serves the NIH Campus, the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, and the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences.
As of the census[17] of 2000, there were 55,277 people, 23,659 households, and 14,455 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 4,205.8 inhabitants per square mile (1,623.9/km2). There were 24,368 housing units at an average density of 1,854.1 per square mile (715.9/km2). The racial makeup of the CDP was 85.86% White, 2.67% Black or African American, 0.17% Native American, 7.92% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 1.23% from other races, and 2.11% from two or more races. 5.43% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 23,659 households, out of which 28.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.4% were married couples living together, 6.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.9% were non-families. 32.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.30, and the average family size was 2.92.
In the CDP, 21.8% of the population was under the age of 18, 4.6% from 18 to 24, 29.2% from 25 to 44, 27.1% from 45 to 64, and 17.2% was 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females, there were 87.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.0 males.
Bethesda is a very wealthy and well-educated area. According to the 2000 census, Bethesda was the best-educated city in the United States of America, with a population of 50,000 or more. 79% of residents 25 or older have bachelor's degrees, and 49% have graduate or professional degrees. According to a 2007 estimate,[18] the median income for a household in the CDP was $117,723, and the median income for a family was $168,385. Males had a median income of $84,797 versus $57,569 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $58,479. About 1.7% of families and 3.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.8% of those under age 18 and 4.1% of those age 65 or over. Many commute to Washington, D.C., for work. The average price of a four-bedroom, two-bath home in Bethesda in 2010 was $806,817 (which ranks it as the twentieth most expensive community in America).[19]
The ethnic makeup in 2020 was 69.5% non-Hispanic white, 8.9% Hispanic or Latino, 4.9% black, 11.7% Asian, 0.3% American Indian, and 8.2% of two or more races. 24.4% of the population was foreign-born.[20]
The headquarters of defense conglomerate Lockheed Martin, managed health care company Coventry Health Care and hotel and resort chains Marriott International and Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. are located in Bethesda. Software company Bethesda Softworks was originally located in Bethesda but moved to Rockville in 1990. The Discovery Channel also had its headquarters in Bethesda before it moved to Silver Spring in 2004. On the professional services side, numerous banks (PNC, Capital One Bank) brokerage firms (MorganStanley, Merrill Lynch, Charles Schwab, Fidelity) and law firms (Ballard Spahr, JDKatz, Paley Rothman, Lerch Early & Brewer) maintain offices in Bethesda. Bethesda has two farmers markets: the Montgomery Farm Woman's Cooperative Market and the Bethesda Central Farmer's Market. In summer 2021, Fox Television Stations moved the broadcast facilities of its Washington-area television stations, WTTG and WDCA, to Bethesda.
Bethesda is the home of Congressional Country Club, which is recognized as one of the world's most prestigious private country clubs. Congressional has hosted four major golf championships, including the 2011 U.S. Open, won by Rory McIlroy. The National, a golf tournament hosted by Tiger Woods, was played at Congressional seven times between 2007 and 2016. Bethesda is also home of the exclusive Burning Tree Club, Bethesda Country Club, and the Bethesda Big Train, a summer collegiate baseball team.
Also located in downtown Bethesda is one of the Madonna of the Trail monuments, erected by the National Old Trails Association with the Daughters of the American Revolution; U.S. President Harry S. Truman presided over the dedication of the Bethesda monument, on April 19, 1929. Nearby is the Bethesda Post Office. Also starting in the heart of downtown Bethesda is the Capital Crescent Trail, which follows the old tracks of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad from Georgetown in Washington, D.C., to Silver Spring. Walter Reed Medical Center and the Bethesda Theater are two important Art Deco architectural structures in the suburbs of Washington, D.C.
Bethesda Row
Federal Realty Investment Trust has developed much of the west side of downtown Bethesda into an area called Bethesda Row, incorporating principles of new urbanism and a mixed-use district including residential apartments and condos (100,000 ft2), retail (300,000 ft2), dining, office space (100,000 ft2), hotels, entertainment, public art and fountains, forming the new core of revitalized downtown Bethesda.[23] Retail stores include an Apple Store, Anthropologie, and Bethesda Bagels.
Rochambeau French International School – The secondary campus/administrative headquarters (Forest Road Campus) and the preschool campus (Bradley Campus) is in Bethesda. Circa 2022, the school plans to open a new preschool, and elementary campus in Bethesda.[24]
The Washington Japanese Language School, a supplementary weekend Japanese school, holds its classes at the Stone Ridge School of the Sacred Heart in Bethesda.[26][27] The WJLS maintains its school office in North Bethesda, adjacent to Garrett Park.[28][29][27] The institution, giving supplemental education to Japanese-speaking children in the Washington, D.C., area, was founded in 1958,[30] making it the oldest Japanese government-sponsored supplementary school in the U.S.[31]
The Writer's Center in Bethesda publishes Poet Lore, the longest continuously running poetry journal in the United States.[32]
Tripper Bus, a privately owned company, provides service from Bethesda 4681 Willow Ln, Bethesda, MD 20814 at the corner of Wisconsin Ave., opposite side of Panera Bread, the same side of Bethesda's Farm Women's Market to New York City between 8th and 9th Ave near Penn Station, in close to proximity to Port Authority Bus Terminal.[37]
^"Campuses". Rochambeau French International School. Archived from the original on October 24, 2020. Retrieved October 25, 2020. Administrative Offices 9600 Forest Rd Bethesda, MD 20814[...]BRADLEY CAMPUS – AGE 2 THROUGH KINDERGARTEN[...]7108 Bradley Blvd., in Bethesda, MD 20817[...]FOREST ROAD CAMPUS – 5TH GRADE THROUGH 12TH GRADE[...]9600 Forest Road, Bethesda MD 20814[...]NEW PRIMARY CAMPUS – AGE 2 THROUGH 5TH GRADE[...]Address: 9650 Rockville Pike, in Bethesda, MD 20817
^ ab"Home" (Archive). Washington Japanese Language School. Retrieved on April 16, 2015. "学校事務局 Holy Cross Church, Quinn Hall 2F. 4900 Strathmore Avenue, Garrett Park, MD 20896[...]校舎 ストーンリッジ校 Stone Ridge School of the Sacred Heart 9101 Rockville Pike Bethesda, MD 20814"
^"Map" (Archive). Town of Garrett Park. Retrieved on April 30, 2014.
^"EnglishArchived 2014-05-02 at the Wayback Machine." Washington Japanese Language School. Retrieved on April 30, 2014. "Washington Japanese Language School c/o Holy Cross Church, Quinn Hall, 4900 Strathmore Avenue, Garrett Park, MD 20896"
^"Andrew M. Saidel" (Archive). Japan-America Society of Greater Philadelphia (JASGP; フィラデルフィア日米協会とは). Retrieved on April 16, 2015.
^"Poet Lore archives". onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu. Archived from the original on August 28, 2018. Retrieved January 18, 2018.
^Godengosuper (July 2008). "We Knew Them When". Bethesda Magazine & Bethesda Beat. Archived from the original on July 7, 2015. Retrieved August 14, 2015.
^"Disney Channel Stars". MailAMovie. August 2, 2020. Archived from the original on September 23, 2020. Retrieved August 3, 2020.
^Drew, Jonathan (January 6, 2019). "Soccer star Wayne Rooney charged with public intoxication". Associated Press. Archived from the original on January 7, 2019. Retrieved January 7, 2019. documents, which list Rooney as living in the capital suburb of Bethesda, Maryland...