Bethany, Nebraska

Bethany is a neighborhood and former town in the northeast region of the city of Lincoln, Nebraska, United States.[2]

Bethany, Nebraska
Neighborhood
Cotner Boulevard in the Bethany neighborhood of Lincoln, NE
Bethany Location in Nebraska Bethany Location in the United States
Coordinates: Community 40°49′57″N 96°38′00″W
Country	United States
State	Nebraska
County	Lancaster
Incorporated	1890
Annexed by Lincoln, Nebraska	1922
Elevation	1,224 ft (373 m)
Time zone	UTC-6 (Central (CST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP code	68505
Area code(s)	402
FIPS code	31-04720
GNIS feature ID	827360[1]

History

In 1889, Nebraska Christian University was established east of University Place, a town east of Lincoln centered around Nebraska Wesleyan University.[3] The town was incorporated as Bethany Heights in 1890 and the college was renamed Cotner College.[3] The town was named after the biblical village of Bethany, Palestine.[4]

Bethany Heights did not enjoy the same success as Lincoln's other satellite communities.[5] In 1920, Bethany Heights reported a population of 1,078.[5] By comparison, University Place and College View, two other suburbs centered around religious colleges, reported populations of over 4,000 and 2,200 respectively in 1920.[5] Havelock, a suburb near Bethany, reported 3,600 residents in 1920.[5] Residents of Bethany Heights relied upon Lincoln for most services, including hospitals, lawyers, doctors, train depots, hotels, dry goods, and even cemeteries.[5] Due to this reliance, the town voted to be annexed as Bethany by the city of Lincoln in 1922.[3] However, the annexation did not come into effect until 1926 because its neighbor, University Place, had to be annexed first in order to create contiguous city limits.[3]

Unlike other Lincoln suburbs, such as Havelock, University Place, and College View, very little remains of the original town.[5] Cotner College was demolished in the early 1950s and the land on which it stood was divided into single-family residential lots.[5] The First State Bank of Bethany Heights is one of few landmarks from the original town and is not closely associated with the college or the town's foundation.[5]

See also

• Neighborhoods in Lincoln, Nebraska
• Union College (Nebraska)
• College View, Nebraska
• University of Nebraska–Lincoln

References

1. "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
2. U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Bethany, Nebraska
3. "Lincoln Lancaster County". University of Nebraska-Lincoln Virtual Nebraska. Retrieved 3 May 2015.
4. Fitzpatrick, Lillian L. (1960). Nebraska Place-Names. University of Nebraska Press. p. 91. ISBN 0-8032-5060-6. A 1925 edition is available for download at University of Nebraska—Lincoln Digital Commons.
5. "Beattie, James A., House". National Register of Historic Places.