Bethel is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

Polk County Polk County is the name of twelve counties in the United States, all except two named after president of the United States James Knox Polk: * Polk County, Arkansas * Polk County, Florida * Polk County, Georgia * Polk County, Iowa * Polk Count ...

Oregon Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idaho. T ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

at the base of the

Eola Hills The Eola Hills are a range of hills northwest of Salem, Oregon, United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It ...

in Plum Valley. Bethel is considered a

ghost town Ghost Town(s) or Ghosttown may refer to: * Ghost town, a town that has been abandoned Film and television * ''Ghost Town'' (1936 film), an American Western film by Harry L. Fraser * ''Ghost Town'' (1956 film), an American Western film by All ...

as the only remaining structure is a school, now serving as a church. The locale was named by the Rev. Glen O. Burnett for a Church of Christ in

Missouri Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee): Iowa to the north, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee to the east, Arkansas t ...

where he had served as pastor. Bethel is a common name for churches as it is a

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

word that means "house of god". After traveling with his family on the

Oregon Trail The Oregon Trail was a east–west, large-wheeled wagon route and emigrant trail in the United States that connected the Missouri River to valleys in Oregon. The eastern part of the Oregon Trail spanned part of what is now the state of Kans ...

, Burnett settled on a

Donation Land Claim The Donation Land Claim Act of 1850, sometimes known as the Donation Land Act, was a statute enacted by the United States Congress in late 1850, intended to promote homestead settlements in the Oregon Territory. It followed the Distribution-Preem ...

in 1846. Burnett later rode circuit to the surrounding area, preaching in nearby communities, including Rickreall.

History

Another settler, Dr. Nathaniel Hudson, came to the area in 1851 and founded a school, Bethel Academy, in 1852. Dr. Hudson moved to a new land claim in the

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

area in 1854 and the academy closed. With the departure of Dr. Hudson and the closing of his Academy, the continuing need for a school prompted the organizing of a replacement in 1855. A year later in response to their need for higher education, Bethel College was chartered by the Territorial Legislature

Oregon Territorial Legislature Oregon's Territorial Legislature was a bicameral legislative body created by the United States Congress in 1848 as the legislative branch of the government of the Oregon Territory. The upper chamber Council and lower chamber House of Representati ...

as one of the earliest colleges in the state. Bethel College. Pioneer

Jesse Applegate Jesse Applegate (July 5, 1811 – April 22, 1888) was an American pioneer who led a large group of settlers along the Oregon Trail to the Oregon Country. He was an influential member of the early government of Oregon, and helped establish the ...

, who was a friend of Burnett's from Missouri and who traveled in the same

wagon train ''Wagon Train'' is an American Western series that aired 8 seasons: first on the NBC television network (1957–1962), and then on ABC (1962–1965). ''Wagon Train'' debuted on September 18, 1957, and became number one in the Nielsen ratings ...

, was on the college's board of trustees. In 1861 Bethel College faced financial problems, the result of the widespread economic disruption caused by the Civil War. A Disciples of Christ group was planning a new college and had already obtained their land at Monmouth. After much negotiation, the two groups decided that Monmouth was a more advantageous location for a college, they had acquired more land there to work with, and had attracted more financial support. So the Monmouth group bought much of the physical assets of Bethel College and moved them to Monmouth. Bethel College ceased operations as an institution of higher education but kept the elementary and high schools, named them Bethel Institute, which was owned and operated by Bethel College. Bethel College still exists as a chartered college and is still the owner of the land and buildings of the school (now a church) at Bethel. Bethel College has never merged with Monmouth College or any other entity. It is still an independent, chartered institution of higher education. Over the years, Monmouth College has survived through several successive identities including Oregon Normal School and Oregon College of Education, to its present status as Western Oregon University.

Western Oregon University Western Oregon University (WOU) is a public university in Monmouth, Oregon. It was originally established in 1856 by Disciples of Christ pioneers as Monmouth University. Subsequent names included Oregon State Normal School, Oregon College of E ...

. The original college building in Bethel was eventually dismantled. and was replaced by the present building now occupied by Bethel Church. The first store in Bethel was built in 1855, and the post office followed in 1865. At one time the town had a

blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such as gates, gr ...

shop, carpentry shop, and a wagon shop. Bethel post office ran from 1865 to 1880. The town was located on the wagon road that went between Amity and Monmouth, but when a new narrow-gauge railway line was built in the area, through Amity, Dallas and

Independence Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the statu ...

, it bypassed Bethel and instead was routed through McCoy, a decision which contributed to Bethel's decline. In October 2013, the school's former auditorium, renovated two months earlier to become the Eola Hills Charter School within the Amity School District, burned down. The church building was not damaged.

Agriculture and viticulture

Today, the area is part of the Eola-Amity Hills AVA with many wineries and vineyards, including Bethel Heights Vineyard which was named after the area.John Winthrop Haeger ''Pacific Pinot Noir'' pg 51-53 University of California Press, Berkeley, CA 2008

Gallery

The Plum Valley area around Bethel. Image:Wvatbethel1.jpg Image:Wvatbethel2.jpg

References

External links

Historic images of Bethel
from Salem Public Library
Bethel Cemetery
{{Authority control Churches of Christ Ghost towns in Oregon Populated places established in 1846 Unincorporated communities in Polk County, Oregon 1865 establishments in Oregon Populated places established in 1865 Unincorporated communities in Oregon