Flyer Distribution Bethesda, MD

Bethesda, an unincorporated census-designated place, is located in southern Montgomery County, Maryland, USA, just northwest of Washington, D.C. The area is named after the Bethesda Meeting House, named after the Pool of Bethesda in Jerusalem. The community has several corporate and government headquarters, the National Institutes of Health's main campus, and Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. Bethesda has no defined boundaries as it is an unincorporated community. According to the latest U.S. census in 2020, Bethesda has a total population of 68,056. History of Bethesda, MD Bethesda is located in a region inhabited by the Piscataway and Nacotchtank tribes. It was first visited by European fur trader Henry Fleet, who later secured funding for another expedition to the area and was granted proprietary rights to 2,000 acres of land. The land grant to Henry Darnall in 1694 became the first in Bethesda, and tobacco farming was the primary way of life throughout the 1700s. Bethesda became a rural way station between 1805 and 1821 after the development of the Washington and Rockville Turnpike. The settlement grew around a store and tollhouse along the turnpike known as "Darcy's Store" and was renamed Bethesda in 1871 after the Bethesda Meeting House, a Presbyterian church built in 1820. Bethesda was a small crossroads village through the 19th century but grew in population after a streetcar line was established in 1890 and suburbanization increased. Bethesda became a key stopping point for the B & O railroad, and a storage yard and multiple sidings served industries. Bethesda planners grew the community with the transportation revolution in mind, becoming a primary urban core and employment center of southwestern Montgomery County. The 1984 expansion of Metrorail with a station in Bethesda led to further commercial and residential development. Bethesda has a rich history of mansions and estates, including several famous ones built along Rockville Pike.