[edit] History

According to Oregon Geographic Names, Beaverton got its name because of the settlement's proximity to a large body of water resulting from beaver dams.

The area of Tualatin Valley which became Beaverton was originally the home of a Native American tribe known as the Atfalati which settlers mispronounced as Tualatin. The Atfalati population dwindled in the latter part of the 18th century, and the prosperous tribe was no longer dominant in the area by the 19th century when settlers arrived.^[4]

[edit] 19th century

The natives had a village called Chakeipi, meaning Place of the Beaver, and early settlers referred to it as "Beaverdam". Early settlers include the Hall Family from Kentucky, the Denneys who lived on their claim near present-day Scholls Ferry Road and Hall Blvd, and Orin S. Allen, from western New York, who resided at SW Allen and Hall Blvd.^[4]

1847: Lawrence Hall (for whom Hall Boulevard is named) purchased 640 acres (2.6 km²) in Beaverdam and built a grist mill with his brother near present-day Walker Road. His was the first land claim in the area.
1849: Thomas Denney came to the area and built its first sawmill; Denny Road is named after him.
1860: A toll plank road from Portland to Beaverton was completed over a trail called Canyon Road.
1868: Joshua Welch, George Betts, Charles Angel, W.P. Watson, John Henry and other settlers of the area laid out what is now known as Beaverton hoping they could bring a railroad to an area once described as "mostly swamps & marshes connected by beaver dams to create what looked like a huge lake."
1872: Beaverton's first post office opened under George Betts, the first postmaster, in his general store. Betts Street, where the current post office now stands, is named in honor of him.
1893: The city of Beaverton, with a population of 400, was officially incorporated. Alonzo Cady, a local businessman, served as the first mayor.

[edit] 20th century

Beaverton was an early home to automobile dealerships. A Ford Motor Company dealership was established there in 1915; it was purchased by Guy Carr in 1923 and over the years Carr expanded it into several locations throughout Beaverton.

In the early 1920s, Beaverton was home to Premium Picture Productions, a movie studio which produced about fifteen films. This site was later converted into an airfield known as Watts Airport and thereafter as Bernard's Airport.

The town's first library opened in 1925. Originally on the second floor of the Cady building, it has moved repeatedly; in 2000 it was moved to its current location on Hall Boulevard and 5th.

In the 1980s a light rail system was proposed^[5] to connect Beaverton to downtown Portland, as part of Metro's plans for the region's transportation. In 1992, voters approved funding for Westside MAX; the project began construction in 1994 and was completed in 1998, with stations located at Millikan Way MAX station Merlo Road and Southwest 158th Avenue, Beaverton Creek, Beaverton Central, and the Beaverton Transit Center.

[edit] 21st century

In December 2004, the city and Washington County announced an "interim plan" which will lead to Beaverton becoming the second-largest city in Oregon, second only to Portland.^[6] The "interim" plan actually covers a period of more than ten years; from the county's perspective^[6], the plan supports its strategy of having cities and special districts provide urban services. From the city's perspective^{[citation needed]}, it supports its strategy of continued annexation, beginning with areas already surrounded by the city, which Oregon state law allows to be annexed without landowner approval. Nike led a legal and lobbying effort to resist the annexation.^[7] The lobbying effort succeeded quickly, with the Oregon Legislative Assembly enacting Senate Bill 887^[8] which prohibit Beaverton from annexing Nike without Nike's consent. Nike continued its legal efforts, which as of July 2006 has cost Beaverton taxpayers over $360,000.^[9]

The city and county also agreed to work on ending the "double taxation" of Beaverton property owners who subsidize urban services provided to residents of unincorporated area.

Several nearby unincorporated neighborhoods, even some considered Portland neighborhoods, are affected during the plan's first decade, including Cedar Hills, West Slope, Raleigh Hills and Garden Home. Property owned by Providence St. Vincent Medical Center, and Tektronix would also be affected.

Neighborhoods affected after the plan's first ten years include Bethany, Cedar Mill, and Aloha. If all areas covered by the plan were to be immediately incorporated into Beaverton, the city's present-day population would be 280,000.

Many of these neighborhoods actively oppose annexation because of Beaverton's higher taxation and controversial policing methods (including undercover seatbelt enforcement and photo radar). Court and electoral fights could delay Beaverton's annexation plans.

In 2006, the Murrayhill Little League baseball team qualified for the 2006 Little League World Series, the first Oregon team in 48 years to go that far. Murrayhill advanced to the semifinals before losing; the third-place game was rained out and not rescheduled. In addition, a Junior Softball team from Beaverton went to 2006 World Series in Kirkland, Washington, ending in sixth place.

[edit] Economy

Reser's Fine Foods, processor and distributor of fresh prepared foods, has headquartered in Beaverton since 1960. Leupold & Stevens, maker of rifle scopes and other specialty optics, has been located in Beaverton since 1968. Beaverton is home to the world headquarters of Nike, Inc. Its headquarters are located on an unincorporated area inside, but excluded from, Beaverton city limits. Cedar Hills Crossing is a shopping mall within the city of Beaverton.

As part of the Silicon Forest, Beaverton is the home to numerous technology organizations and companies.

Including:

Open Source Development Labs and the
Linux Technology Center of IBM (formerly Sequent Computer Systems).^[10]
Tektronix
Maxim Integrated Products

[edit] Geography

Greenway Park

Beaverton is located at 45°28′47″N, 122°48′36″W (45.479686, -122.809954)^[11].

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 16.3 sq mi (42.3 km²), none of which is covered with water.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^[1] of 2000, there were 76,129 people, 30,821 households, and 18,646 families residing in the city. The population density was 4,664.5/sq mi (1,801.1/km²). There were 32,500 housing units at an average density of 1,991.3/sq mi(768.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 78.31% White, 9.65% Asian, 1.74% Black or African American, 0.67% Native American, 0.36% Pacific Islander, 5.53% from other races, and 3.74% from two or more races. 11.12% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 30,821 households out of which 32.3% had children younger than age 18 living with them, 46.8% were married couples living together, 9.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.5% were non-families. 29.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 3.07.

In the city the population was spread out with 25.0% under the age of 18, 10.6% from 18 to 24, 35.2% from 25 to 44, 20.3% from 45 to 64, and 9.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 97.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.9 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $47,863, and the median income for a family was $60,289. Males had a median income of $41,683 versus $31,204 for females. The per capita income for the city was $25,419. About 5.0% of families and 7.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.5% of those under age 18 and 6.8% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Education

The public schools of Beaverton are part of the Beaverton School District. Private schools in the area include German American School, Holy Trinity School, Jesuit High School, Saint Cecilia Grade School, Southwest Christian School, Valley Catholic School, Valley Catholic Middle School, and WoodHaven School.

[edit] Colleges and universities

Cambridge College institute of technology

[edit] Sister cities

[edit] References

^ ^a ^b American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
^ US Board on Geographic Names. United States Geological Survey (2007-10-25). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
^ PSU:Population Research Center
^ ^a ^b Beaverton History. City of Beaverton. Retrieved on 2007-09-07.
^ Portland to Beaverton Light Rail System Environmental Impact Statement, Earth Metrics Inc., prepared for Metro (1985)
^ ^a ^b County Board Approves Interim Plan with Beaverton, a December 2004 article from the Washington County website
^ Statement By Nike Regarding The Recent Annexation Actions By The City Of Beaverton
^ Oregon State Bill 887 as enrolled from the Oregon Legislative Assembly website
^ Mayor blasts Nike: 'I'm tired of the bullying', a July 2006 article from the Beaverton Valley Times
^ developerWorks : Open source tutorials and projects
^ US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990. United States Census Bureau (2005-05-03). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.

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Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (September 2007)

[edit] External links

Beaverton, Oregon is at coordinates 45°28′47″N 122°48′36″W / 45.479686, -122.809954 (Beaverton, Oregon)Coordinates: 45°28′47″N 122°48′36″W / 45.479686, -122.809954 (Beaverton, Oregon)

v • d • e Municipalities and communities of Washington County, Oregon

County seat: Hillsboro

Cities	Banks \| Beaverton \| Cornelius \| Durham \| Forest Grove \| Gaston \| Hillsboro \| King City \| Lake Oswego \| North Plains \| Portland \| Sherwood \| Tigard \| Tualatin Wilsonville

CDPs	Aloha \| Cedar Hills \| Cedar Mill \| Garden Home-Whitford \| Metzger \| Oak Hills \| Raleigh Hills \| Rockcreek \| West Haven-Sylvan \| West Slope

Unincorporated communities	Bethany \| Bull Mountain \| Buxton \| Cherry Grove \| Gales Creek \| Helvetia \| Kinton \| Laurelwood \| Manning \| Orenco \| Progress \| Reedville \| Scholls \| Timber \| West Union