Bethania (Queensland)

Bethania is a suburb of Logan City, Queensland, Australia. It is situated on the main Beenleigh railway line and lies south of the Logan River. It occasionally suffers floods.A separate branch railway leaves the South Coast railway line at Bethania and runs to Beaudesert. It has been out of commission since August 2004.DemographicsIn the, Bethania recorded a population of 4,590 people, 53.3% female and 46.7% male. The median age of the Bethania population was 41 years, 4 years above the national median of 37. 68.7% of people living in Bethania were born in Australia. The other top responses for country of birth were England 6.6%, New Zealand 6%, Scotland 1.4%, Philippines 0.9%, Germany 0.9%. 86.9% of people spoke only English at home; the next most common languages were 0.8% Spanish, 0.5% German, 0.5% Hindi, 0.4% Tagalog, 0.3% Samoan.HistoryBethania was founded by Germans during the 1860s and is home to many different nationalities. By 1866 a small township had developed. It is believed the name is derived from Bethany, the biblical village in Israel.A Lutheran church was built in 1864 made from slabs on what is now the railway line. A cemetery was established beside the church with graves from 1866. In 1872 the present church was built close to the first church. The road to the church became known as Church Road.