Bethlehem Township is one of the seventeen townships

Civil township

A civil township is a widely used unit of local government in the United States, subordinate to, and geographic divisions of, a county. Specific responsibilities and the degree of autonomy vary based on each state. Civil townships are distinct from survey townships, but in states that have both,...

 of Stark County

Stark County, Ohio

Stark County is a county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2010 census, the population was 375,586. It is included in the Canton-Massillon, Ohio Metropolitan Statistical Area....

, Ohio

Ohio

Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. The 2000 census

United States Census, 2000

The Twenty-second United States Census, known as Census 2000 and conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States on April 1, 2000, to be 281,421,906, an increase of 13.2% over the 248,709,873 persons enumerated during the 1990 Census...

 found 5,650 people in the township, 4,210 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.

Geography

Located in the southwestern part of the county, it borders the following townships:

• Perry Township
  Perry Township, Stark County, Ohio
  Perry Township is one of the seventeen townships of Stark County, Ohio, United States. It is an urban township; the 2000 census found 29,167 people in the township.-Geography:Located in the western part of the county, it borders the following townships:...
  
   - north
• Canton Township
  Canton Township, Stark County, Ohio
  Canton Township is one of the seventeen townships of Stark County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 13,882 people in the township, 13,402 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.-Geography:...
  
   - northeast corner
• Pike Township
  Pike Township, Stark County, Ohio
  Pike Township is one of the seventeen townships of Stark County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 4,088 people in the township, 3,282 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.-Geography:...
  
   - east
• Lawrence Township, Tuscarawas County
  Lawrence Township, Tuscarawas County, Ohio
  Lawrence Township is one of the twenty-two townships of Tuscarawas County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 5,241 people in the township, 4,154 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.-Geography:...
  
   - southeast
• Franklin Township, Tuscarawas County
  Franklin Township, Tuscarawas County, Ohio
  Franklin Township is one of the twenty-two townships of Tuscarawas County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 4,244 people in the township, 1,934 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.-Geography:...
  
   - southwest
• Sugar Creek Township
  Sugar Creek Township, Stark County, Ohio
  Sugar Creek Township is one of the seventeen townships of Stark County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 6,740 people in the township, 2,944 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.-Geography:...
  
   - west
• Tuscarawas Township - northwest corner

Most of the village of Navarre

Navarre, Ohio

Navarre is a village in Stark County, Ohio, United States. The population was 1,440 at the 2000 census...

 is located in northwestern Bethlehem Township.

Name and history

Statewide, the only other Bethlehem Township is located in Coshocton County

Bethlehem Township, Coshocton County, Ohio

Bethlehem Township is one of the twenty-two townships of Coshocton County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 1,191 people in the township.-Geography:Located in the north central part of the county, it borders the following townships:...

.

Government

The township is governed by a three-member board of trustees, who are elected in November of odd-numbered years to a four-year term beginning on the following January 1. Two are elected in the year after the presidential election and one is elected in the year before it. There is also an elected township fiscal officer, who serves a four-year term beginning on April 1 of the year after the election, which is held in November of the year before the presidential election. Vacancies in the fiscal officership or on the board of trustees are filled by the remaining trustees.