Ephrata

Town in Lancaster County, southeast Pennsylvania; population (1990) 12,100. It is situated on Cocalico Creek, 27 km/17 mi southwest of Reading. It is a trading centre for produce and livestock grown in the area; there is also some light manufacturing.

The town was founded in 1732 by Johann Conrad Beissel and a group of German Seventh Day Baptists as a monastic community. In the mid 18th century the group built the medieval-style Ephrata Cloister and established mills, a school, and the Cloister Press, one of the most important and prolific in the Colonies. The Ephrata community was also noted for its crafts, especially weaving and pottery. Ten of its original buildings have been restored.

Ephrata

Town and administrative headquarters of Grant County, east-central Washington; population (1990) 5,300. It is located at the south end of the Grand Coulee Valley, 29 km/18 mi northwest of Moses Lake. Rich in springs, it is a fruit growing and commercial centre. The headquarters of the Columbia Basin Reclamation Project is here.

Ephrata was originally an American Indian, later a military, campground. After the Great Northern Railroad arrived in 1892, it became a cattle and sheep ranching centre. In 1906 it was the scene of the state's last great wild horse roundup.