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All the United States Pennsylvania Ephrata The Ephrata Cloister

The Ephrata Cloister

What looks like a simple quaint estate in rural Pennsylvania was in the 18th century home to a small monastic community.

Ephrata, Pennsylvania

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Nic Gusset
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Residential buildings at Ephrata Cloister.   Doug Kerr/CC BY-SA 2.0
Residential buildings at Ephrata Cloister.   Doug Kerr/CC BY-SA 2.0
Interiors of the dormitories where members lived.   Jerermy T. Hetzel/CC BY 2.0
Bake house and kitchen.   Esther Westerveld/CC BY 2.0
Sleeping room. [2013 or 2014]   donnatalarico / Atlas Obscura User
  Gavin / Atlas Obscura User
Lanterns in the meeting room   JoZondory / Atlas Obscura User
  lemieuxruibal / Atlas Obscura User
Ephrata Cloisters Cemetery   JoZondory / Atlas Obscura User
Work space at Ephrata.   Doug Kerr/CC BY-SA 2.0
  JoZondory / Atlas Obscura User
  lemieuxruibal / Atlas Obscura User
[2013 or 2014]   donnatalarico / Atlas Obscura User
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About

In the middle of the 18th-century, a group of nearly 300 men and women in rural Pennsylvania retreated from their material lives and became part of the Ephrata Cloister, a religious community founded by a German immigrant named Conrad Beissel.

Beissel, a baker who was also a religious philosopher, left his homeland in 1720 when his ideas clashed with those of the German church and sought refuge in Pennsylvania. Here too, his radical thoughts about forms of worship became a cause of dissent at the new congregation.

In 1732, when he moved to the Cocalico region of Pennsylvania to live like a hermit, his followers or religious ‘solitaries’ joined him there and the Ephrata community came into existence.

It began as a small hermitage but soon grew in size and in 1735, Kedar, the first large building on the premises was constructed. Members lived in spartan dormitories and followed a strict daily timetable. While many of the members were celibate, a number of families also lived on the property, which soon extended across 250 acres.

Meditation and prayer were an integral part of days at the Cloister, as were chores, farming, and upkeep of the property. The group became well-known for its acapella music and German calligraphy. A fully functioning publishing center, complete with a paper mill, printing office, and bookbinding operation, was established on the premises.

Beissel’s death in 1768 triggered the slow decline of the Ephrata way of life, and his successor Peter Miller struggled to attract new followers and keep the movement alive. The remaining members formed the German Seventh Day Baptist Church and the buildings on the premises were repurposed and modified to serve new resident families. 

In 1941, the structures of the Cloister were taken over by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the original buildings were restored.

Today, visitors to the Cloister can walk through the once self-reliant property and see the restored interiors of the dormitories and workspaces, as well as Beissel’s house, to get a sense of its unique residents and their secluded lifestyle.

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Religion Religious Parks Monks Sacred Spaces

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Note it's a $10 admission (for adults, $6.00 for children) and they are only open Thursday through Sundays.

Community Contributors

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alleywaykid

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Blindcolour, rebelx, Meg, Kavya Ram Mohan...

  • Blindcolour
  • rebelx
  • Meg
  • Kavya Ram Mohan
  • JoZondory
  • lemieuxruibal
  • Gavin
  • donnatalarico

Published

March 8, 2017

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  • https://ruins.wordpress.com/2008/06/29/weird-as-a-wizard-notes-from-kelpiuss-cave/
  • http://www.ephratacloister.org/history.htm
  • https://books.google.com/books?id=EdYWCZDmghAC&printsec=frontcover&dq=ephrata+cloister&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi378K0lsXSAhWIOBoKHXu_AaMQ6AEIGjAA#v=onepage&q&f=false
The Ephrata Cloister
632 W Main St
Ephrata, Pennsylvania
United States
40.181499, -76.19267
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Nearby Places

Albert Glatz Tobacco Shop

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Photo of Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania

United States

Places 417
Stories 28

Nearby Places

Albert Glatz Tobacco Shop

Lititz, Pennsylvania

miles away

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miles away

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miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania

United States

Places 417
Stories 28

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