Ephraim is a city in Sanpete County,

Utah Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...

, United States. The population was 5,611 at the 2020 census, making it the largest city in Sanpete County. It is the location of

Snow College Snow College is a Public college, public community college in Ephraim, Utah. It offers certificates and associate degrees along with bachelor's degrees in music, software engineering, and nursing. Snow College is part of the Utah System of High ...

and is located along U.S. Route 89.

History

The first settlement at Ephraim was made in 1854. A post office called Ephraim has been in operation since 1856. The town was named after

Ephraim Ephraim (; , in pausa: ''ʾEp̄rāyīm'') was, according to the Book of Genesis, the second son of Joseph ben Jacob and Asenath, as well as the adopted son of his biological grandfather Jacob, making him the progenitor of the Tribe of Ephrai ...

of the Old Testament.

Geography

Ephraim is located in the Sanpete Valley, on the east side of the San Pitch River. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the city has a total area of 3.6 square miles (9.2 km²), all land.

Demographics

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 4,505 people, 1,128 households, and 753 families residing in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was 1,262.4 people per square mile (487.2/km²). There were 1,275 housing units at an average density of 357.3 per square mile (137.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 89.23%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.38%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.38% Native American, 1.29% Asian, 0.53%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 6.86% from other races, and 1.33% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 9.86% of the population. There were 1,128 households, out of which 38.7% had children under 18 living with them, 55.8% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 7.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.2% were non-families. 14.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years or older. The average household size was 3.59 people, and the average family size was 3.71 people. In the city, the population was spread out, with 24.9% under 18, 42.4% from 18 to 24, 14.0% from 25 to 44, 12.3% from 45 to 64, and 6.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 20 years. For every 100 females, there were 80.9 males. For every 100 females aged 18 and over, there were 73.3 males. The median income for a household in the city was $28,318, and the median income for a family was $35,568. Males had a median income of $28,421 versus $21,042 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the city was $9,624. About 12.3% of families and 31.0% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 13.0% of those under age 18 and 7.8% of those aged 65 or over.

Education

Ephraim is located in the South Sanpete School District, and has Ephraim Elementary School and Ephraim Middle School. High school students attend Manti High School in nearby Manti. It is also the location of

, which was founded in 1888 as the LDS Sanpete Stake Academy. It was later renamed Snow Academy in honor of Erastus Snow and his distant cousin, LDS president, Lorenzo Snow, and finally, to Snow College in 1923. Ownership of the college was transferred to Utah in 1932. Current enrollment is around 5,900, some of whom attend the Richfield campus.

Utah State University Utah State University (USU or Utah State) is a public university, public land grant colleges, land-grant research university with its main campus in Logan, Utah, United States. Founded in 1888 under the Morrill Land-Grant Acts as Utah's federal ...

operates a branch campus in Ephraim that offers Bachelors's and Graduate Degrees.

Climate

According to the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

system, Ephraim has a

semi-arid climate A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of se ...

, abbreviated "BSk" on climate maps. The data below are from the Western Regional Climate Center over the years 1949 to 2016.

Notable people

* Jon Cox, political advisor and former member of the Utah House of Representatives * Linnie Findlay, historian * Kay Mortensen, retired American professor * Richard Nibley, violinist, composer, and educator * Matt Warner, outlaw, rancher, cowboy and lawman

References

External links

Official website
{{authority control Cities in Utah Cities in Sanpete County, Utah Populated places established in 1854 1854 establishments in Utah Territory