Amish Woman, 22, Killed In Afternoon Buggy Wreck; Police Say Driver Was Asleep At The Wheel (Michigan)

Amish Woman, 22, Killed In Afternoon Buggy Wreck; Police Say Driver Was Asleep At The Wheel (Michigan)

ByErik Wesner

Days after a wreck left two Amish women in critical condition in southern Michigan, another Amish woman is the victim in the state, this time in a deadly crash. A 22-year-old Amish woman was killed Thursday afternoon after a vehicle struck her horse-drawn buggy in Sanilac County. Michigan State Police say the driver reportedly fell asleep at the wheel. From WNEM: SANILAC COUNTY, Mich. (WNEM) –…

Amish Boy May Have To Testify Twice In Ohio Home Invasion Case — After Defendant Fires His Lawyer

Amish Boy May Have To Testify Twice In Ohio Home Invasion Case — After Defendant Fires His Lawyer

ByErik Wesner

It’s been nearly one year since an Amish family’s home and cabinet business in Geauga County, Ohio was invaded and robbed. In it, an Amish man was brutally assaulted, and the perpetrators attempted to kidnap his young son. In a new report following a court hearing yesterday we learn that the taxi driver accused of helping plan the crime will no longer stand trial alongside…

Amish Mothers Are “Not Against The Vaccine,” Says Midwife Seeking To Give Them Measles Shots

Amish Mothers Are “Not Against The Vaccine,” Says Midwife Seeking To Give Them Measles Shots

ByErik Wesner
2 Comments

Roberta Devers, a midwife of 38 years who serves many Amish mothers in Lancaster County, wants Pennsylvania to let midwives give the measles vaccine. But that’s something state law does not currently allow. Devers made the request in an interview with 6abc Action News published yesterday. On Monday, the Pennsylvania Department of Health announced the state has passed 1,000 measles cases this year. Lancaster County…

A Lancaster County Fire Hall Served Over 1,000 Amish Wedding Dinners In One Day

A Lancaster County Fire Hall Served Over 1,000 Amish Wedding Dinners In One Day

ByErik Wesner
1 Comment

A Lancaster County, Pennsylvania fire station served over 1,000 Amish wedding dinners on Saturday. It was the 16th year the Intercourse Fire Company has held the fundraiser, which ran from noon until the food sold out. This was another in the long tradition of volunteer fire companies in the area, many of which have heavy Amish and Mennonite representation, funding themselves through benefit events. The…

This Mississippi Amish Farm Has 86 Acres, A Pond & Three Family Businesses (32 Photos)

This Mississippi Amish Farm Has 86 Acres, A Pond & Three Family Businesses (32 Photos)

ByErik Wesner

This is our third look this year at an Amish property in the Randolph community of Pontotoc County, Mississippi. Back in April we toured a 54-acre homestead with a furniture shop, and in June we looked at another home on 45 acres. At that time, I asked whether the community might be disbanding, seeing so many homes go up for sale (four at the time)…

2 Amish Women Airlifted In Critical Condition After SUV Rear-Ends Their Buggy (Michigan)

2 Amish Women Airlifted In Critical Condition After SUV Rear-Ends Their Buggy (Michigan)

ByErik Wesner
1 Comment

Sadly, southern Michigan has seen another bad buggy accident. Two Amish women from Montgomery, Michigan, ages 50 and 19, were airlifted from the scene after an SUV rear-ended their buggy Monday morning in Hillsdale County. Both are in critical condition. From WILX: The crash happened around 9:15 a.m. on Territorial Road near Mead Road in Camden Township, according to police. Troopers from the Jackson post…

Fire & Explosion Destroy Popular Michigan Amish Creamery

Fire & Explosion Destroy Popular Michigan Amish Creamery

ByErik Wesner
1 Comment

Another popular Amish business has been lost to fire. A blaze and subsequent explosion on Saturday, October 3 destroyed The Farmers’ Creamery in Mio, Michigan, an Amish-owned creamery and store whose dairy products are sold in grocery stores across the state. The building is a total loss, but thankfully no major injuries were reported. Here’s what happened, via 9and10news: The Tri-Town Fire Department was dispatched…

Amish Breeder Who Killed 4 Unsold Puppies Gets 7 Years Probation, No Jail Time

Amish Breeder Who Killed 4 Unsold Puppies Gets 7 Years Probation, No Jail Time

ByErik Wesner

A Lancaster County Amish dog breeder who killed four unsold Sheepadoodle puppies in 2023 has been sentenced to seven years of probation, and no jail time. John S. Stoltzfus Jr., 48, of New Holland, pleaded guilty on September 24 to four felony counts of aggravated cruelty to animals and four misdemeanor counts of cruelty to animals, CBS 21 reports. As noted in our first post…

20 Years After The Nickel Mines Amish School Shooting, A Girl’s Parents Still Forgive “Again And Again”

20 Years After The Nickel Mines Amish School Shooting, A Girl’s Parents Still Forgive “Again And Again”

ByErik Wesner
1 Comment

It’s hard to believe it’s been 20 years since the events of October 2, 2006, when a mentally disturbed milk truck driver entered the West Nickel Mines school in Lancaster County and took five Amish girls’ lives. I happened to be on vacation at the time, and still remember how I learned about what happened – seeing the front page news complete with photo of…

An Amish Caravan Is On A 30-Mile Journey From Lancaster County To A Historic Homestead

An Amish Caravan Is On A 30-Mile Journey From Lancaster County To A Historic Homestead

ByErik Wesner
6 Comments

A few dozen Amish people set out by horse and wagon from a Leacock Township farm in Lancaster County on Thursday, on a commemorative journey. They’re headed about 30 miles north to the Nicholas Stoltzfus Homestead in Wyomissing, Berks County – a two-day trip with an overnight campout along the way. LNP | LancasterOnline reported from the start of the trek, a mile or so…

Report: Amish Acres Owner Has Used 15 Aliases; Has “Laundry List” Of Prior Charges & Convictions

Report: Amish Acres Owner Has Used 15 Aliases; Has “Laundry List” Of Prior Charges & Convictions

ByErik Wesner

We’ve been following the story of Amish Acres, in Nappanee, Indiana, and its repeatedly delayed full re-opening, for some time now. The latest stage saw the property being purchased by a man named Brad Juneau, who took it over in October 2025, pledging to return it to something like its previous form. But a full reopening was delayed multiple times for various reasons, and last…

6 Amish Habits That Cut $400 a Month From Your Bills

6 Amish Habits That Cut $400 a Month From Your Bills

ByErik Wesner
3 Comments

If you’re like me, household bills have a way of creeping up on you. A few dollars here, a subscription there…and a year later your monthly tab has ballooned – without any big obvious things having changed. I’m always careful not to recommend “just copy what the Amish do.” There are plenty of problems with that advice, broadly speaking, and Amish communities and families can…

Illinois Is America’s #10 Amish State — Here Are Its 10 Biggest Communities

Illinois Is America’s #10 Amish State — Here Are Its 10 Biggest Communities

ByErik Wesner

Illinois is home to America’s tenth-largest Amish population. Over 9,000 Amish live in around 20 settlements across the state, though more than six in ten of them live in just one community. These ten communities are the largest in Illinois, based on the most current Amish population estimates. Population numbers via Young Center for Anabaptist & Pietist Studies at Elizabethtown College (source link at bottom)….

This Pennsylvania Amish Home Has Floors So Glossy They Shimmer (20 Photos)

This Pennsylvania Amish Home Has Floors So Glossy They Shimmer (20 Photos)

ByErik Wesner
1 Comment

This week’s Amish home is located in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. It’s our second look at a home in this area this year, after this eight-bedroom, one-bathroom home back in February. This one is a bit smaller, but not by much. It has six bedrooms and (once again) just one bathroom. It’s a good size and has what the listing calls “oversized” rooms. It’s 3,150 square feet on a…

Sheriff Asks Public’s Help To Find Runaway Amish Horse — May Be “Hung Up With Its Harness”

Sheriff Asks Public’s Help To Find Runaway Amish Horse — May Be “Hung Up With Its Harness”

ByErik Wesner

The Grant County, Wisconsin Sheriff’s Office is asking the public to watch out for a runaway Amish horse. The horse got loose with its harness still on, and may be stuck somewhere on private property. From WFRV: According to a social media post, a brown Amish horse with its harness on got loose on Wednesday, September 23, and is currently missing. The Sheriff’s Office alert…

“Old Fashion Days” Draws Big Amish Crowd In Rentown, Indiana (16 Photos)

“Old Fashion Days” Draws Big Amish Crowd In Rentown, Indiana (16 Photos)

ByErik Wesner
2 Comments

Jim Halverson is back with another set of photos taking you inside a fun Amish event. These are from the recent Rentown Old Fashion Days in northern Indiana. The event brings together Amish families and others for a day of antique machinery demonstrations, food, vendors, and other old-fashioned activities. Rentown is a small Amish area between Nappanee and Bremen. The name is probably best known…

Lovina Eicher: Dating In My Amish Community “Not Like” How Lovina Zook Describes It

Lovina Eicher: Dating In My Amish Community “Not Like” How Lovina Zook Describes It

ByErik Wesner
1 Comment

There are currently two quite well-known Lovinas of an Amish background. Lovina Zook grew up Swartzentruber Amish before leaving the community several years ago. She has since become a social media star for her videos sharing Amish-style cooking recipes (and I’d say for her on-screen persona maybe just as much). We had a look at her online influencer career here several weeks ago. But well…

Scenes From A Firehouse Fish Fry That Drew Hundreds Of Amish (14 Photos)

Scenes From A Firehouse Fish Fry That Drew Hundreds Of Amish (14 Photos)

ByErik Wesner
2 Comments

Jim Halverson checks back in with some scenes from an Amish fish fry that took place last weekend in Topeka, Indiana. I’m calling it an “Amish” fish fry here – for reasons that should be apparent – but officially, it was the Topeka Fire Department Fish Fry & Bake Sale. This is a heavily-Amish area, and so it makes sense that most of those in…

This Amish Shop Went From One Hay Wagon In 1994 To 22,000 Square Feet

This Amish Shop Went From One Hay Wagon In 1994 To 22,000 Square Feet

ByErik Wesner
2 Comments

In today’s guest post, Fred Hendricks shares a closer look at Weaver Wagons, an Ohio Amish-owned wagon and carriage business. Ervin Weaver could not have envisioned the success of this venture when he built the first wagon in 1994 – simple, but quality flatbed to haul hay. Ervin and his family operated a medium sized dairy farm along with other livestock near Dalton, Ohio. The…

Vaccines, Natural Remedies, Trust In God: 5 Lancaster Amish Parents On The Measles Outbreak

Vaccines, Natural Remedies, Trust In God: 5 Lancaster Amish Parents On The Measles Outbreak

ByErik Wesner

Adding another layer to the ongoing measles story, Amish parents in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania have spoken to local station CBS 21 about their families’ vaccination decisions. Unsurprisingly, they don’t all agree on how to approach the outbreak, and vaccination in general. Grace Miller knocked on doors and spoke with about 10 Amish residents in the heart of the community (Bird-in-Hand and Intercourse areas). About half…

This Tennessee Amish Home Packs A Lot Into Just 768 Square Feet (31 Photos)

This Tennessee Amish Home Packs A Lot Into Just 768 Square Feet (31 Photos)

ByErik Wesner
7 Comments

I’ll start by saying that I love this week’s home. Now, I’m not saying I’d love to live there (let’s just say it’s “very Amish”). But as far as visual appeal of an Amish property goes, this is one of my favorites we’ve seen. Why? One reason is clear without even looking too close at the details: its vibrant color. Reds, blues, purples, set off against warm browns…

The Things That Make You Stop & Look Twice At An Amish Auction (15 Photos)

The Things That Make You Stop & Look Twice At An Amish Auction (15 Photos)

ByHaley Straw
9 Comments

Today we’re back with the follow-up to last week’s piece by Haley Straw, “An Amish Department Store Without Walls.” As Haley explains, you never quite know what might catch your eye at an Amish auction. By the time I’d been to the Jamesport (Missouri) Amish School Auction a few times, I had a better idea of what to expect—or at least I thought I did….

This Amish Store Burned To The Ground In April. Just 51 Days Later, It Was Back In Business

This Amish Store Burned To The Ground In April. Just 51 Days Later, It Was Back In Business

ByErik Wesner
1 Comment

The Amish-owned Rustic Ridge Variety Store burned to the ground back in April in a community in Lewis County, Missouri. While it’s hardly a surprise when an Amish community quickly gets on the job of cleaning up and rebuilding, this one seemed ahead of even a typical schedule. Less than a week later came news that the new store had already been framed and was…

After The Bible, This Is One Of The Most Important Books In Amish Homes. It’s Getting A New Translation

After The Bible, This Is One Of The Most Important Books In Amish Homes. It’s Getting A New Translation

ByErik Wesner
2 Comments

Martyrs Mirror, a massive tome telling the stories of 16th-century Anabaptist martyrs, along with earlier Christian ones, is one of the most important books in Amish homes. Now it’s getting a new translation – this time straight from the 1685 Dutch, replacing English that dates to 1886. Hat tip to Al in KY who brought this story in Anabaptist World to my attention. In it,…

8 Amish Parenting Habits That Raise Grounded, Hardworking Children

8 Amish Parenting Habits That Raise Grounded, Hardworking Children

ByErik Wesner
6 Comments

To generalize for a moment: Amish children tend to leave a positive impression. Visitors come away remarking how well-behaved they are, how respectful they are when around adults, even how they can seem older than they actually are. The explanation you often hear is strictness. There’s something to that. Amish parents use traditional forms of discipline. But that’s not the whole story. There are other…

The Amish Now Live In Mexico: 5 Takeaways From The 2026 Amish Population Numbers

The Amish Now Live In Mexico: 5 Takeaways From The 2026 Amish Population Numbers

ByErik Wesner
7 Comments

The new Amish population figures are just out from the Young Center, and as we always do, let’s have a look at what’s new in the data. I pulled out 5 noteworthy findings from the new info which we’ll take a look at one-by-one below. But first, just to set the table: the Young Center puts this data out once per year, relying on a…

Study: Only 154 People Have Joined the Amish in Nearly a Century

Study: Only 154 People Have Joined the Amish in Nearly a Century

ByErik Wesner
10 Comments

It seems there’s no shortage of curiosity about joining the Amish – especially given the recent “Suddenly Amish” television program. We’ve also covered the topic fairly often over the years here. One thing has been consistently true: while joining the Amish fascinates a fair number of people, it’s simply not that common, for reasons we’ve gone into before. Those include cultural differences, misperceptions or wrong…

A Visit To The Amish Of Prince Edward Island, Canada (16 Photos)

A Visit To The Amish Of Prince Edward Island, Canada (16 Photos)

ByErik Wesner
6 Comments

Judy Stavisky, author of In Plain View: The Daily Lives of Amish Women, shares her recent visit to an Amish community on Prince Edward Island, Canada, with us today. All photos in this post by Judy Stavisky. “Would you like to join us for a bowl of ice cream? We churned it ourselves.” A soft voice from behind a thin blue curtain invited us inside—a…

An Amish School Auction 7,500 Feet Up In Colorado (16 Photos)

An Amish School Auction 7,500 Feet Up In Colorado (16 Photos)

ByErik Wesner

So here’s something you don’t see every day – an Amish benefit auction held at over 7,500 feet, in country with vast views as far as the eye can see. Reader Alan LaFon checks in from an Amish part of America we don’t often hear too much from. These photos come from the annual La Jara Amish School Consignment Auction, held each July in Conejos…

7 Ways Amish Families Cut $350 a Month Off the Grocery Bill

7 Ways Amish Families Cut $350 a Month Off the Grocery Bill

ByErik Wesner
4 Comments

Grocery prices are on a lot of people’s minds lately, and for good reason. The USDA’s moderate-cost food plan has a family of four at around $1,385 a month as of this writing. Scale that up to a household of ten mouths to feed, and you’re well past $2,500. Why do I say ten? Well, that’s an average-sized Amish family – two parents and eight…

The Amish “Black Box” Phone: The Device They Built to Keep Big Tech Out

The Amish “Black Box” Phone: The Device They Built to Keep Big Tech Out

ByErik Wesner
2 Comments

Looking at its name alone, the Amish Black Box Phone has an air of secrecy or mystery to it. Is it some sort of clandestine Amish spy-ops device? A tool meant for conveying bad news? Of course, many of us will connect “black box” with the recording devices used to record communication in plane crashes, another morbid association. But it’s none of those things. Rather,…

5 Things You Should Never Say To An Amish Person (Or Should You?)

5 Things You Should Never Say To An Amish Person (Or Should You?)

ByErik Wesner
15 Comments

So I couldn’t resist commenting on this one. You may have come across slideshow-style “listicle” posts on mass media sites like MSN or AOL. I’ve been seeing a lot of them lately about the Amish (sometimes they link to this website as a source, so no complaints there). Things like “10 surprising technologies the Amish use” or “The 15 largest Amish communities”. Often enough, the…

Bread Soup, Oyster Stew & More: Favorite Dishes From My Ohio Amish Community

Bread Soup, Oyster Stew & More: Favorite Dishes From My Ohio Amish Community

ByErik Wesner
10 Comments

Nora Kurtz is a member of a Geauga County, Ohio Amish church. Today she shares some favorite dishes from her childhood – and some she still loves today, including bread soup and more. Anyone who lives in or around a large Amish community is probably going to be at least somewhat familiar with “Amish food”. Fried chicken, stuffing, mashed potatoes, creamed vegetables, pies and puddings…

A Return To Virginia’s Oldest Amish Community — And The Woman Who Left Something Beautiful Behind (15 Photos)

A Return To Virginia’s Oldest Amish Community — And The Woman Who Left Something Beautiful Behind (15 Photos)

ByErik Wesner
3 Comments

Reader Shawn has been visiting the Amish community at Pearisburg, Virginia for over a decade now. The first visit of Shawn’s we saw here was back in 2014, followed by a return in 2016 to check on the newly opened Walker Valley Market. I’ve made a couple of visits myself – one on a rainy February day in 2020, and another in December 2020 when…

The 10 Biggest Amish Communities (2026)

The 10 Biggest Amish Communities (2026)

ByErik Wesner
37 Comments

Four of them are in Indiana. Two apiece in Pennsylvania and Ohio. And one each in Illinois and Missouri. The list of the top 10 largest Amish settlements doesn’t change much from year-to-year. These communities generally have similar steady growth. And relatively few people leaving. Still, I like to do an annual update on the largest communities, with the latest figures. Update 2026: The new…

4-Year-Old Amish Boy Was Crossing The Road To A Nearby Farm When A Tractor-Trailer Struck & Killed Him

4-Year-Old Amish Boy Was Crossing The Road To A Nearby Farm When A Tractor-Trailer Struck & Killed Him

ByErik Wesner

Yet another tragic accident out of the Lancaster County community. This one happened a week ago, with new details emerging recently. A four-year-old Amish boy was killed by a tractor-trailer in southern Chester County, Pennsylvania last month. The child was walking to a farm across the road to help with farm work, according to state police. The crash happened around 12:25 p.m. on September 24…