Scenes From A Big Amish Auction (15 Photos)
These were taken at Yoder’s Consignment Auction, a big Amish-heavy event in northern Indiana. It’s held twice annually – the second Saturday in April and in September – not too far from Shipshewana, IN.
Jim Halverson was in attendance and shares some excellent photos (which, if you’ve been here awhile, you know is par for the course for Jim).
This was the simple “Sale Order” as listed on the Yoder’s auction FB page:
Sale Order
9am Wagon Loads of misc
Hog, dairy and farm equip, sporting goods and furniture, appliances, bikes, shop tools and lawn & garden
9:30 am horses and buggies
A lot of shots from the auction, and from the surrounding area showing people leaving and arriving.
I don’t know the exact numbers as to attendance, but I suppose it must easily be in the thousands.
To keep things simpler and better-organized, they’ve got separate areas for car and buggy parking.
And don’t forget bicycle parking:
At any Amish auction there is going to be some sort of food option. The truncated menu tells us that Elephant Ears and Slushies can be had here. I’ll take one of each!
Auctions are family events (like most Amish events).
Young couple checking out potential new wheels?
Pony team.
Leave your hat someplace you know you can find it.
Horses wait for their owners to conclude the day.
Thanks to Jim for another nice set of photos.
If you liked these, here are a few more related photo sets from Jim:
- 10 Views From Yoder’s Consignment Auction (September 2023)
- Buggy Shopping (17 Photos)
- Amish Auction In Central Michigan (12 Photos)
- An Old Order Mennonite Horse Auction – And Casket Shop (22 Photos)
- At A Swartzentruber Amish Auction (10 Photos)
Amish Auction
The 41st Annual Delaware Amish Parochial School Sale will be held Saturday October 18, 2025 at 8 AM – 9 PM. The auction is located a 3593 Yoder Drive Dover Delaware 19904. This is a very large event attended by 1000’s. Info about it can be found on FaceBook.
Knowing his subject
Dear Erik,
Thank you once again for these excellent photos by Jim Halverson. Mr. Halverson knows his subject well. In each photo there is always some revealing and pleasing aspect of the Old Order Amish way of life. I really enjoyed these photos, and am thankful to you, Erik, for posting them regularly.
Sincerely,
Larry Clarence Lewis
London, Ontario, Canada.
Terrible the horses are left hitched all day with no cover
That is terrible the horses are left hitched to the buggies for hours and hours,with no cover from sun or rain and no way to socialize with the other horses. Shameful. They ought to park the buggies, unhitch the horses, and turn them out into a field with several walk in shelters, covers from sun and rain, etc and get them when it’s time to go home. You can see them trying to socialize with each other while they remain hitched and left alone. Horses are a group animal. This is simply shameful and wrong. Why not start using an engine of some kind. Animals are beings that need basic consideration. Amish treat them cruelty as if they were machines (terrible treatment of horses and dogs)
I enjoyed viewing theses pictures. I’ve been twice in April in recent years and hope to go again next year. Besides all of these good views of different scenes at the auction, when I’ve been there have been many, many vendor booths/stands selling a variety of things. I’ve heard some locals in Shipshewana jokingly refer to the auction as “The Amish World’s Fair” and others term it “The Amish Circus”.
One year I attended, it rained most of the day and the parking area (pasture) for cars got very muddy and several were getting stuck. I think there was a man with a tractor there pulling cars out. I found a nearby Amish school with a well-graveled driveway, so parked there. Another year I parked at the Townline Mennonite Church across the road.