Author: Erik Wesner

Erik Wesner is the creator of amishamerica.com, and author of Success Made Simple: An Inside Look At Why Amish Businesses Thrive. Erik began visiting Amish communities in 2004 – eventually meeting thousands of Amish families while selling books.

He began writing about the Amish on this website in 2006, and is often cited in national media, including USA Today, The New York Times, and others on a wide range of Amish topics. A native of North Carolina, Erik has visited dozens of Amish communities across the country, and loves spending time with Amish friends and discovering new Amish places.

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Inside A Loooow-Priced Amish Home (14 Photos)

Inside A Loooow-Priced Amish Home (14 Photos)

You probably know by now that if you see “zero” bathrooms, that means this is going to be a plainer Amish abode. And that’s the case with this New York Amish home, which has a quite rustic look to it but appears cozy inside. It also comes with a rather low price tag, which we’ll get to at the end. The community is in western…

An Egg Thief Has Plagued Missouri Amish Farmers For Years

An Egg Thief Has Plagued Missouri Amish Farmers For Years

Eggs are disappearing in a major way in one Missouri Amish community. From a letter-to-the-editor in the Webster County Citizen: There is something the community needs to be aware of … someone is stealing eggs, chickens, along Highway C and some of the side roads. That may sound minor to most people, but when you make a living off your eggs as the Amish do,…

Amish Youth: Uplifting Singing Around The Table

Amish Youth: Uplifting Singing Around The Table

We’re not told where this singing video takes place, but the dress is Midwestern Amish. We see numerous Amish young people sitting around the table at what looks to be a youth gathering. This is a relatively new video, posted this past November. You can see a wringer washer – are we in a basement, or some kind of utility room? I see some board…

The Old Order Mennonite Population (Horse & Buggy): 38,000+ in The US, Canada & Belize

The Old Order Mennonite Population (Horse & Buggy): 38,000+ in The US, Canada & Belize

The Young Center at Elizabethtown College provides annual Amish population numbers, with totals for each state, province and so on. But they also have figures for the Old Order Mennonite population, a group similar to Amish in many ways (and in some cases living next door to them as neighbors). According to their latest tallies, the horse-and-buggy Old Order Mennonites number over 38,000 across their…

Elam Stoltzfus: Rediscovering the Ausbund (Part 4)

Elam Stoltzfus: Rediscovering the Ausbund (Part 4)

We finish out the Rediscovering the Ausbund series with part 4 of 4 today. Thanks to Elam Stoltzfus for sharing with us. This series was originally published in Plain Values magazine. If you missed them, here are parts one, two, and three. Music, hymns and words are ingrained at an early age; indeed there is abundant evidence that babies can hear music before birth. Music…

Look Inside an Amish Mobile Home (15 Photos)

Look Inside an Amish Mobile Home (15 Photos)

Here’s one that’s not too common – a mobile home put up for sale by an Amish family. Amish do sometimes live in mobile homes, especially young families starting out. This one is located in Pomeroy, Ohio (Meigs County). I hadn’t heard much if anything of Meigs County, and for understandable reasons. The location is well off the beaten Amish path, lying on the West…

Ohio’s Best Sandwich Comes From Holmes County Amish Country

Ohio’s Best Sandwich Comes From Holmes County Amish Country

This is a fun story which made me crave an Amish Country favorite food. Food and Wine magazine decided to pick each state’s best sandwich. Ohio’s winner is the hot bologna and Swiss on a bun. The publication sampled this at a somewhat overlooked spot in Holmes County called Trail. Trail is known for its “Trail bologna” named for the little hamlet lying between Walnut…

Study: 75% Of Amish Would Reject COVID-19 Vaccine

Study: 75% Of Amish Would Reject COVID-19 Vaccine

A new study with COVID implications suggests that acceptance of vaccines by Amish in one of the largest communities (Holmes County) has plummeted in the past 10 years. It also finds that Amish would refuse COVID vaccination at a rate of almost 10-to-1. The key findings: The response rate was 39%. Among 391 respondents, 59% did not vaccinate their children, compared to only 14% that…

Amish Cook: Valentine’s Supper & Secret Sisters

In her latest column, Amish Cook Gloria Yoder describes the tradition of “Secret Sisters” in her community. This was tied to a Valentine Supper which is something you’ll see among Amish. Gloria first describes the Secret Sisters custom: Last night I was the recipient of the absolute kindness of the dear youth girls in our church. Really now, they all made a huge splash for…

Winter In The New Wilmington Amish Community (20 Photos)

Winter In The New Wilmington Amish Community (20 Photos)

How about some winter shots from the New Wilmington, Pennsylvania Amish community? This is one of my favorite Amish settlements, dating back to my first visit one autumn going on 15 years ago. While the sights I saw then were of hues that matched more closely to the distinct brown-topped buggies of the local Amish, the wintry images in these photos better reflect our current…