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 An Amish “Baby Farm” Home (26 Photos)

Inside An Amish “Baby Farm” Home (26 Photos)

I hadn’t heard the term “baby farm” before coming across it in this listing, and I’m not sure if the Amish would use it themselves (I doubt it). But that’s how this home, one of the seven Hillsboro, KY Amish homes for sale, is described. It looks like “baby farm” might just refer to its size – on a 21-acre parcel of land, it’s not…

Ira Wagler on Broken Roads: Returning To My Amish Father

Ira Wagler on Broken Roads: Returning To My Amish Father

Ira Wagler‘s best-selling 2011 memoir Growing Up Amish told the story of his life as a young man, and his eventual decision to leave the Amish behind. Broken Roads: Returning To My Amish Father is his just-released follow-up. It covers subsequent events in his life, and in particular, his relationship with his father, David L. Wagler. Among David’s accomplishments, he was co-founder of the Amish…

Amish Returning COVID-19 Stimulus Checks

Amish Returning COVID-19 Stimulus Checks

It’s just a little detail at the very end of this story, on Amish in Maine and coronavirus. But worth drawing attention to. This is the Unity community: They also added, they’ve been receiving Stimulus checks but they will not accept them and those will be returned to the Federal Government. The Amish don’t accept direct government aid as they like to maintain their independence…

Slice Of Amish Life: Disembarking In Portland

Slice Of Amish Life: Disembarking In Portland

This photo shows Amish people getting off an Amtrak train in Portland, Oregon. In states without Amish settlements (like Oregon), public transit stations are among the few places you’re likely to see Amish folks (here’s another example from Alabama). This shot, taken in 2011, captures a moment – perhaps we’re witnessing that happy relief at the end of a leg of a long trip. It’s…

“An Amishman’s Guide To Computer Lingo”

“Modem” and “Log on” are my favorites. I came across this old Facebook post by Sol’s in Berlin, a store in the heart of Holmes County, sharing the “Amishman’s Guide to Computer Lingo“. I’m not sure who the original author is, but this appeared in the Vendor, a Plain community newspaper. It was passed on to Sol’s by one of their Amish employees: One of…

6 Lehman’s Products Used By The Amish

6 Lehman’s Products Used By The Amish

As we learned in last year’s post on 5 interesting facts about Lehman’s, the customer makeup of this simple products retailer is more English than Amish (by a factor of 4 to 1). And the product line reflects this to some extent. The company has a wide array of products fitting the “old-fashioned/off-grid” concept. But a decent chunk of them would not be typical for…

Inside A Very Small (768 ft2) Amish Home (17 Photos)

Inside A Very Small (768 ft2) Amish Home (17 Photos)

Today a closer look at another of the seven Amish homes for sale in Fleming County, Kentucky. This little Amish starter is by far the smallest of the bunch, at just two bedrooms and 768 square feet. It actually looks more like a small shop from this angle which I shared in the original post. Here’s a different angle that gives you a better look…

Driver Hits Buggy While Sending Email On Phone, Kills Horse

Driver Hits Buggy While Sending Email On Phone, Kills Horse

Luckily, it was just the horse this time. This happened in Tuscola County, in Michigan’s “thumb”. From mlive.com: CARO, MI — A driver distracted by his cellphone caused a motor vehicle-buggy collision, leaving a horse dead and a woman hospitalized, police said. About 11 a.m. on Friday, May 15, Tuscola County Sheriff’s deputies responded to the crash site on M-81 near Crawford Road in Elkland…

Amish Girl Musical Group Plays For Plain Crowd (Video)

Amish Girl Musical Group Plays For Plain Crowd (Video)

Here’s another Amish musical performance. This one stands out for two reasons – instruments, and a big audience. The scene is the Mt. Hope Kidney Fund Auction in Mt. Hope, Ohio. You can see by the backs of heads that this crowd is filled with Amish people. On stage are three Amish girls. Recently we heard the songs of two Amish sisters, one of whom…

Slice Of Amish Life: Trying On Hats At Yoder’s

Slice Of Amish Life: Trying On Hats At Yoder’s

This is a photo I came across recently on Flickr. Two Amish men try out hats at Yoder Department Store in Shipshewana, Indiana. What do you notice here? First, briefly on the location. Yoder’s is a department store that sells men’s and women’s clothing as well as fabrics and sewing supplies. The clientele is both Amish and English. It’s located in Yoder’s Shopping Center, which also…