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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PEI Amish Buggy Annihilated; Driver Amazingly Uninjured

PEI Amish Buggy Annihilated; Driver Amazingly Uninjured

Have a look at this buggy wreck photo…can you believe the driver escaped “shaken, but not injured”? The accident happened on Prince Edward Island, first settled by Amish in 2016. From the Canadian Press: A horse-drawn buggy was destroyed Wednesday morning after colliding with a truck on a rural road in the New Perth area, near where many Amish families have bought farms in the last…

Two Runaway Buggies In The Past 3 Days

Two Runaway Buggies In The Past 3 Days

From time to time runaway Amish buggies make news, though it’s not something you come across often. However the past several days saw two such incidents reported. Luckily, no one was hurt in either case. But runaway horses have caused severe accidents in the past. The second incident in particular seems like it could have been especially bad. More on that below. Here’s the first,…

Virginia To Offer Amish & Mennonites Non-Photo IDs

Virginia To Offer Amish & Mennonites Non-Photo IDs

What if you couldn’t buy medicine, ship packages, or even give blood – all because you lacked acceptable identification? Amish and Mennonites in Virginia who have been dealing with issues like this will have an alternative moving forward. The state has approved photo-free cards for those who object to conventional IDs. This will resolve issues that the commonwealth’s Plain population has had doing business and…

Who are the “Amish Mennonites”?

Who are the “Amish Mennonites”?

You may have come across the term “Amish Mennonites” before. It popped up on the site here recently, in our post on the first Amish settlement in America. Both Jim Potter and Al in KY wondered, what does the term mean? You might see it in some accounts referring to a modernizing group which emerged in the latter 1800s, in contrast to what became the…

A Visit To A Swartzentruber Amish Rug Seller (12 Photos)

A Visit To A Swartzentruber Amish Rug Seller (12 Photos)

So another memorable stop from my recent Holmes County trip was at a farm I had first visited a decade earlier. This is a Swartzentruber Amish farm, technically located in Wayne County. They have a creaky signpost by the road displaying whatever it is they have for sale. At the time, the only items on offer were rag rugs. We’ve seen glimpses of this place…

Author Q&A: Amish Mom Delilah Byler

Author Q&A: Amish Mom Delilah Byler

Today’s Q-and-A is a bit different from most previous editions, for two reasons. First, the author is Amish mom Delilah Byler. Delilah kindly answered some questions about her book and family for us today. Second, the book is called Where Are Aldo’s Treasures?, and it is a children’s book. Delilah created this search-and-find book from her own experience as a mother of eight children. I…

Amish Making RVs (Video)

Amish Making RVs (Video)

Did you know that Amish are heavily involved in building recreational vehicles? We’ve touched on this topic in the past, in posts like Why are Amish building RVs? and 3 Concerns for Amish Working in the RV Industry. The funny thing is that these are really some luxurious vehicles that don’t seem at all to fit an “Amish” way of life. Yet Amish workers are key…

Amish & Mennonites Victims of 4 Major Financial Schemes Since 2008

The year 2015 brought news of an investment scam targeting Amish in multiple states. Amish-born Earl D. Miller promised investors double-digit returns, and many Amish people gave Miller their money. Miller eventually gathered over $50 million. Some of this was used to pay back earlier investors promised returns, in typical Ponzi fashion, before the scheme imploded. Amish being victimized by large-scale financial scammers is nothing new,…

The Latest Amish Buggy Skiing Video…

The Latest Amish Buggy Skiing Video…

It’s become an annual thing – someone films an Amish guy skiing behind a buggy, it gets picked up in the media, and proceeds to go viral. Well, why not. The latest edition in the series comes from Minnesota. Jennifer Staggemeyer shot this snippet in the Harmony, MN community. Jennifer wonders how he kept his hat on: Let’s check out some other examples. Previous videos…