You’ve probably heard about the accident in a Kentucky Amish community last Thursday. Â Flash flooding in a normally passable creek caused a crossing buggy to overturn. Â Four children, ranging in age from 5 months to 11 years, were swept away and drowned. The Amish community, in Graves County in western Kentucky, has suffered a difficult loss. Â One hopes the parents take some bittersweet comfort at…
I thought I’d share a bit more on one of the most obvious visual markers of Amish – the buggy. Â As you probably know, buggy styles can vary across the hundreds of Amish settlements in North America. Below are the five main styles I encountered on a recent trip. Four of them are not commonly seen, driven by only a minority of Amish in certain…
Since I’ve been back in the US I’ve finally had a chance to watch the National Geographic Amish specials (on ex-Amish, and Amish courtship and marriage) in full. You may recall a couple of posts on these last fall: Leaving the Amish and Amish dating.  I didn’t comment too much at the time, having only seen the short excerpts available online. Leaving other issues aside, I found…
Say the words “Pennsylvania Amish”, and Lancaster County inevitably comes to mind. Â But Pennsylvania is a state covered with Amish settlements, with over 50 as of 2010 (see Young Center 2010). The Amish community in Juniata County is one of the Keystone State’s many lesser-known settlements. Â I had a chance to visit Juniata County last week while returning to Lancaster County from Big Valley. Juniata…
Did you know that Amish have light switches in their homes? Neither did I. Well, I should say some Amish do have switches that don’t turn anything on. Â For instance, when they buy a home that was previously English-owned, then tear out the electricity, as they’d be expected to do. Â The wall switches remain. Not those. Â I mean a light switch that actually brings light…
I just got back, late Saturday, from a great trip visiting friends in Lancaster County and elsewhere. I’ve got a lot to share in upcoming posts. Â But for now, a little summary. Here are 12 key numbers from last week’s travels to Amish communities in PA, DE, VA, and MD: 7-number of settlements visited. Â In addition to the ones I mentioned in this post, I…
A few quick photos from the Amish settlement in Charlotte County, Virginia.  This is a small community of just one church district.  Amish here drive Lancaster County grey buggies. Have been having a great visit (am currently in Lancaster County, and visiting PA Dutch markets around Philadelphia today), though internet is pretty scarce! A Virginia Amish buggy sign. No word if “Rudolph” is a popular name for horses…
I don’t know if the video I just watched-entitled “Amish Smugglers’ Shady Milk Run”–was intended to be funny, but I couldn’t help but chuckle. Technically, I guess you do call someone who brings in product to sell in an area where it is illegal a “smuggler”. Â But the term is such a loaded one. The quote in the video from the FDA (“Raw milk is…
I’m a big fan of trains. There is something about riding the rails that is impossible to replicate in any other form of transportation. Â Perhaps it’s the feeling of open-country freedom, or the sheer might of the multi-ton machine, or the leaving-the-station romance that train travel conjures. Trains seem to fit Europe. Â Roads are generally poorer, fuel more expensive, and population clustered dense in cities….
After regretting (on the original buggy sign post) that we had no Allen County, Indiana sign, reader Torey has kindly shared this photo, taken near the town of Grabill. You may be aware that Amish in Allen County are considered “Swiss Amish”. Swiss Amish differ in a few ways from most other Amish (most Amish are considered to be of “Pennsylvania German” ethnicity). Swiss Amish…