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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12 Great Places to Stay in Ohio Amish Country (Holmes County & Beyond)

12 Great Places to Stay in Ohio Amish Country (Holmes County & Beyond)

ByErik Wesner
7 Comments

Where Rolling Hills, Handcrafted Traditions, and Amish Hospitality Meet Ohio’s Amish Country, centered around Holmes County, but extending into neighboring counties like Wayne, Tuscarawas, Coshocton, and Stark, is one of the largest Amish communities in the world. Home to around 40,000 Amish people, each year scores of visitors are drawn here by the winding backroads, horse-drawn buggies, quilt shops, cheese factories, and warm hospitality. People…

Amish In This Community Are 3 Times More Likely To Have Diabetes

Amish In This Community Are 3 Times More Likely To Have Diabetes

ByErik Wesner
4 Comments

Specifically, type 1 diabetes, which most commonly shows up with children and younger people. And as noted we’re talking about one community, albeit quite a significant one – the third-largest in the country, in Northern Indiana (Elkhart & LaGrange County). Here’s more from WSBT: MIDDLEBURY, Ind. (WSBT) — Researchers in Middlebury are finding hope in the work to cure diabetes. New studies suggest the Amish…

Brand New From Ben & Rose: “Farther On”

Brand New From Ben & Rose: “Farther On”

ByErik Wesner
1 Comment

Coinciding with their debut album release today, Ben and Rose have put out a new song and video. And this one, “Farther On”, is a great choice as it sounds fantastic. Described as an “old gospel favorite”, the Amish couple deliver a great rendition. The song is calm and understated with some delicate playing. In the video, the pair sing on a beautiful Pennsylvania hillside…

Inside A Small But Vibrant Amish “Shop” Home (17 Photos)

Inside A Small But Vibrant Amish “Shop” Home (17 Photos)

ByErik Wesner
5 Comments

This charming little place is yet another home in Fillmore County, Minnesota. The county has three separate Amish communities; the best-known and biggest is the Harmony settlement, a Swartzentruber Amish settlement. This home, with a Mabel, MN address, appears to belong to that settlement. Unlike the three previous traditional farm homes from this settlement we’ve looked at, this is a smaller place, with just two…

Full Album Coming From Ben & Rose: “Slowly But Surely” (The Album) Releases This Friday

Full Album Coming From Ben & Rose: “Slowly But Surely” (The Album) Releases This Friday

ByErik Wesner
3 Comments

Good news alert – I have been getting this question for months and I’m happy to finally be able to give a positive answer: Ben and Rose plan to release a full album – this Friday! In the new promo clip at bottom, you can hear producer Conrad Fisher talking about the release, accompanied by some beautiful imagery. In the background we hear the sounds…

Amish Mother Ruth R. Miller Charged With Aggravated Murder In Death Of 4-Year-Old Son At Lake (UPDATE: Arraignment “Cancelled Until Further Notice”)

Amish Mother Ruth R. Miller Charged With Aggravated Murder In Death Of 4-Year-Old Son At Lake (UPDATE: Arraignment “Cancelled Until Further Notice”)

ByErik Wesner
7 Comments

As expected, the Amish mother who allegedly threw her 4-year-old son into the water of a lake, “as an offering to God”, has been charged with aggravated murder. Her name has also been revealed as Ruth R. Miller, 40, of Millersburg, Ohio. Many people have already known her identity for several days, but with the charges, the name can now be officially publicly disclosed. The…

Amish Mother Of Seven Completes 50-Mile Ultra-Marathon

Amish Mother Of Seven Completes 50-Mile Ultra-Marathon

ByErik Wesner
5 Comments

Lancaster County mother of seven Sadie Stoltzfus might fit the mold of “typical Amish mom” in many ways – but in at least one, she stands out. That’s because she has a real love of running. This has led her to do some remarkable things – including recently completing a 50-mile “UltraChallenge” race. From the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: When an Amish mother of seven with a…

Semi Hits TWO Buggies (One Towing Another); 61-Year-Old Amish Woman Injured

Semi Hits TWO Buggies (One Towing Another); 61-Year-Old Amish Woman Injured

ByErik Wesner

This buggy wreck was both “unusual” and “usual”, for lack of a better word. Making it unusual is that the buggy struck was actually towing another buggy. So two buggies were hit. Making it “usual” (at least with how things have gone recently), is that it happened in Michigan, specifically Gladwin County, which has seen a number of bad buggy wrecks over the past several…

Sheriff Briefs Media On Amish Lake Deaths: Couple’s 4-Year-Old Son Was “Price To Pay” For Failing Tests of Faith; Mother Expected To Be Charged With Murder

Sheriff Briefs Media On Amish Lake Deaths: Couple’s 4-Year-Old Son Was “Price To Pay” For Failing Tests of Faith; Mother Expected To Be Charged With Murder

ByErik Wesner
2 Comments

Tuscarawas County Sheriff Orvis Campell spent about 45 minutes speaking with media this afternoon, laying out what happened at Atwood Lake over the weekend in the series of events which led to the deaths of a four-year-old Amish boy and his father. They have now been identified as Vincen Miller (the boy), and Marcus J. Miller (the father), of Millersburg, Ohio. I just got done…

The Budget Newspaper Celebrates 135 Years; 400 Attend “Scribe Gathering”

The Budget Newspaper Celebrates 135 Years; 400 Attend “Scribe Gathering”

ByErik Wesner
4 Comments

There is a nice write-up in Anabaptist World about the Budget newspaper’s recent 135-year anniversary (hat-tip to Al in KY), as well as the “Scribe Gathering” – regular meet-ups of the papers writers – which took place the next day. Based in Sugarcreek, Ohio, the Budget was founded way back in 1890 – and has endured as a media institution in Plain America and beyond….