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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New Song From Amish Couple Ben & Rose: “The Little Mountain Church House”

New Song From Amish Couple Ben & Rose: “The Little Mountain Church House”

Right after I got caught up this week with a post on their cover of Dolly Parton’s “Circle of Love”, Amish country music couple Ben & Rose have released another video. The song is “Little Mountain Church House”, and we immediately see (or rather, hear) a couple of differences in this one. For one, Ben has the more prominent singing voice in this one, with…

Amos Miller Raw Milk Update: Court Allows Out-of-State Sales To Continue

Amos Miller Raw Milk Update: Court Allows Out-of-State Sales To Continue

Amos Miller will be permitted to continue selling his raw milk products beyond Pennsylvania’s borders, according to a recent ruling. From Lancaster Online: A state appeals court ruling earlier this month affirmed farmer Amos Miller can continue selling his raw milk outside of Pennsylvania while a state agriculture department’s lawsuit against him proceeds. The Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court agreed with Miller’s attorneys that he would face…

Amish Woman (?) Wanted For Theft

Amish Woman (?) Wanted For Theft

I should put the (?) in bold in the headline. This person is described as wearing Amish woman’s clothing. And that looks to be the case (see below). But is she actually Amish? The “track record” of the Amish, who on the whole are not known to steal or rob, would suggest otherwise. But individuals are individuals. And the clothing and overall appearance do look…

Amish Country Music Couple Perform Dolly Parton’s “Circle Of Love” (Video)

Amish Country Music Couple Perform Dolly Parton’s “Circle Of Love” (Video)

Ben and Rose, the “Amish Country Music Couple”, put out another video a few weeks after their cover of country classic “Slowly But Surely”. This tune is called “Circle of Love”, and it is a Christmas song written by Dolly Parton. I missed it at the time of release a week before Christmas. But since I am sure at least a few of you still…

Visiting a “Lancaster Maryland” Amish Food Stand (20 Photos)

Visiting a “Lancaster Maryland” Amish Food Stand (20 Photos)

As the Lancaster County Amish community has grown, it has sprawled beyond the borders of the county itself. And for years, readers have noted that Lancaster County Amish are living across the state line in Maryland. On a previous visit to Pennsylvania (Dec. 2023), I drove around a bit in the area of Rising Sun in Cecil County, MD. The county has a separate, small…

10 Views of Virginia’s Largest Amish Community

10 Views of Virginia’s Largest Amish Community

So here are ten (more) views from Virginia’s largest Amish community – in Charlotte County. I did a post like this five years ago. Some things have changed in this community, and some things haven’t. Let’s have a look. As you approach the community from the south, a sign alerts you to be on the lookout for Amish buggies. Fifteen miles gives you a sense…

Sheriff Seeks Driver in (Another) Michigan Buggy Hit & Run

Sheriff Seeks Driver in (Another) Michigan Buggy Hit & Run

Yet another hit-and-run accident on an Amish buggy has occurred. This one was in Clare County, Michigan, an area which we cover here on the site fairly frequently. From ABC 12 News: CLARE COUNTY, Mich. (WJRT) – Police are looking for a full-size Ford pickup truck involved in a hit-and-run crash with an Amish buggy in eastern Clare County on Monday. The Clare County Sheriff’s…

Titus Wagler: 1958 – 2024

Titus Wagler: 1958 – 2024

Randy Evans writes about the passing of Titus Wagler, of Bloomfield, Iowa. Titus was brother to Ira Wagler, and son to David Wagler, both well-known writers with Amish roots. From Randy’s recent column “Never put off what you might regret”: This lesson arrived the week before Christmas when I spotted a small obituary in the Bloomfield Democrat. Seven succinct paragraphs informed readers of the death…

Visiting An Amish “Food-and-More” Store (30 Photos)

Visiting An Amish “Food-and-More” Store (30 Photos)

I dropped in on the Charlotte County, Virginia Amish community just before Christmas. I’ve been visiting this one since there were just a relative handful of Amish here. As the community has slowly grown over the years, the number of Amish-run stores here seems to be slowly increasing as well. One of the places I visited is called Country Corner Dairy. It’s one of the…

Favorite Posts of 2024

Favorite Posts of 2024

We are about to turn the page on another year. How time flies. As we always do this time of year, a look back at some favorite posts from the past 365 days. Some of these posts were highly-viewed. Others generated good discussion and responses from you. They’re not all necessarily about happy topics (for example, the Rebekah Byler case, which is due to finally…