There’s nothing surprising about this. Well, maybe it is surprising to Representatives Scott Wiggam and Darrell Kick, creators of the new law requiring flashing lights on all horse-drawn vehicles in the state of Ohio. But if they had bothered to actually dig deep into this issue regarding the group it would predictably most effect (Swartzentruber Amish), it might not be so surprising. My suspicion is…
In the above video I explain why Amish don’t want – or maybe the better word is “need” – outsiders to join them. In a nutshell, the Amish do not typically seek converts, and there are a few reasons why. 1. The Amish don’t need converts One very practical reason that they Amish don’t want you to join them is the fact that the…
So I haven’t ever seen a video like this before. In this remarkable recording, Bill Lyons filmed inside a building as it was being moved down the road to a new location by a bunch of Amish men and youth (around 150). If you’ve been around this site for awhile, you know I like to share the barn and building moves (an Amish specialty). Another…
The new Ohio law requiring flashing yellow lights on horse-drawn vehicles came into effect in September. And as predicted here months (and years) back, some Amish in the state are not complying. From Fox 8: ASHLAND, Ohio (WJW) – A new law that makes flashing yellow lights mandatory on Amish buggies, and other horse-drawn vehicles across the state, is now being enforced by a number…
Here’s another interesting YouTube comment (which turns out to be a good source of what people are thinking about the Amish). A commenter recently wrote “Amish = How can we make our lives as hard as possible and still survive?” While there might be some Amish who find a virtue of sorts in living very plainly, for many Amish, they appreciate comfort and try to…
Amish no longer live in Europe, but how are they remembered there today? Romain Speisser shares one example from a hometown of Jakob Ammann. Amman lived in the area of Saint-Marie-aux-Mines (once known as Markirch) for years until Anabaptists were expelled from the region in 1712. Today, it hosts an annual event commemorating its Amish history, as Romain describes below. As every year since 1995,…
So a couple of interesting photos from Jim Halverson today, where you can see what looks like Amish women wearing rings. This first is from a recent auction in Clare, Michigan: And here’s another, also from an event at Clare (2020) – the woman in purple: Now, when looking closer, I must admit it occurred to me that the woman with the bags could perhaps…
Several years ago we had a look inside the home of the Graber family, featuring photos courtesy of Don Burke (check it out here). I went ahead and made a little video out of Don’s photos with some of my additional comments on this cozy home. Don originally went on a tour via an Amish Farm Tour opportunity on their property. However, this didn’t include…
So if you’re not into “social media drama”, just skip this post. I don’t plan to make a habit of covering things from Facebook, but I need to address this here. You might remember a post I did in August about Eddie Swartzentruber’s TikTok channel (“Swartzentruber Amish-Raised Man Shares The Bad Sides Of His Amish Life“). Eddie responded on Facebook, making some false claims about…
Very sad story from central PA, via the Altoona Mirror: Three members of an Amish family died in a farming accident Wednesday morning. Centre County Coroner Scott Sayers said Andrew Beiler, 47, and his two sons ages 14 and 19 died from asphyxiation after they were trapped inside a silo. The buildup in gases inside the silo caused their deaths, which have been ruled accidental….