This has been described alternately as a Pennsylvania Dutch couple or an Amish couple. The statue is well-known and has been around for at least 70 years, previously part of the now-defunct “Roadside America” exhibit. Via wfmz.com: HEIDELBERG TWP., Pa. — Less than a year after it left the confines of its longtime home in Berks County, an iconic sculpture is forever scarred. “You don’t…
A “hit-skip” accident, which is what it is called in this article, is what I’ve always known as a “hit-and-run”. Maybe that is a regional expression. In any case, three weeks ago an Amish buggy in north-central Ohio was struck by a driver who failed to stop. That missing driver was located earlier this week, thanks to a tip. From News 5 Cleveland: ASHLAND, Ohio…
While this is not exactly an Amish business, Amish Maid To Order caught my eye because the name suggests it is. House cleaning is a pretty common side or main occupation for Amish women, both married and those not yet baptized. So I first thought this may be someone arranging housecleaning by Amish ladies. This is a Goshen, Indiana-based business, so right near a lot…
This barn-raising story has some history attached. In Amish history, the name Joseph Johns is noteworthy, as he was the founder of present-day Johnstown, Pennsylvania. An Amish crew has rebuilt a barn which burned down on Johns’ former farm, and which had been built by his grandson Joseph Johns III. You might be wondering both about the surname here and the idea of an Amishman…
Podcast #6 in Donald Kraybill’s series “What I Learned From The Amish” covers the idea of “smallness”. Via the show notes: “Professor Kraybill explains why the Amish think bigness ruins things and shows how small-scale life, including small schools, preserve the dignity of individuals.” In the podcast he explains that “smallness” is seen across Amish society – in everything from small egos to small congregations,…
Though this home has a Pennsylvania address, I would hazard to guess it is actually part of the community in Ashtabula County, Ohio, lying in the vicinity of Conneaut and Pierpont. The address happens to be a mere stone’s throw from the Ohio border. Here’s the Zillow description from which I got the title of this post: Large Amish built home with huge front porch!…
A few updates to last week’s news of an Amishman in the Ethridge, Tennessee community being caught with 25 pounds of marijuana. I also made a video on the story (below) which includes a number of the following points: The Amishman in question, Chris Appleby, was a convert to the group. According to this WKRN story, he arrived about seven years ago and joined the…
Some years ago I did posts on Amish children & spanking, as well as discipline in general (including in Amish schools), both of which, not unexpectedly, got a lot of comments. It’s a topic which elicits strong responses and I doubt much has changed since then. In her recent column, Amish Cook Gloria Yoder takes up the question of children’s behavior. She shares some ideas…
This is another one of those Amish “novelty” videos that pops up from time to time, like those showing Amish buggy skiing or time-lapse barn-raising. This one is a bit different in that it had a pretty good chance of ending badly. Someone was apparently driving through Lancaster County late at night when a buggy came out of nowhere and entered the roadway in a…
Elam Stoltzfus shares Part 1 of a four-part series on Amish Parochial schools in Pennsylvania. Elam grew up Amish, and we’ve previously seen his work here in his 4-part “Rediscovering the Ausbund” series on the Amish hymn book. This will be published in full at the Plain Values magazine Substack (linked below). In this part, Elam shares his first day of school as an Amish…