The Amish in Canada: 2024 Guide
The Amish have long lived in Canada, with roots in the country dating to the 1800s. Today, the Canadian Amish population exceeds 6,000 people, living in 20 different communities.
For many years, Ontario was the only province in Canada where Amish lived. But in the past decade, small settlements have been established in New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island. A settlement established in Manitoba in the same period ceased to exist in 2024.
Amish communities in Canada
- Milverton – The largest and oldest Amish community in Canada
- Aylmer – Well-known as the home of Pathway Publications (publisher of Family Life and other Amish periodicals) and the Heritage Historical Library
- Lucknow – The second-largest Amish settlement in Ontario
- Oxford County – The third-largest Amish community in Canada is found at Norwich
- Other Ontario Amish settlements – Ontario totals 17 Amish settlements, most of a small size
- Mennonites in Canada – Ontario is also home to a significant Old Order Mennonite community, mainly in Ontario
- Amish in New Brunswick – In 2015, Amish settled in New Brunswick, the first Canadian community outside Ontario in decades
- Amish on Prince Edward Island – Amish founded two communities in PEI in 2016
- Amish in Manitoba (defunct) – A short-lived Amish settlement existed in Manitoba from 2017 to 2024
Amish origins in Canada
Amish have had a presence in Canada since the 1800s, with the Milverton settlement one of the oldest Amish communities in North America (having its bicentennial in 2024).
Canada experienced a significant influx of Amish post-World War II, with Amish migrants seeking to avoid military conscription or the alternate service programs which arose in place of military service.
GAMEO notes that “Later Canadian restrictions have, however, caused some Amish to return to the United States. This has caused most Ontario Amish settlements to remain at one to two church districts (congregations)” (see GAMEO: Milverton, Ontario, Old Order Amish Settlement).
One recent noteworthy development is the expansion of Amish settlement into provinces beyond Ontario. The year 2015 saw the first such community founded in New Brunswick.
Canadian Amish planted roots in other non-Ontario locations soon after, with two communities set up in Prince Edward Island in 2016, and another settlement (now defunct) founded in Manitoba in 2017.
Today, the estimated Amish population in Canada stands at 6,190 people. The Canadian Amish population ranks 11th when compared against US states, between Illinois and Minnesota (see the Amish Studies web site resource links at bottom for more population statistics).
Milverton (Perth County)
Canada’s largest Amish settlement is found in Perth County, near the communities of Milverton and Millbank. The Milverton Amish settlement was founded in 1824 and is also the oldest in Canada, with approximately 1,360 people in 11 church districts (congregations) as of 2024. The Milverton community is also the fifth-oldest of all Amish settlements.
The Milverton community also includes mailing addresses for nearby Millbank, Newton, Linwood, and Atwood. Amish at Milverton are considered to hold to older dress and buggy-style traditions, and use buggies without tops. Contact between the older Milverton Amish and the relatively newer Canadian Amish groups has been described as “minimal” (GAMEO).
An indication of different origins are the family names found in this settlement. Among others, the last names Kuepfer, Albrecht, Jantzi, and Streicher are seen in the Milverton settlement. These are rare elsewhere across Amish North America (the settlement at Kincardine in Bruce County, ON being an exception).
Since the mid-1990s, the Milverton settlement has held an Amish School Auction, open to the public and including items such as furniture, tools, animals and food. The 2012 edition drew an estimated 10,000 people. As in other communities, proceeds from the auction are a primary source of funding for area Amish schools.
Aylmer (Elgin County)
Founded in 1953, Aylmer is the second-oldest Amish settlement in Canada, and its fourth-largest, at 675 people. All things considered, Aylmer is a relatively small settlement, but well-known throughout Amish society. This is due to the community hosting two Amish institutions: Pathway Publishers and the Heritage Historical Library.
Pathway Publishers was founded in 1964 as a publisher of books and monthly publications (see GAMEO, Pathway Publishers). Today Pathway publishes three monthly periodicals: Blackboard Bulletin, a journal for teachers, Young Companion, aimed at an adolescent audience, and the flagship Family Life, a general interest publication for the entire family.
Pathway publications are widely-read in Amish and other Plain Anabaptist circles, having circulations in the tens of thousands. Pathway also publishes pamphlets, and textbooks used in Amish schools.
The Heritage Historical Library in the Aylmer settlement is a repository of books and historical documents relating to Amish and Anabaptist history. The library is curated by Amish historian David Luthy, and serves as a valuable resource for researchers and historians.
Lucknow (Bruce County)
The Lucknow Amish settlement in Bruce County was founded in 1973. Today it is the second largest Amish community in Canada with an estimated population of 800 people. Bruce County hosts a second, smaller settlement at Kincardine/Tiverton (255 people)
Oxford County
Oxford County is home to the third-largest Canadian Amish community, near the town of Norwich (founded 1954, 700 people).
Other Amish settlements in Ontario
Including those mentioned above, Ontario is home to a total of 17 Amish settlements as of 2024. At least one Swartzentruber Amish settlement is found in Ontario, in Grey County near the town of Chesley. At over 70 years in existence, this community is one of Canada’s oldest, and consists of four church districts (580 people). A second Amish community of several hundred Amish (not a Swartzentruber group), is also found near Chesley.
This reflects a common pattern of Amish from different groups settling relatively near one another. Once a community has “tested” an area and proven that Amish can make a living, it signals to other Amish groups that the region might be a good one for further settlement.
For a full list of settlements in Ontario, check the Amish Studies settlement list linked in the resource section at bottom.
Ontario’s Old Order Mennonites
Many Old Order Mennonites also live in Canada, numbering over 7,000 people in approximately 50 congregations. The vast majority of these live in Ontario, with a small presence in Manitoba. Old Order Mennonites, or “Team” Mennonites as they are also known, share a number of similarities with Amish.
With mutual Anabaptist roots, Mennonites and Amish both maintain principles of non-resistance and non-conformity. Other things in common include plain clothing, use of the Pennsylvania German language, horse-and-buggy travel, and restrictions on the use of technology. Old Order Mennonites also often live in the same general vicinities as Amish.
Old Order Mennonites differ from the Amish in their particular style of dress, place of worship (meetinghouses rather than in-home worship as in the case of Amish) and use of technology (some Old Order Mennonites permit electricity and phones in the home, and make greater use of tractors).
Old Order Mennonite settlements in Ontario can be found in the areas of Kitchener, Waterloo, Elmira, St. Jacobs, Aylmer, and other communities. A group of Plain Mennonites, visually very similar to the Amish, live at Desbarats in Ontario.
Generally speaking, horse-and-buggy Mennonites tend to be better-known than the Amish in Canada, while the opposite is true in America.
Amish in New Brunswick
After decades with Ontario as the only province with an Amish population, a group started a new settlement in New Brunswick (2015) in the area of Perth-Andover and Carlingford. The community lies right on the international border with Maine.
Interestingly, this community was profiled in an academic article which noted the unique situation of its Amish bishop, who found himself responsible for two separate Amish churches – the New Brunswick settlement, and a second community just over the border, at Easton in Maine.
Since its founding, the New Brunswick community has grown steadily in the ensuing decade, and currently has a population of 125 people.
Amish in Prince Edward Island
Following the founding of the New Brunswick community, in 2016 Amish went on to settle two more places outside of Ontario, on Prince Edward Island. Both are found in Kings County, the easternmost census division in the province.
Amish first moved from Ontario to the Cardigan/Dundas area. That settlement has reached a size of 90 people. The Amish arrivals received a warm welcome, as detailed by peicanada.com:
The Amish people can’t believe how friendly all of the local people have been to them so far.
“The neighbours are already coming to say hello. Everybody from the premier to the old guys at Tim Hortons, they’ve all been very friendly.”
He did warn the Amish that the first time they put an Eggs for Sale sign at the end of the lane, they’ll probably have 50 cars with people coming up to say hello.
“After that it should wear out a little bit and they won’t be too badly interrupted in their life.”
The second PEI community was founded in the area of Mt. Stewart and Montague. This community has expanded at a faster clip, and currently stands at about twice the size of the Dundas settlement (190 people).
The Defunct Manitoba Amish Community
In the following year (2017), Amish went on to settle a fourth Canadian province – Manitoba. Families from Ontario bought land in the area of Vita and Stuartburn.
Like other Amish migrants, land prices were a main cause for the move: “We didn’t really want to [move away], but there was no way we could farm back there. Any farm would cost you a million dollars,” Amishman Edward Miller explained in 2018 to the CBC.
Though the community attracted a number of Amish households, by 2024, the Amish presence was no more. The families were reported to have sold their farms to “Orthodox Mennonites” and moved to the area of Karlstad in Minnesota.
On the departed group, a local non-Amish person commented: “We miss them dearly. I got to know them well, especially during the challenges of registering their children’s births without modern technology. They were wonderful people, and it was tough to see them go.” For whatever reason, the attempt to settle here did not work out, and Amish saw better prospects for themselves across the border.
Not the only non-American Amish
For many decades, Canada was the only location outside of the United States where Old Order Amish could be found.
However, in 2015, two Amish settlements were created in South America (in Bolivia and Argentina). While the Argentina community had disbanded by 2023, the small Bolivian Amish settlement remains, numbering only about 100 people.
Ontario is home to a number of well-established communities. With the twin institutions of Pathway Publishers and the Heritage Historical Library, the province remains an important area of Amish settlement.
Communities established in New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island have grown, with one settlement in PEI even adding a second church district. The possibility also remains of Amish starting fresh communities in other provinces of the country. Canada’s Old Order Mennonite communities add another layer to the country’s Plain population.
At the same time, over the past decade, Ontario (and Canada as a whole) has not seen the same level of growth as some of the Amish “hot spot” states in the US.
Though while the overall rate of growth is likely lower than typical for the Amish, the Canadian Amish population has nonetheless increased steadily (having grown over 20% since 2017).
This is primarily due to natural increase due to large Amish family sizes – rather than an influx of Amish from beyond its borders, as has been the case in some American states.
For more, see:
- “Amish Population 2024” Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies, Elizabethtown College https://groups.etown.edu/amishstudies/population-2024/
- “Amish Population in Canada by Province, Census Division, and Settlement, 2024” (Canada Amish communities found at bottom of document)
- The First Amish Settlement in Canada
- Inside A Very Plain Ontario Amish Home (26 Photos)
- The Amish Bishop With Churches In Two Countries
- The Desbarats, Ontario Old Order Mennonite Community (42 Photos)
- The New American Almanac, Raber’s Bookstore (Baltic, Ohio), Ben J. Raber
- Yoder, Samuel L. “Milverton, Ontario, Old Order Amish Settlement.” Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. 1989. Web. 17 November 2011.http://www.gameo.org/encyclopedia/contents/M558ME.html.
- Yoder, Samuel L. “Pathway Publishers.” Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. 1990. Web. 17 November 2011. http://www.gameo.org/encyclopedia/contents/P384ME.html.
- Barons, Kirk, The Amish of Aylmer, Ontario
- O’Connor, Donal. “Thousands at Amish auction sale”, Stratford Beacon Herald, July 24, 2012. http://www.stratfordbeaconherald.com/2012/07/24/thousands-at-amish-auction-sale
- Amish Furniture – Ontario
Staying with the Amish/Mennonites
My wife and I are leaders of a Christian Church in the UK. We would like to enquire whether it is possible to stay/work with a family for 7 to 10 days in the Kitchener area, as we hope to come over this summer and also visit relatives in Niagra on the Lake.
We have long had an interest in the communities and their life-style, and would like to experience it first hand, and exhange information about our Christian experience and life.
If you could give an indication as to how we could go about this we would be most grateful.
Many thanks in anticipation.
Valerie and John Telford
St. Albans, UK
I lived in Aylmer and worked at Pathway Publishers from 1977-1990.
Canada Amish
We visited the Pathway publishers many years ago (when I was still Mennonite) and was really intrigued with the publishing. I no longer am Mennonite but would like to subscribe to them again.
address
Pathway Publishers
10380 Carter Road
Aylmer, ON N5H 2R3 Canada
Pathway Readers
I have the complete set of Pathway Readers and accompanying Workbooks and Teacher’s editions. Our children are grown now and we no longer need them. Wondering if there is a way to pass them along to another family who needs them?
No mention made of the ever growing number of Amish-Mennonite in the Dunsford/Lindsay/Cameron/Glenarm/Fenelon Falls area of Ontario. I have found 3 schools thus far and 3 established produce and baked good vendors from May-Dec. I have found a good 30 Amish farms in this area as well as a Furniture Maker, Harness Repair Shop, In-home Quilt Shops, Wooden Lawn Furniture Shop….
I didn’t know the Lindsay Amish settlement is that big. I visited there about 5-6 years ago.
Lindsay help required please
Shed/Pergola required
I am looking for a hand quality wood shed with an area where we can dine with railing and a roof with windows and a door to accommodate my lawn tractor and garden equipment- Amish preferred craftsmanship. I used to live in Waterloo and appreciate their quality but I am flexible.
I live in Bethany, ON, area and looking for appromiately 10x 10 or 10×12 size. Please get back to me with approx. quote- thank you.
Kevin
705-277-3304
Amish building/framing companies
I’m to understand there are a group of Amish workers in the Lyndsay area that can be contracted for building purposes? If someone has further information with respect how I can in touch with these gentleman I would very appreciated. I saw through the site there are builders available that build sheds/bunkies etc. Never the less if anyone has information for me it would greatly appreciated. I know I do not have to worry about the structure once it is completed by these gentleman.
Shed/Pergola required
I am looking for a hand quality wood shed with an area where we can dine with railing and a roof with windows and a door to accommodate my lawn tractor and garden equipment- Amish preferred craftsmanship. I used to live in Waterloo and appreciate their quality but I am flexible.
I live in Bethany, ON, area and looking for appromiately 10x 10 or 10×12 size. Please get back to me with approx. quote- thank you.
Kevin
705-277-3304
Kevin,
I know that on Glenarm Rd at the Birchpoint Rd intersection there is Zehrs Mart and they have some beautiful sheds that are all Amish made. It is on Glenarm btwn Birchpoint Rd & Killarney Bay Rd. I am good friends with that entire community and they are truly a wonderful group of Amish.
They only have a couple phones in the community, I have each of those numbers should you be interested.
As well there is a Mennonite run business, not sure of the name in Lindsay on King’s Wharf that make bunkies. I can get that info if you want.
I highly recommend Zehrs, they have numerous on site for you to see.
Contact me is you want.
allyson1976 at yahoo dot com
I would love to contact them about the sheds- do you have a phone number please? Thanks for your help, Kevin
You're Hilliarious
Hope you have fun trying to find a phone number for the Amish……….duh they don’t have electricity. HA HA HA HA 🙂 Had to laugh about that……
Actually you do not need electricity to power a phone!
The Mennonites that have businesses have phones and in the Amish community there are phones at the school houses and a couple businesses……so the Amish DO have phones!
Respect for the Amish Communities
Not funny Johanna, grow up and learn something by reading or visiting these communities. Can’t you respect what people are living. I am not Amish but I do respect their way and admire that they are close to the land and more particularly their community.
Youre hilarious
In the Milverton Amish community, their Elders and Bishops have amended their Ordnung and have decided to allow phones for those folks who have businesses. The phones have to be in a little shed ( unheated) at a certain distance from the house…50 feet or thereabouts. The phone takes messages only. In order to return calls, they may have a cellphone in the keeping of a non Amish (akaEnglish) employee who then returns the calls.
Likewise, the business vehicle…my friend’s father runs a carpentry businness and has a phone as well as a van, which is not driven by him, but by an employee.
In response to the questions about visiting or staying with the Amish:
Most Amish do not welcome outsiders or non Amish into their homes or communities as they feel it may weaken their community unity.
Hope this helps clear up any confusion
Admiration for the Mennonites and Amish
I was born and raised in Galt, On. (now Cambridge)and lived in Kitchere Waterloo area for many years. I was at the Women’s Institute on King’s Wharf Rd. near Lindsay last Sunday and was just in time to see all the families in their buggies going home after worship. We have Mennonite in my mother’s family a few generations back. My 49 yr. old daughter who is a spinster has voiced a desire to live as a Mennonite. She has not been able to work so has been living on a meager pension but would like to be a contributing member of her community but has had only rejection even from volunteering. She is on medication for a mental illness she inherited from her father’s family. She is an amazing, caring individual and has expressed a desire to live life as it was done a couple hundred years ago. She is more than open to learning. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thankyou and God Bless. Laura Brennan
amish furniture maker
Hello, I would love to get the contact info for the Lindsay area furniture maker, I have heard about him, but don’t know how to get in touch, please send any info you may have
Cheryl, I have a phone contact number for Lindsay, but don’t really want to post in on a public forum. If you email me at myoder@amheritagecenter.com I will send the phone info directly to you and they should be able to put you in contact with the furniture maker in Lindsay.
Amish farm
Hi Allyson,
would you happen to know Amish farm close to Hamilton Niagara area in Ontario?
I am looking for natural cheese to add to a special diet required for my current medical condition.
Thanks,
Zena
I have a ton of pictures from the area. I should get them all up on my blog for you to see Katie! The area keeps growing! I am always shocked to see how many places there are! When I randomly stopped to a group of kids walking home when I asked home many were in there school the young lad told me there was 30 some kids.
Come up for a visit and I will take you on a tour over that way Katie!
I would love to make a trip up there again.
Hi Allyson,
I am about a year late, but wondering if you could provide me any specifics as to where to find Amish shops or farms in the Glenarm/Linsday area? I know much will be closed until summer but was hoping to take a bit of a road trip up around that area and would love to see some Amish culture. Thanks!
Hi Susan
Sorry so tardy with the reply, I totally missed this.
Glenarm Rd is a good start point. Mainly between Birchpoint and Mark Rds. You just need to travel the back roads and you will see it all.
On Mark Rd the is a bakery and produce (May-Dec)
At Glenarm and Birchpoint there is a bakery/produce/outbuildings seller. (Year round)
On Killarney Bay Rd there is a Quilt and Notions shop.
If you make it to any of these places tell them Allyson sent you!
Hope this gives you an idea.
Allyson
In a previous blog’s comments, Erik, someone mentioned making puzzles from your pictures. There are two pictures in this blog, the yellow house and the red schoolhouse, that would definitely get my vote. I’d love to stare at that yellow home for hours; it is so beautiful and serene-looking.
Hi there. I actually took the two photos you are referring too. FYI, the house is not yellow but actually white. The reason it looks a bit “cream” in colour was because it was at sunset, so there was a warm glow from the sun on the white of the house.
Hi,
I just discovered this great site!
I live in “mennonite/amish ville” apparently… I work in Kitchener but in order to get to my home i have to pass through a lots of the above areas… Millbank is the most mennonite/amish populated area for sure. They have a “Zehr’s” country market… It has the BEST fruit during the summer…It’s a small country store and there is the Millbank cheese factory as well… Milverton has the best bakery! fresh bread and some pastry at around noon time daily.
Lucknow is another area that i spend my weekend at… there is a butcher shop…and the bakery as well… the ladies that run it are mennonite for sure!
outside of Lucknow there is a large population of mennonites! BUT they are moving further up north!
especially the “younglins” who can’t afford to purchase the big properties and land that their fathers were able to afford.
they have started moving up closer to Sault ste marie
*correction
outside of Lucknow there is a large population of AMISH! BUT they are moving further up north!
and i know this for a fact because my father does business deals with them and they do come work for us when we are building new structures… ie: shed, garage, house addition
Milverton Ontario Amish
Hi Eric and Mem
I grew up in Milverton. My stepfather was Reformed Mennonite.
We went to the Summer Bible school at Poole…and now I am married and living in Alberta. Half of my stepdads family were Reformed Mennonite and the other half were Amish. ( family name, Yost) He said they were Swiss..and so far genealogical research confirms this. Some came from Germany and others from the Alsace Lorraine area. (Roths)
This past spring we went home for a visit…and made stops at the St Jacobs market where I bought homemade summer sausage and rye bread…stopped for lunch at Anna Maes in Millbank where we also bought cheese from the factory…then on to Milverton for the bakery and their coffee cake. There used to be an excellent bakery in Baden too that made the best strudel! And naturally, I came home with maple syrup fresh that spring.
Sometimes I miss the slower lifesyle, but I dont miss the strictness…at all. Because my Mom would not convert, my stepdad, who was a minister, left the church. It must have been very difficult for him.
Lifestyle of Canadian Amish
Hello:
I was wondering what the lifestyle of the Canadian old order Amish is like. There is so much known about the American Amish, but I would like to know more about the Canadian Amish. Are the men required to wear beards and a certain hairstyle? Are they open to outsiders, especially those interested in joining the religion? Whatever info is available, I would like to receive it.
Thanks.
Alymer Ontario Amish....
if you go to visit the Alymer Ontario Amish…You might find a man there by the name of David Luthy who came to the Amish……
try to join that community if you can.. but remember Amish lifestyle never brought Salvation to anybody and never will.
while you are there try to find out what the reason is that so many young people leave the Amish there, and you might be find it very interesting that most of David Luthi’s children have followed their fathers example.
correction
have NOT followed their fathers example.
Orthodox Mennonites
Erik,
Have you ever heard of the Orthodox Mennonites that are found in Ontario? Mark Burr has some really great photos of this group on his Flickr account…that is where I originally learned that there was such a thing.
Usually, one can tell an Old Order Mennonite from the Amish by dress alone…but the Orthodox Mennonites are VERY similar looking to the Amish in clothing style.
How different??
Hi! Nelson ,How much Difference are those people today than were their fathers??/ And in what manner ?? I have grown up in the Old Order Amish Community in Kenton, Ohio !!! I was Ex-Communicated ever since 1984!! So long for now . Only– Orva Bontrager
Origins of Canadian Amish
I have read many books on the Amish, but can not find what I am looking for. I have visited Milverton, ON, and was somewhat surprised by the open carriages. Although I have since read about them and this tradition, I still don’t know why. And, particularly, where did these Amish come from? Are they Swiss Amish? What affiliation are they? Or are they an affiliation unto themselves? Why the open carriages?
Also, where and when is the auction? I’d love to go.
Thanks!
Milverton, Ontario Amish
Interesting question about Canada’s oldest community Lee Ann. According to the affiliation listing in the book The Amish (p. 139), Milverton and its related settlements do comprise their own affiliation (comprising 12 church districts spread across 4 settlements).
Though they have the open buggies in common this is not considered a Swiss group but a distinct Amish group which was settled directly in Canada by Amish from Europe (rather than American Amish settling in Canada as happened post-WWII). The other communities associated with Milverton are at Chesley, Clifford, and Tiverton/Bervie/Kincardine.
You’ll find a little more about this group’s transportation and technology in Stephen Scott’s books Plain Buggies and Living Without Electricity. There is also an article on a 2012 Amish auction in the Milverton area: http://www.stratfordbeaconherald.com/2012/07/24/thousands-at-amish-auction-sale
Thanks, Eric! Your response was really helpful and cleared up a lot of confusion for me. I appreciate it! I hope to go back to Milverton this summer.
Lee Ann
Hand-quilter(s) wanted!
Hi there,
What a great community site!
I am a quilter from the West Coast and am looking for a Canadian Amish or Mennonite group of ladies to hand-quilt a large quilt I have hand-pieced. I do most of my quilting and piecing by machine, but this one(and another of similar size on the way) is completely pieced by hand. It would be great if I could employ a Canadian group, rather than send my treasure out of the country.
Thanks a bunch!
Nearest community to ottawa, ON
Amy Amish Communities near Ottawa, ON, Canada? Closer than Kitchener,(St. Jacobs). Thanks.
Suzanne, there are 15 or so Amish communities in Ontario, this list might help, it was compiled in 2013 so it’s more-or-less up-to-date:
http://kb.osu.edu/dspace/bitstream/handle/1811/57700/JAPAS_Donnermeyer_Luthy_vol1-issue2_pp107-129.pdf?sequence=1
Erik:
Thank you for sending me that web-site. I will definitely check it out. I have been to St. Jacobs’ a few time but it is quite far from Ottawa. I hope I will find something closer than an 8 hour drive as I would love to buy crafts from the Amish community.
Suzanne
Suzanne,
Belleville/Marmora is about 2.5hrs from you and they have a great little store on Hwy 62.
Ontario Amish near to Ottawa.
There is a settlement in Marmora/Belleville, Ontario based on Hwy#62.
There is a community in Powassan and I have had some Ohio Amish telling me of a new community North of Thunder Bay! I laughed and explained what is North of Thinder Bay!
Thank you for the information but Thunder Bay is even further than St. Jacobs.
Suzanne
Amish closer to Ottawa, Suzanne.
This is somewhat late but there is a settlement in Belleville on Hwy 62 btwn Belleville heading north to Madoc. I have also heard that they were looking to settle in the Ottawa Valley not sure if it ever occurred though.
Hope you already found some closer than St Jacob’s but if not here you go!
I welcome the volunteers to work study and learn in our school orphanage and churches
with love
Joseph
Amish or Old Order Mennonites In Nova Scotis
I was just wondering if there are any Amish or old order Mennonites in Nova Scotia?
There are no Amish in Nova Scotia, only in Ontario, though there was talk recently of trying to attract Amish to Prince Edward Island, and some have visited for the purpose of scouting the area: https://amishamerica.com/amish-prince-edward-island/
As for Old Order Mennonites, I don’t *think* so, but I don’t keep up with the OOM as I do the Amish, so you might want to look further into that. I do believe there are Kleine Gemeinde there: http://gameo.org/index.php?title=Evangelical_Mennonite_Conference_(Kleine_Gemeinde) May be other non-Old Order conservative Mennonites there as well.
Amish built cabins in Ontario Canada
I am interested in knowing whether there are any Ontario, Canada Amish carpenters / craftsmen who build small cabins and sheds, and how I can get in touch with them.
Thank you,
Mary
Amish built Cabins/Sheds
Hi Mary,
Send me a direct email and I would be glad to provide you with the details of how to get in touch with builders here in Ontario.
allyson1976 at yahoo dot com
Chisholm breakfast, St. Jacobs Horse Drawn Tour
Several recent articles from Canada caught my attention.
(Annual pancake breakfast draws out 1,000)
“On July 11, 2015, the Amish community in Chisholm [Ontario] [near Powassan] got together and put on the breakfast of the year for the Almaguin region. With homemade pancakes, cinnamon rolls, donuts and scrambled eggs, event goers left with their stomachs full and their appetites satisfied.
Although the event is a great social gathering, it serves a bigger purpose.
“This event is for our school,” resident Vernon Yoder said. “It’s a parochial school, it’s a private school. So it’s just for a fundraiser to help us operate our school.”
Alongside the pancake breakfast is the bake sale featuring different types of loaves, donuts and other homemade baking. This year, families made 160 pies, 170 loaves of bread, dinner rolls, tarts, cinnamon rolls, cakes, dessert bars, cookies and donuts and they sold out of all of it.”
It was their 7th annual pancake breakfast and bake sale.
See photo and more at:
http://www.northbaynipissing.com/news-story/5737534-annual-pancake-breakfast-draws-out-1-000/
(Checking out Ontario’s St. Jacobs area and its Old Order Mennonites.)
“On my last visit to the area, I actually took a “St. Jacobs Horse Drawn Tour” that took me on some rather tranquil country roads from the Farmers’ Market to a Mennonite mixed farming operation, with its apple orchard, maple sugar bush, livestock, corn crib, bank barn, quilt shop, and buggy shed.
I next drove to the nearby village of Wallenstein, where I stopped at the Old Order Mennonite General Store, where their shoes, hats, and clothes can be purchased, along with a great diversity of other products, including foods, household goods, farm tools, and nails. It’s very much a “general” store. And while in this fascinating village, I also checked out the nearby Old Order Mennonite Harness Shop and the Wallenstein Feed Mill (the largest producer of feed in all of Canada).
I also saw many of these Old Order Mennonites at the popular St. Jacobs Farmers’ Market, of course, both selling and buying, and I found that they were, indeed, an integral part of the uniqueness of this area.”
Read more at:
http://www.insidebelleville.com/opinion-story/5710314-checking-out-ontario-s-st-jacobs-area-and-its-old-order-mennonites/
(Mennonites feeling at home in northern Ontario)
Sept. 2014, with photos.
Several audio documentaries, including Alvin Yoder near Powassan.
“Listen to Alvin Yoder, founder of the Amish in Chisholm Township near Powassan, talk about his community:” 10:31
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/sudbury/mennonites-feeling-at-home-in-northern-ontario-1.2762490
How different
Hi Orva
I am sorry to hear about youhaving been excommunicated…it must be very difficult for you.
I know it was for my stepdad.
Lifestyle of Canadian Amish
Hi Cynthia
Lifestyle really depends on what sect you are talking about…but there are broad stroke similarities…for instance, every action is offered up to God. Most old order Amish ( horse and buggy folk) are rural farmers, but many among them also have trades such as harness makers, buggy makers, farriers, cabinetmakers, finishing carpenters, furniture makers and so on.
Amish dont have meeting houses or churches but take turns hosting Sunday services, which start early in the morning after milking and chores and go until the evening. Some hold their meetings in their homes (house Amish) while others hold them in the barn( barn Amish) . In both cases the community have a special enclosed buggy which transports the necessary benches needed for the service. Mant Amish in the Milverton area use retired racehorses for their Sunday carriage horse. Its a sight to see the trotters and pacers, all strung out in a line with everyone going to meeting. Also…Amish buggy wheels are wooden and metal…old order mennonites often have rubber tires.
Each community’s Elders and Bishops decide how the settlement will be governed and wht kind of things ( like telephones) will be allowed nd under what conditions. They also determine style of garments, hairstyles, hats for men, headcoverings for women etc. This is also how to identify one group from another. For instance, in some areas of Ohio, red can be used in quilts and garments. Among the Milverton Amish, you will never see red. It is considered a proud colour, a worldly colour. Swartzentruber Amish men only wear suspenders with one strap…most others wear two suspenders. The Swartzentruber Amish men also wear very lowcut pants compared to other sects. Amish men never cut their beards and dont have moustaches.
They get up with the sun and go to bed with the sun in many cases. Reading is mostly limited to spiritual publications and Amish periodicals. They do not have electricity so no radio, tv, pc etc. Some use gas generators to power freezers or refrigerators, but many use old fashioned ice boxes and cold rooms for food storage.
They are very hard workers, and their day is filled with physical labour. While the men are in the barn or fields, the ladies sew, cook, clean, can food, pickle food, tend the large garden etc. Most quilting is a group activity. That way it doesnt take long to do the handquilting once it is pieced together and in its layers.
Fabricwise, Amish in the Milverton area wear plain clothes…no patterned fabric. But I see that some quilters are using patterned fabric for English quilts …quilts for outsiders, either commissioned or made for resale.
Thats all I can think of for now. Hope this helps
Old Order Mennonites in Nova Scotia
This past summer I found a bakery/cafe shop in Berwick, Nova Scotia run by a family who are old order Mennonites. There is a small settlement in the area. It was a beautiful little shop. It was such a wonderful, peaceful spot.
Amish in Canada
This spring, some Amish families will be moving from Ontario to Prince Edward Island, Canada’s smallest province. We welcome them with open arms!
Amish in Belize
During my honeymoon to Belize, we were told that there was an Amish settlement in that country too. As well as a fairly large old order Mennonite population. This article impies Canada has the only non American Amish population just some food for thought. I lived in milverton for a few years and have a very Amish surname (spelling variant) and have always been interested in their culture.
Hello, Cassie.
I’m wondering if they were not referring to the Mennonite settlement at Barton’s Creek? The one group there is extremely conservative and though I have only seen a few photos of that area, I thought the very conservative Mennonites looked more like the Amish. If there is an Amish community in Belize, I have never heard of it.
Interesting to see the variant in your name. 🙂 Though there are some Amish who spell the last name as you do, most spell in Kuepfer.
I am not sure, I remember them specifically mentioning Amish, but maybe they were calling the concertative Mennonites Amish. I just thought I would mention it. My ancestors were Kuepfers from Switzerland, but somewhere along the line some of them anglicized their name to the Kipfer spelling.
Canada Amish
Hi Cassie Kipfer
You would be interested in knowing that your Swiss Amish name has not been anglicized. That’s a common misconception. Both Kipfer and Kuepfer are not uncommon spellings in the Emmental Region of Switzerland, and over time have sometimes shown up differently within a single family’s records. Most Kuepfers around Milverton/Millbank etc. in Ontario actually descend from a Kipfer family that had twin brothers who migrated at slightly different times to what became Waterloo County, pioneering near St. Agatha. They came to Upper Canada directly from the French-speaking part of the Jura Region (Le Locle, La Chaux-de-Fonds) of Switzerland but had maintained family records back in Sumiswald in the Emmental. Families had moved to more back-woods/mountainous areas due to persecution. In certain parts of Ontario a local clerk will ask a person “so are you an “i” or a “ue”? Everybody is related to some degree. Check out the cool EzraEby.com genealogy site if you don’t believe it!
Most other Ontario Amish came from Alsace and southwestern Germany. Milverton and Millbank are not the original pioneer Amish settlements as those were originally settled mostly by people from Great Britain. The Amish expanded into those areas from their own pioneer settlements, especially in Waterloo County but also parts of Perth and Oxford closer to New Hamburg/Tavistock. The Milverton area has the most Amish families now because of an old split where they became Old Order and their relatives in areas like New Hamburg, Tavistock, and Wellesley areas “modernized” en masse.
Land prices are extremely high in Perth County, the driving factor in movement to places like Bruce County, other parts of Ontario, or PEI, where you can buy four 100 acre farms for the price of one by Milverton.
Canadian Amish ended up in Upper Canada when the free-spirited guy who scouted out possible locations for settlement explored there on advice from folks he met in Pennsylvania. Mennonite families had moved from PA earlier and were doing well under the Crown in Ontario. He checked it out himself, returned to Europe to spread share the good news with others, and the rest is history. That’s why the Ontario Amish did not end up in Ohio or Indiana as you might have suspected they would have. Glad it worked out that way even though we love the USA too:))
Relative newcomers are still called “American Amish” by Ontario folks. David Luthy is a great guy – joined the Amish after having earned a post-secondary education.
quilt fabric
My brother would like to donate fabric (our mother was a dressmaker) to quilters either near Aylmer or St Mary’s as he lives in London. How may I identify anyone interested in receiving this material?
Elizabeth, try calling the people at “Suppertime Stoves” northeast of Aylmer. I know they have been involved with making comforters to send to Romania and other sewing projects for good causes. The phone number I have is 519-773-9569. If you are unable to make contact or find someone willing, Erik can put you in touch with me and I will help you find someone in either community.
Bless you for your generosity. 🙂
reply to message
Hi Mark: Thank you for the suggestion. I tried calling the number you gave but the recorded message mentioned a number of people, none of whom were Erik so I wasn’t sure how to proceed. I called Suppertime stoves but didn’t get an answer. I’ll keep trying. Elizabeth
Elizabeth, Erik runs the website we are on, but is not connected to the Aylmer Amish community at all. I called the number now to see what names are mentioned. It might be best to try Suppertimes Stoves (the Mark Stoll family) at 519-765-2316 and because they are Old Order, it will almost certainly go to an answering machine unless someone happens to be there. Simply tell them what you want and leave a contact name & number. I hope this helps!
business ethics in aylmer community
Mark.. wondering if you are familiar on the ethics.. rules..of the amish run businesses especially when pertaining to the English hiring them and business goes wrong. any guidance would be appreciated
Guidance on Ethics
Caron,
Try contacting director@amheritagecenter.com
Hope this helps.
I live in woodstock New Brunswick Canada and there is a old order Amish community here and also one in Perth Andover New Brunswick so there not all in Ontario.
Amish Communities near Ottawa/Belleville
I will be travelling to Canada from Australia in October /November and would love to be able to visit an Amish settlement if possible. My transport is limited however and understand that Belleville (where I also will be) has one nearby. Could someone be kind enough to let me know any companies that go to or nearby the area where they are.Thank you for any help you can give me.
just wondering
I was wondering if the Amish in Ontario are covered under OHIP
Amish in Edmonton and area
Hi,
please let put in contact with some Amish folk in the Edmonton and area – I would like to buy some of their goods.
Thank you and grace and peace be multiplied to you and yours,
David
David there are no Old Order Amish in Edmonton or anywhere in Alberta. The nearest are in northwestern Montana. There are many colonies of a related Anabaptist group called Hutterites in Alberta, however. Maybe this is who you are referring to.
https://amishamerica.com/the-hutterites/
New Community Starting in Manitoba
There is a new community starting in Manitoba. I understand the first few families have either just moved there from Mt. Elgin, ON, or will soon be moving.
Canada Amish
Really goood info can be found on web blog.
Cocker Spaniel Breeder
Hi we purchased a dog from a lady that helps the amish community out well since we got her the lady has moved so my question is does anyone know of an amish family in the area of Elmira or Kincardine that breeds pure breed Cocker Spaniels she is just so wonderful and we’re in love but we want a friend for her if you could let me know that would be wonderful
Thank you
Amanda
Amish / Mennonites on Manitoulin Island
I understand there are several new Amish or Mennonite settlements on Manitoulin Island. Would like to have some carpentry work done. How can I contact them?
Thank you kindly,
Mary
Amish in Quebec
Hi
Are there any Amish/Mennonite communities in Quebec?
I have heard of one between Montreal and Quebec city but can not find any info….would like contact number/address… thanks
Looking for contact info in Bruce County
Hi
We are looking for any contact information in the Chesley/Kincardine/Port Elgin area for any Amish or Mennonite people that may do land clearing of trees and stumps. The stumps, once taken out could be left on the back of the property if need be.
Any direction to assistance would be very much appreciated. Thank you.
Looking for Contact information to Amish community in Ottawa
Hi
I am looking for telephone contact information for Amish Community in the Ottawa Area.
Thank you
I am looking for Amish Mennonites in Fergus, ON
I am looking for telephone contact information for Amish Community in the Fergus, ON, N1M 2W3,Canada.
This group visited India way back in 1999.
Can contact me at feebe_anr@yahoo.com
Thank you
Trying to speak to someone from the community about the Amish perspective on Disasters
Hello! We are developing a curriculum for our Disaster and Emergency Management program on “disaster and emergency management in culturally distinct, remote, and rural communities”. We are wanting to connect with people within these communities to hear about their experiences with disaster and to hear firsthand what they would like the up and coming practitioner community to know about their community, and how they prepare for, respond to, and recover from disaster events, and areas in which they have identified vulnerabilities, capacities, and resiliency. We are struggling to find contacts in the Amish community and were wondering if you could help? We recognize that we need to honour and respect the diverse cultures that make up Canada, and we would not want to presume to be able to speak on their behalf.
I might be able to give you some contact info.
Erik, can you connect us?
Trying to speak to someone from the community about the Amish perspective on Disasters
Many thanks! I would be grateful for those contacts.
Amish food market or store
I’m looking for an Amish food store or farmer’s market in proximity to Ottawa ON. Looking for organic meat and dairy. Would very much appreciate any feedback with details.
no
Thank you Amish your are amazing people I wish for all best life
In search of Carriage maker
I am trying to locate any info reference to ” TODD CARRIAGES< PALMERSTON " Ontario.
I am restoring a carriage with his name tag on it and not sure if he had built the original or restores this one…
Any history or contact info greatly appreciated