Of the ten people involved in the Amish van accident last week, only one survived – an approximately two-year-old Amish boy named Micah Schrock. Not long after, an account emerged of how the boy made it through the catastrophic wreck in west-central Wisconsin. A former Marine named Nathaniel Jahn was fortunately on the scene right as the accident happened. From the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: The…
Some very sad news following a road accident in Wisconsin Friday. A vanload of Amish people was struck by a semi in Clark County (west-central Wisconsin) while on a trip to visit family. From the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel: As many as 7 of the 9 people killed in the second-deadliest crash in state history Friday are members of an Amish community from Burke’s Garden in…
What is a typical “Amish” first name? Well the answer to that question, at least in some communities, seems to change – a lot – over time. Jim Halverson shares an interesting feature in Die Blatt, an Amish publication out of the large northern Indiana settlement. They’ve compiled and published the first names Amish parents gave their babies in 1983, 2003, and 2023. Looking at…
After a heavy news week, I just wanted to leave you with a story which – while I’m not quite sure you can call it “good” news – it’s at the least a count-your-blessings type of story. There’s not a ton to this, but it’s been reported that an Amish family was able to escape a house fire in a community in upstate New York….
I recently sat down for an hour-long conversation with Marlene Lehman, who is a member of an Old Order Amish church in the Shipshewana, Indiana area. I really enjoyed speaking with Marlene as we talked about life in northern Indiana, how things have changed, tourist visitors, things she misses about the farming life, and what Marlene does to help run Plain & Simple magazine, along…
A rather bizarre story has been making the rounds, from all the way over in Greece. A family has been discovered living in very basic conditions, and subsequently compared to the Amish in the media. But is that a good comparison? From Greek Reporter: Police recently arrested the father of a family living an “early Christian” community lifestyle in a basic hut on the Peloponnese…
The current Amish population stands at around 385,000 people, based on estimates from the Young Center at Elizabethtown College (or perhaps a bit more than that, since they came out several months ago). Personally, it’s remarkable to look back and consider how much the Amish have grown in the time I’ve known them. In fact, I came across an old post the other day where…
A Michigan man has been arrested for threatening violence against an Amish family, while equipped with a large knife. But when you actually read this story, you’ve got to wonder why it took so long. The incident occurred in Manistee County, though the man is said to be from Clare (also home to a significant Amish population). From upnorthlive.com: On Monday, Aug. 7, 2023, a husband…
Here’s a highlight reel of Amish America videos made over the past year. I took about a six-month break from making videos, from May to November (the reasons for which I discussed in this video), but still put out close to 30 videos in 2023. Here are some favorite moments from those videos in one 18-minute compilation. You’ll find a playlist containing all the featured…
Thanks again for another nice year. As we usually do this time of year, here are some favorite posts of the past 365 days – most commented, most viewed, or just ones that stood out for other reasons. In more or less chronological order. On another note, The Amish State Guide pages are getting long-overdue updates. These were some of the first pages I created…