Somewhat confusingly, the words “Nebraska Amish” often refer to the “white-topper” group of Pennsylvania and Ohio which bears that name–legacy of an associated bishop and early church members from the Cornhusker State. Less is heard about the small population of Amish who actually live in Nebraska. Amish America contributor Tom Geist today shares his visits to the handful of communities in the state. Verdigre #1 The…
Last month, contributor Don Burke gave us a look at the Kalona, Iowa Amish settlement. Don returns today with a selection of photos from the Jamesport, Missouri Amish community. At eight church districts, Jamesport (Daviess County) is the third-largest of Missouri’s three dozen+ Amish settlements, smaller than only Seymour (Webster County) and Clark (Audrain/Monroe/Randolph County). Founded in 1953, only the Bowling Green community is older among the Show-Me State’s…
Contributor Tom Geist recently shared his visit to South Dakota’s only Amish community. It was a nice post but a little short on images. Today, the photos. Hutchinson County contains a grand total of 7,187 people (as of 2012), spread over 814 square miles, or just under 9 people per square mile. By comparison, similarly-sized Lancaster County, PA has about 535 people per square mile….
South Dakota has had a spot on the Amish map since 2010, when a handful of families from Wisconsin settled near Tripp in Hutchinson County. One of our contributors, Tom Geist, recently shared a little on his visit to the Tripp Amish community. Tom writes: I was lucky enough to travel to Tripp, South Dakota on March 12th 2014. They now have 9 families there,…
The Amish community at Kalona, Iowa is the ninth-oldest, having been founded in 1846 by Amish from Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Maryland. By what we see in the first photo below, that would predate the founding of the town itself by over 30 years. This community permits a relatively high level of technology in the Amish world, including tractors used for field work. There is a…
Following our look at Adams County Amish household items, some photos illustrating life around this traditional Swiss Amish community. The Adams County settlement is the fifth largest of all, with around 8,000 Amish residents. A special thanks to our contributor who shares comments in addition to his photos below. We typically see these types of water coolers inside the house, providing the family with drinking…
Actually, it’s a “workshop and equipment shed” raising, but that’s not quite as catchy, is it? Either way, the Amish of Union Grove, North Carolina have been busy on a construction project the past few days. The proprietors of Hickory Nut Gap Farm, a business which sells specialty beef and pork near Asheville, opted for the services of the state’s only Amish community, hiring a…
Today’s photos were all (except for the first two) recently taken by a reader in the Holmes and Wayne County area. By last count there are 238 church districts in this settlement, more than any other Amish location, with over 30,000 Amish people living here. The Holmes County community is a sprawling settlement, spanning 20-some miles, as the crow flies, from north to south and east…
Maine is now home to five Amish settlements, up from three just a few years ago. Thanks to reader Judy for passing along an excellent article on the Amish of the Fort Fairfield area, in Maine’s northernmost county of Aroostook. This piece in Down East Magazine traces the path of the 6-year-old community via interviews with the community’s founder, 45-year-old craftsman Noah Yoder, and a…
Last week I made a short visit to the Pinecraft Amish community at Sarasota, Florida. I wanted to share that visit with you via a series of photos. If you haven’t heard of it, Pinecraft is an unusual Amish community for a few reasons. It is located in a city (Sarasota, population 52,811–technically just outside city limits). It is more of a vacation destination for…