Come on down!

Byerik March 22, 2007January 29, 2011

Around 50 Amish families are moving to start a new settlement in southern Illinois, and the natives seem pleased.

The group is moving to Saline County from the Cashton, Wisconsin Amish community.

Local Salinites look forward to having ‘good, safe neighbors’ as well as the boost to the economy they will likely experience.

They’ve even donated a camper for one family as they construct a new home.

I think I’d be happy too if Amish came to town. A bit of horse poop and buggy traffic isn’t too much to put up with.

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Amish Communities

10 Views of the Ethridge, Tennessee Amish

ByErik Wesner May 24, 2011August 14, 2023

30 Comments

Last year I visited the Ethridge, Tennesse Amish community. I was surprised to find that Ethridge is the Amish mecca of the South. For being a conservative Swartzentruber community, the place is crawling with tourists (relatively speaking, of course. Lancaster County, this ain’t). It’s also a charming place to visit. It’s got a rural feel despite the oversized tour wagons rumbling about. I hope you…

Amish Communities

Southern Indiana Amish farm

ByErik Wesner January 21, 2010September 22, 2016

2 Comments

Orange County, Indiana Amish farm photo courtesy of Cindy Seigle. Wintry weather means staying inside, mostly. Is this farmers’ favorite time of year?

Amish Communities

New Order Amish

ByErik Wesner August 30, 2010August 30, 2011

8 Comments

The New Order Amish in Amish society What distinguishes New Order Amish from Old Order Amish? New Order Amish make up only a small percentage of the total Amish population–roughly 3%. New Order Amish live in a number of states, with the largest group found in the Holmes County, Ohio settlement (around 18 church districts, or about 2,400 individuals). Visually, New Order Amish can often…

Amish Communities

10 views of Big Valley, Pennsylvania

ByErik Wesner March 16, 2011May 24, 2011

24 Comments

Following up 10 views of Lancaster County, here are 10 photos from another Pennsylvania Amish settlement. Big Valley, officially known as Kishacoquillas Valley, is home to the second-largest Amish community in Pennsylvania. Big Valley is located in Mifflin County in central PA. Here you’ll find three distinct Amish groups–Nebraska Amish (white-top buggies), Renno Amish (black top) and Byler Amish (yellow). The valley is truly a…

Amish Communities

A First Visit To Amish Ohio (24 Photos)

ByErik Wesner June 4, 2019November 29, 2020

24 Comments

If you’ve read this site for some time, you’ll know Don Burke has been a long-time contributor here, sharing his visits and top-notch photos from Amish communities around the country. For a few examples, see Don’s trips to Ethridge, Tennessee, inside a Missouri Amish home, or at an “Amish-ish” wedding. Today Don tells us the story of how he happened to first visit the Amish,…

Amish Communities

Amish “Supercounties”

ByErik Wesner March 11, 2021April 13, 2021

9 Comments

I mentioned this idea of Amish “supercounties” in a recent post. This is the term I came up with to describe counties containing a large number of individual Amish communities. For one reason or another, these are counties which have just drawn Amish to settle in them, repeatedly. An alternate term might be “Amish-friendly counties”. There is something about these counties that makes them attractive…