Inside A Plain Pennsylvania Amish Home (18 Photos)
Today a look inside a simple and plain Amish home in Springboro, Pennsylvania. This is in Crawford County in the northwest corner of the state. You’ll find Amish scattered across this county – there are six settlements, all or part of which lie within its borders. This looks like it is the settlement near Conneautville, just two churches in size.
It’s a materially plain community as you’ll see from this example. The listing explains that there is no septic system, and that “2 rooms could easily be made into bathrooms.”
Living room with classic rockers. What are those round things laid out on newspaper on the floor?
Another view of the same room.
This is a five-bedroom home.
Cozy.
What’s that on the dresser? Looks like a mini buggy.
In the kitchen.
A sink. Also notice the lamp on the wall.
Looks like a canning stove. I like the light blue doors.
Pantry.
Down in the basement.
Barn with buggy storage.
Purple martin house. These are common sights at Amish homes. Purple martins are valued because they eat pest insects like gnats and mosquitoes.
The holes in these houses are protective, keeping out larger aggressive birds like starlings. Interestingly, purple martins have developed a special relationship with humans. From Wikipedia:
Purple martins (nominate form P. s. subis) are considered synanthropic, meaning they have developed an association with humans over time and benefit from living in close proximity to them[13]. Through years of generational imprinting and nesting the eastern species has made a complete transition from nesting in the wild to relying on human-provided nesting sites. Initially difficult to get a colony started, once established, the colony will persist as long as nesting sites are available. Martins have a very strong “site tenacity” and if are successful in raising a brood, will often return to the same site to nest year after year[14].
Here’s what looks like the inside of a workshop. Someone here uses a wheelchair. I think I see a sewing machine at one end.
And this appears to be a different shop or area devoted to woodworking.
This 1,800-square-foot home sits on a little over 10 acres. It had an offer on it as of mid-May, but looks like that must have fallen through – just yesterday it was listed again. What’s your guess at the price?
The home is listed for $89,900. The agent writes that “this could be your little farm or simply life in the country.”
Bargain
Maybe this just looks like a bargain to me because I’m not considering the cost of upgrading with English amenities. Any case, it’s an appealing home.
Pears?
I could be wrong but I think the things on the floor on the newspaper are pears that are ripening up. Usually you pick the pears green and ripen them off the tree. Looks like a very nice home!
They do look pear-like. At first I thought they might be walnuts, but they look a little big for that. The timestamp on the photos is October 10th.
I thought walnuts first too, then thought about how our local plain people put those out in their drives and paths for buggies/cars to drive over to crush them, which I also think is a brilliant idea. Oct 10 might still be pears; I have a late-bearing tree that has pears ready to go at the end of September. They can stay green a surprisingly long time.
Round things
My first thought was fake charcoal from gas grill, but no reason that would be in living room for maintenance. Next was newly dug taters, also better in barn or kitchen. Rocks for a kids project is also an idea. October date tho, pears are a GREAT idea! Maybe they are handy so a neighbor will be by to get them .
Pears, usually a fruit I don’t think about, if I want something crunchy and juicy I go for an apple. But, a good pear can be an underrated treat. Pears are officially back on the radar this year.
plain penn. amish home
In the second picture you can see what looks to me like potatoes behind the chair. Could be pears.
First Home or Large House?
Perhaps this house is offered at a bargain because it needs English upgrading. It seems to be the perfect First Houme for a Amish couple, or a very large house for a English family after completion. I certainly like this house more than the Amish Ranch house in Texas. The Ranch house doesn’t seem to get enough rain for a nice veggie garden for the wife who likes doing such things, and while it already has modern conveniences, the oddly-used batteries can simply be replaced with Solar Panels. If location of the house is not an issue, then I would place the decision into the man’s hand.
I think that is why it is priced as it is (not knowing local real estate prices of course) – it is no doubt lower than a comparable home with bathrooms/conventional electrical setup would be. Which Texas ranch house are you referring to? We’ve had some Texas Amish posts here but never inside a house, just some photos from one of the businesses.
Erik,
The TX Ranch house that I’m referring to had a blue painted hallway, odly-used batteries provided electricity, and perished animal’s skulls were used for decor. Yuck! Maybe a single Amish man hunter’s cabin and a saddle making shop. Amish men do enjoy hunting and are talented entrepreneurs with only a 8th grade education. Amazing talent, yucky décor!
Nice property.
Some factors that might influence asking price.
I believe this area averages 9 feet of snow per year.
That means you could easily see more than 10 feet of snow any given winter. Remember, Lake Erie is right there.
Could you imagine trying to shovel all that snow all winter long? Even with a snow blower, that’s a task.
Needing to hook it up to electricity.
It seems most people are not ready to handle a long winter in that area with just a wooden stove or 2.
My guess is these factors limit buyers.
But I’m interested.
The use of a snow mobile is not a good suggestion for a Amish family, however, for an English family it might be the vehicle to have during winter months. How do they keep the horses hooves from slipping on icy, snowy roadways? And this might be a ignorant, but serious question: Do the Amish use buggy sleighs on snow? The wheeled buggies seem quite dangerous during snow months.
We used to spend the week of Thanksgiving at the Riverside Inn at Cambridge Springs, and would venture into Crawford County frequently. Not only is the snowfall considerable, as you have indicated, but the area has some very steep hills to navigate. I don’t know how horses manage them in the winter weather. I would think that a sleigh would be as difficult as a buggy, especially trying to stop while going downhill.
Electricity
I do not like to use propane or oil lamps indoor. In my opinion, everything solar powered is a better choice. There are some excellent solar powered products such as flashlights, ceiling lights, security lights, motion sensors, etc. Personally, I would burn my meals if I can not regulate cooking temperature. And I’m spoiled when it comes to staying cool in the summer and warm in the winter. I admire how the Amish can endure their lifestyle, when it isn’t necessary with so many Amish churches writing their own Ordnung. I know I wouldn’t be a good Old Order Amish or Schwarzenegger. IDK correct spelling.
I can’t help myself- I LOL’ed at “Schwarzenegger Amish”!
Electricity
I do not like to use propane or oil lamps indoor. In my opinion, everything solar powered is a better choice. There are some excellent solar powered products such as flashlights, ceiling lights, security lights, motion sensors, etc. Personally, I would burn my meals if I can not regulate cooking temperature. And I’m spoiled when it comes to staying cool in the summer and warm in the winter. I admire how the Amish can endure their lifestyle, when it isn’t necessary with so many Amish churches writing their own Ordnung. And since I can be opinionated at times, I’m sure I can not be a good Amish, and regardless of this fact, I will continue reading beloved Amish Romance Novels.
Pears
I agree with everyone who guessed its pears behind the rocker. While you can get the occasional crispy pear, they really arent ripe until they’re more soft. They make great canned fruit for the winter, preserves and pear butter. They can also be juiced and make great pear juice. I always have pear preserves on my canning shelf and the late fall is the appropriate time for pulling the rest of the green pears to ripen inside.
Crawford County
I can actually count seven Amish settlements (that I know of) here in Crawford. Old Order: Atlantic, Spartansburg, and Rockdale. New Order: Guys Mills and Conneautville. Unknown: Seagertown and Linesville.
Newspaper in living room
Looks like black walnuts on the newspaper in the livingroom…