Amish Acres was portioned off and sold at auction yesterday in separate parcels after the owners tried and failed to find a buyer for the entire property. One set of buyers purchased the “entertainment center” containing the famous Round Barn Theatre, restaurant, and other buildings. Another tract containing the hotel was sold to a different buyer. So it looks like there is a chance that…
I hadn’t seen a story like this before. On Saturday night, a likely-impaired driver struck an Amish buggy in Ethridge, Tennessee. The crash sent a baby and her parents to the hospital. The baby was treated and released. But the parents remain in Nashville. This has left the little girl in a difficult situation. And the community has stepped up. I’m not sure if these…
This is only the latest in a lengthening line of schemes which have taken advantage of Plain community investors. From WSOC: FRANKLIN COUNTY, Pa. — A Pennsylvania accountant defrauded Amish and Mennonite community members out of $60 million after investing their money in a failing dairy he owned, investigators said. Philip E. Riehl provided accounting services to members in the religious communities. He created an…
There are sick individuals out there. This man needs to be caught so he will stop traumatizing his victims, and ultimately get some sort of help. A flasher (or “indecent exposure suspect” in official parlance) is targeting Amish women in Juniata County, Pennsylvania: According to police, a Fayette Township woman reported that on Nov. 1, 2019, a man pulled up in front of her home…
It’s been quite a while since we’ve done one of these “10 views” posts, though I used to do them regularly after visiting an Amish settlement. Ethridge was a delight to visit, and I can say the sun went down too soon. We met some friendly folks just by dropping in to local Amish stores and shops, of which there are many. I recognized some…
The latest edition of Raber’s Almanac contains additional spiritual material that I don’t recall seeing as much of in previous editions – including some Christian poems and stories. One of them caught my eye. It is a story of an encounter between two Bishops, one liberal and one more traditional. I thought this was a good story because it illustrates the tension which could exist…
Yesterday while traveling on I-81 through Tennessee I stopped in at Yoder’s Country Market (Bulls Gap, TN). This is in the eastern end of the state, the part which juts out between Virginia and North Carolina. This is one of the nicest PA Dutch-style stores I’ve come across. I call it “Amishy” because it has a very Amish feel, selling the types of things you’d…
I’ll be visiting Amish communities again over the next couple of weeks. Two of these are places I visited in the autumn, one is a community I last visited ten years ago (Ethridge), and two will be completely new for me. Jan. 30: Ethridge, TN Jan 31: Pontotoc County, MS Feb 1: Ellenboro, NC Feb 5-7: Holmes County, OH Feb 8: Pearisburg, VA This is…
Lancaster County, Pennsylvania is one of the only places* where you’ll see both gray-topped and black-topped buggies in the same community. Black is easily the most common color for Amish buggies overall. But the Amish in this best-known of all Plain communities actually drive the gray version. So who is holding the reins of the black top carriages in Lancaster County? Those would be Old…
Signs for Mattie’s Place are one of the first things cluing you in as you approach Burke’s Garden, Virginia. For about eight years now, this picturesque valley has been the site of one of the more uniquely-located Amish settlements in North America. Photo by zeesstoff/flickr “Mattie” is Mattie Schlabach. She runs one of the handful of retail businesses in the valley, a popular general store…