From the AP: Four members of an Amish family died after their hired van was struck by a cement truck as they traveled home from a funeral in central Pennsylvania. The York County coroner’s office said the fourth victim, Elizabeth Esh, 22, was pronounced dead Tuesday, a day after she delivered a stillborn boy. Her relatives, brothers Emmanuel Esh, 73, and Melvin Esh, 66, were…
The North Carolina Amish community I visited a few weeks ago has a daughter settlement, in Chatham (Pittsylvania County), Virginia. A friend who visited Chatham this summer estimated around 15 families in the settlement. Janar explained that the settlers chose to move to the new location for its cheaper land, closeness to the original community, and because the settlement at Union Grove had grown too large….
The book you see here just came in the mail. It’s called Chasing the Amish Dream: My Life as a Young Amish Bachelor, and its author is Loren Beachy. You might know Loren already from his Goshen News column “The Plain Side” or other writings. More about Loren: Loren Beachy is an Old Order Amish auctioneer and elementary schoolteacher. Born in central Ohio, Beachy became a Hoosier at…
On a recent post reader Jim S commented: “Would love to read a more in-depth treatment of the Amish.” Jim Cates and Rich Stevick replied with some good suggestions. I’d like to chime in as well. The past few months, I’ve been building a huge guide to my favorite non-fiction books on the Amish (also linked at “Good Books” up there on the right in the main menu). On the list you’ll find 27…
Besides Christmas, how often do you give someone a card? Amish have been known to send all types of cards, including sympathy cards, Christmas cards, and Valentine’s cards. That also leaves aside the practice of letter-writing, which flourishes in many Amish homes (and while on the subject, we can’t forget the clever way some Amish create envelopes). One happy occasion perfect for card-sending is the arrival of a baby. Our…
The atypical Amish community at Pearisburg, Virginia (Giles County) has been described as “unique”. I’ve never been there, but we’ve heard a lot about Pearisburg–the oldest of Virginia’s half-dozen Amish settlements–from readers and contributors over the years. First, Rich Stevick has shared about this mountain settlement a few times. How about this unusual courtesy for non-Amish visitors: Several years ago at a wedding in Pearisburg, VA, we had the…
What goes up, must come down. And if it’s a barn you have in mind, the Amish might be able to help you. We’ve witnessed a lot of barns rising skyward thanks to Amish. Here is one heading in the other direction. An MLive.com photo essay tells the story of this job, which took place near Sparta in west-central Michigan. The English owner is actually dismantling the over-100-year-old…
If you missed it, Serving the Amish author James Cates answered your questions in the comments section of our previous post. I’ll share a couple of them here (plus three of my own at the end of this post). First, from Loretta: Amish often have large families and children are considered a blessing from the Lord. What I haven’t understood is why it is hush-hush…
I think we can include the classic Amish kick scooter as one of those icons of the Amish, along with the horse-and-buggy, hand-stitched quilt, straw hat, and so on. Even though many Amish don’t really use scooters (e.g. Amish in a lot of Midwestern communities), they are closely connected with the Amish in Lancaster County, where they’re visible everywhere. And with Lancaster Amish the most…
Don Burke has been on a tour of Amish settlements in the South and Midwest. These are his photos and account of the small community at Salem, Arkansas (Fulton County), one of only two Amish settlements in the Natural State. You can view more photos at Don’s Arkansas Amish Flickr album. — Nestled in the Ozarks of north-central Arkansas, within a dozen miles of the Missouri state line,…