I remember the first time I got a sense that Amish might approach medicine a bit differently than the rest of us. I was selling books in Indiana. An Amish woman whom I met at the door casually mentioned that her children were battling whooping cough. “You’ve had your shots, right?” she asked. “Yes…I think?” One of the hazards of the job, I suppose. Well,…
The New York Department of Taxation and Finance is now requiring electronic filing of sales tax returns. And it’s causing some Amish in New York problems. Apparently there is an out–those lacking internet access can request an exemption. If they don’t, they face a $50 fine. Some Amish have been hit with this fine, though it’s not clear why–by the article, it sounds like a…
Back in January, I shared a few slides of Lancaster County, circa 1963. Here are a few more: Would today’s Lancaster Amish women consider this overdressed? Lancaster County has the second-most covered bridges of any county in America. The #1 county? Parke County, Indiana, where a group of Lancaster Amish moved in the 1990s. Here’s one in Lancaster: For those that might think Amish styles…
Beth asked yesterday about recommendations for visitors to Lancaster County. I mentioned two of my favorite towns, Strasburg and Churchtown. Strasburg is a bit more on the beaten path, Churchtown a bit more off. Strasburg in particular has a lot of beautiful historic stone and brick homes from the 1700s and 1800s (I lived here for a summer so got to know it fairly well). A…
If you dig around enough on Facebook, you’ll come across profiles of adolescents with Amish names and profile pics taken in Plain clothing. These were the catalyst for an interesting piece–“Amish youth hitchin’ up to Facebook“–in yesterday’s Lancaster Sunday News. As the article makes clear, Amish youth+Facebook is far from a universal phenomenon. I thought one insight by Steven Nolt was particularly interesting–the way…
Yes, these are Amish fellas in the photos. And no, definitely not something you see every day: These were taken at the PA Dutch festival held each summer at Reading Terminal Market in downtown Philadelphia. The event features a petting zoo, buggy rides, parade, country and bluegrass bands, and of course food. The dunk tank is for a good cause. A Lancaster friend who knows…
Tamara asked this question a couple of days ago. As she suggested, it seems like a pretty good topic. In fact, Tamara’s exact question was: “Has anyone had a very close relationship with someone who was a “member in good standing” in the Amish church?” Keith James has already shared a bit about a friend of his, an Amish bishop. Keith writes: He was 46…
Commenting on a post last week, Donna Godfrey recommended reading books by Donald Kraybill. I’d second that. The Riddle of Amish Culture was one of the first I read and I think essential to understanding the Amish. The very first book I read on the Amish was Amish Society by John Hostetler, another good one, first published in 1963 and going through a number of…
A full one-third of Delaware’s counties have Amish settlements. Okay, Delaware only has three counties (yep, that kind of sounds like a joke you’d hear an Amish guy make). Delaware’s sole Amish settlement nestles against state capital Dover. Amish have been here almost 100 years. It’s a decent-sized community, actually: 9 church districts, over 1000 people. Amish have been leaving though. Land is expensive next…
Not a 100% Amish story, but interesting nonetheless. Willy Ropp was raised Amish in Missouri and has gone on to become a champion bullrider. In an interview with ABC Australia, Willy discusses his Amish upbringing for about the first 6-8 minutes, including what life was like growing up the youngest of 12 children, how he first became interested in bullriding (sneaking away to watch the…