Abner the bookbinder
Last week, an excerpt from The Amish Way mentioned a gentleman named Abner, a deceased Amish historian whose trade was bookbinding. Abner was apparently quite a remarkable person who touched a lot of...
View ArticleFriday brain dump: news, updates, semi-random thoughts…and one odd photo
It’s Friday, and a good day to clear the deck. Here are some news bits, updates, and mental flotsam from Amish America-land: Comments are now enabled on all Amish Online Encyclopedia entries. I held...
View ArticleFriday brain dump: Lone Star Amish, getting hitched, and an Illinois buggy...
It’s become something of a habit to share a few thoughts, comments, and links every couple weeks in what I call a “brain dump”. It’s not as scary as it sounds: Reader Steve recently asked “Where are...
View Article“Amish Country” on the label: Deception or fair game?
“I see this in the food industry. There’s quite a few organizations here locally that will sell using “Amish”. And what they’re trying to do is create the perception that it does come from Amish...
View ArticleGroundhog Day Brain Dump: Punxsutawney Amish, “Grundsow Lodges”, and the...
Happy Groundhog Day! (UPDATED BELOW) Something tells me that with the weather lately, old Punxsutawney Phil might just see his shadow, dooming us to 6 weeks more winter. Punxsutawney, of course, is...
View Article“Shadowy” Amish raw milk smugglers
I don’t know if the video I just watched-entitled “Amish Smugglers’ Shady Milk Run”–was intended to be funny, but I couldn’t help but chuckle. Technically, I guess you do call someone who brings in...
View ArticleThe Amish of Juniata County, Pennsylvania
Say the words “Pennsylvania Amish”, and Lancaster County inevitably comes to mind. But Pennsylvania is a state covered with Amish settlements, with over 50 as of 2010 (see Young Center 2010). The...
View ArticleYours truly in the Pinecraft Pauper
It took a little arm-twisting, but I’m finally posting a piece about–well–me, written by “Captain Ahab”, aka Rich Stevick. Not because it wasn’t good, because as regular readers of the Pinecraft...
View ArticleWhat does “wealth” mean to you?
“We could probably build a better car than Detroit can. I will go out on a wing and say that. I honestly believe we could do that.” It’s not often you hear an Amishman make such a claim. But it almost...
View ArticleAmish shoe repair
I have a favorite pair of shoes. They’re cold-weather hikers, originally waterproof but after a few years of use, not so much anymore. That’s not the problem, though, as apparently a tiny hole has...
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