May 29, 2008 - Lancaster, PA

Today we went to the visitor center to get information about the various towns nearby and find out where some of the covered bridges were located. We left the visitor center and drove to the town of Intercourse. The town was founded in 1754 and named Cross Keys after a local tavern and renamed in 1814. Its name is believed to have evolved from either the entrance to the old racecourse (the Entercourse) just outside of town or from the joining, or intercourse, of the Old Kings Highway and the Wilmington-Erie Road. There were several stores selling Amish and Mennonite crafts including quilts and furniture. We made a stop at the Kitchen Kettle Village. The village contains 32 stores. We went into a leather store and Larry bought a new wallet. We then went into the Smokehouse where we sampled cheeses and pretzels. We bought some hot pepper cheese and some pretzel balls about the size of a marble.

We left Intercourse and drove back to the Amish Experience location where we had tickets for a farm tour. This facility was located half way between Intercourse and Bird in the Hand. Names of the towns are very unusual. We had lunch in their restaurant just before the tour. The place mat on the table had some interesting facts about Pennsylvania such as the number of farms in the state. 58,105 farms with 7.7 million acres of farmland with the average size farm being 133 acres. 92% of farms are family owned, 6% are partnership, 2% are family corporations and less than 1% are corporate owned. PA has 2,164 Christmas Tree farms, more than any other state. They produce more than 465 million pounds of mushrooms per year, more than any other state.

Amish children go to school until the 8th grade. After completing the eight grade they could apply to the Bishop for approval to become teachers. They could only teach for four years and the teacher was paid $1 a day per student.

The bus tour took us through several Amish districts where we could see the size of the some of the Amish farms and dairies. Many of the farm owners are very wealthy. We made a stop at a Mennonite Bakery where the employees were all Amish. We bought some shoo fly pie and an apple pie. The shoo fly pie is mostly brown sugar and molasses. Not bad but very sweet. We continued our bus tour and saw some small buildings that looked like outhouses. The guide explained that those buildings were their telephone booths. Phones and cell phones are allowed but not in the house. To make your phone calls, you would have to go out to the phone booth.

Out next stop was the Riehl farm house. This family allows the bus tours to come there and they have a separate building where they sell Amish crafts and beautiful quilts. We first went into their garage to look at their buggies. The first buggy was their main buggy. It had two long benches inside. All the exterior lights ran off a batter that was placed underneath the carriage. There were two holes through the front of the carriage for the reins to come through. The wheels are made of metal. The Bishop does not allow them to use rubber on the wheels because that would let them wander too far from home. The average Amish family usually has 6 to 7 children so sometimes they need to add a board to the front bench which extends seating out the side of the carriage. It was hard to imagine eight people inside the carriage. The other carriage had a flat bed behind it similar to a pick up truck design. That was used to get supplies to and from town.

Leaving the garage, we went to the barn area. The picture on the right is a skooter that the Amish use.

There were a couple of young calves in separate stalls. Then a place for the horses. They buy retired race horses that are trotters and pacers. The milking cows are kept inside the barn in individuals small stalls on a short tether. They feel that if the cow is allowed to roam outside it builds of the muscle in the cows and their milk isn’t as good. The cows are milked twice a day. A lot of the milk from Lancaster is used at the Hershey Chocolate Factory. Tractors are only allowed because they use the diesel engine to pump manure into the spreader. The wheels are made of steel and are not allowed on the streets. They may not be used to plow the fields. After the barn tour, we went to the shop where they sell their crafts. Bird houses, dolls, and quilts. The quilts were absolutely beautiful. The house and gardens were immaculate and, as the wife told us, it was a lot of hard work.

Our tour guide informed us that the Amish pay property tax, sales tax, public and Amish school tax. They do not have insurance. They contribute money to a fund in the church. Then the money is their for the families if they need it for medical, etc. If there isn’t enough money in the fund, then they have fund raisers - bake sales, etc.

We drove by a cemetery. When a Amish person dies, the family calls an undertaker and the undertaker takes the body, embalms the person and places him/her in a wooden casket, then returns the casket to the Amish home. The body is washed and dressed by the family. The body/casket remains in the home for two days while several of the men dig a hole at the cemetery. Then there is a viewing with family and friends. Finally the body is laid to rest at the cemetery. The tombstones are very simple and are inscribed with the name, birth and decease dates. The bodies are buried behind the tombstones and the tombstones are always facing East. They believe that God will return from the East.

The last stop was at the Mount Hope Wine Gallery. We sampled four wines and most of them were rather sweet. The tour guide said that the Amish drink wine and they also use it in their Communions twice a year. We bought a couple of bottles of wine and a wall tile. The bus returned us to the Amish Experience Center. When we got off the bus we walked to the Amish house for the next part of our tour.

The second part of the tour was an Amish house. We started our tour in a room with benches. The tour guide said that these were the type of benches used for church services. The Amish territory is divided up into districts. Each district would have about 30 families. They do not have churches - they have their church in the homes. Once a year each family would take their turn having the church services at their home. Approximately 100 - 250 people would attend these services. Some times the group would be too large for the house and would spill out into the yard or be held in the barn area. The men would enter one door and the women another door. They would sit on benches - with no backs - for about three hours. The first hour was singing hymns and the second hour was a sermon. After services the hosting family was expected to serve lunch. The youngest ate last and often young kids were seen going home to eat because this whole process took several hours before they would get to eat.

We went into the boys room where several boys would sleep together. The windows of the house were all covered with green pull down shades. Furniture was simple and there was a flashlight to read by. The boys clothes consisted of pants and plain shirt. The outfit for church consisted of black pants with side pockets only, suspenders, white shirt, black vest and black jacket with a black hat. No buttons (only snaps), jewelry or anything flashy was allowed in the church.

Next was the girl’s room where again several girls would share. When a girl turned 16 her father would provide her a private bedroom. Her clothes too were simple. Plain dresses with black aprons and a blue bonnet. The blue bonnet was work until they were 13. The outfit for Church was a plain dress with a white apron over it and black high top shoes.

The parent’s room was next. Their clothes hung on hooks on two different walls. On top of the dresser was a basket called a Kavli. It is a special basket used as a diaper bag to take to church.
We saw the living room where the wife had her quilting frame and the various furniture where the family sat together and played games or read. They had a lamp on wheels which held a propane tank inside for their light.

The kitchen had a big round table for dining with a hanging propane light. The stove and refrigerator ran off of propane. The peddle sewing machine was off to the side. They are now buying new sewing machines and running them off of battery power so the women can have all their fancy stitches.

The living room didn't have much furniture. The light in the middle of the room was on wheels and ran off of propane. There were a couple of wooden children's games also.

At 16 years of age you have to decide whether you want to become Amish or go into the outside world. Just because you were raised Amish doesn’t make you Amish. Some of them want to go to college first. Some kids get a driver’s license and buy a car. A few of the parents allow the car on their property and yet others insist that the car be parked some where else. No electricity or vehicles are allowed in the Amish community. . When you decide to become Amish some time after 16 years of age, you are then baptized. These ceremonies take place every two years. You must be baptized prior to getting married.

You must get the approval of the Bishop and the girl’s father before courting her. Amish only marry Amish. They need to be sure of their choice because there is no divorce. The weddings usually take place during October, November or December because the crops have already been brought in and everyone would be available for the wedding. The wedding takes place in the bride’s home from 8:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. and about 300-400 people will attend. It is a special honor to be asked to help with the wedding reception. The bride wears a plain colored dress with a white apron, no make up and no jewelry. They usually serve roasted turkey and have celery on the table for good luck. No wedding gifts are brought to the wedding reception. During the months of January, February and March, the bride and groom will visit the attendees and receive their presents.

The final part of our tour was in a theater in a barn setting with projected film images on five different areas in the theater. It was a story describing the Amish life through Jacob Fisher and his family. The title was “Jacob’s Choice.” It explained the difficult decision Amish youth face - to join the faith or live in the outside world. It was very interesting and well done.

It had been a full day of touring and we were glad to be at our RV. We watched an Amish couple drive their horse and buggy up and down the roads of our campground selling their fresh baked goods. The buggy had been specially designed to carry their bakery items. He walked behind the buggy ringing a bell and she drove the buggy.