Amish History

The Amish came to New World to escape persecution. Their beliefs grew from the 'radical' Anabaptist movement.

The Amish in America live a mostly peaceful, idyllic life. But it wasn't always like that. The early years were often filled with persecution and turmoil.

The Amish trace their origins back to the Protestant Reformation of the 1500s.

In 1525, a group of Christians decided that Martin Luther's attempts to reform the Catholic church weren't enough. They didn't want a reformation, they wanted to make a brand new start based on their interpretation of the Bible.

A key symbol of this change was the belief in adult baptism rather than the infant baptism practiced by most Christians of the time. Since most of them had already been baptized as infants, this group became known as the Anabaptists, a team meaning "re-baptizers."

Other basic beliefs of the group were separation of church and state, that congregations could choose their own pastors, a rejection of military service, no swearing of oaths or loyalties and the shunning of excommunicated church members.

Because this new way of thinking was so radical, the Anabaptists soon were jailed and often killed by both Catholic and Protestant groups.

The group could have died out quickly if not for Menno Simons, who began leading the group in 1536. Under his guidance, the Anabaptists organized and began to grow. As a result, the largest group of Anabaptists became known by his name, the Mennonites.

Persecution continued, leading the Mennonites to settle in the Palitinate area of Germany, Switzerland and eventually Holland. One of the friends of the Dutch Mennonites was the great Renaissance artist, Rembrandt.

In 1693 a Mennonite named Jacob Ammann caused a controversy when he accused his fellow Mennonites of having allowed themselves to become too much like non-believers in their attempt to avoid persecution. He also felt they had strayed from the biblical teachings outlined by Menno Simons, such as communal footwashing and shunning of ex-believers.

Ammann and a group of people who agreed with him split from the Mennonites to follow those biblical teachings. They added a strict dress code that would distinguish them from non believers.

Not much is known about Ammann except that he was a man of strong convictions and was a charismatic leader. The group who joined him became known by a derivative of his last name, the Amish.

It was at about this same time that the Anabaptists heard about an experimental colony in the New World, run by William Penn. It was a place where people of all faiths were welcomed without fear of persecution.

The first Anabaptists sailed for the New World in 1683. The first Amish arrived in Pennsylvania in 1707. Most of the Amish who settled in Pennsylvania arrived between 1707 and 1756. A second wave of Amish immigrants settled in Kansas from 1815-1860.

From Pennsylvania, the Amish moved from Ohio and eventually to Indiana.

Since moving to America, the Amish have had several disagreements that led to splits.

In 1854, a disagreement over rules and regulations led a group to form the New Order Amish, or Amish Mennonites. Those who follow the original rules became known as the Old Order Amish.

In 1880, the Amish Mennonites split, forming the Conservative Mennonites. In 1928, the Old Order Amish split over the question of evangelism and modern conveniences and the Beachy Amish were formed.

Meanwhile, back in Europe, after nearly 250 years of separation, the Amish and Mennonites once again joined as Mennonites.

Amish immigrated to Indiana in 1841

Amish families have lived in Indiana for more than 160 years.

The first four Amish families to settle in Indiana arrived on June 29, 1841. Those families, a total of 24 people, came from Somerset, Pa. The families were those of Joseph Bontreger, Christian Bontreger, Joseph Miller and Daniel Miller.

To avoid swampy areas in Northwest Ohio and Northeast Indiana, they detoured through Michigan and arrived in Indiana from the north. Two families settled near Middlebury and two near Goshen.

By that fall, four more families arrived and the Amish continued to migrate to Indiana over the next several years.

The first Amish church service in Indiana was held on Easter Sunday, 1842.

There are now an estimated 18,200 Amish in northern Indiana. Most of those, about 15,000, live in LaGrange and eastern Elkhart counties. About 3,000 live in the Nappanee area.

Some people estimate that 30-40 percent of LaGrange County is Amish.

In 2001 there were about 134,000 Amish in the United States and that number will probably grow since about 75 percent of Amish children choose to remain Amish once they're grown. That's a significant number since Amish families have an average of seven children.

Copyright Heartland Amish Business Directory 2002-2003