Old Order Amish in Indiana

The first Amish settlers in Indiana established farms in the area that is today Nappanee. Indiana is now the second largest Old Order Amish settlement (with 21 church districts) in the USA. A 125-year old Amish homestead shows how all 19th-century farmers lived and how the Old Order Amish continue to live, with some important modifications.
Christian Stahly bought this farm for his sons in 1873 -- they were the first Amish in this area. He stands beside the horse. The large farmhouse with its many additions reflects large family size and the many functions performed inside. Rainwater was collected and stored underground for household use.
Parents lived in a smaller separate adjacent house. Commonly, these quarters are attached to the main house. Although some Amish still use outhouses, many in Indiana have indoor flush toilets now. Large wood-burning stoves, some times replaced or supplemented with propane stoves, are typical. Indoor water pumps for washing in the kitchen was a major improvement. Windmills pumped water from wells.
In other parts of the house, clothing was boiled, dried, and ironed; eggs were hatched; and milk was made into butter and cheese in the spring-cooled dairy.
Eating and sleeping was and still is simple, as are the clothing: straw hats, simple shirts and pants for men; dark-colored bonnets and long dresses for women.
Large vegetable gardens and orchards are still characteristic of Amish farms, as are root cellars for the storage of potatoes, carrots, beets, and cabbages. Fruits were dried on trays inside a small building which was heated with a stove.
The farm had a smoke house for meats; a bakery; and a sugar maple shack.
Large bank barns stored the hay for the dairy cows and horses.
History of the Amish in Indiana and the Nappanee area.     Tour the surrounding countryside.

Created by Ingolf Vogeler and last revised on 06 April 2005