P.L. Gaus's Blog: From Ohio's Amish Country, page 11

Photos From Ohio's Amish Country: Spring-46

On the best spring days in Holmes County, Ohio, we get images like this one.  It's the type of thing that makes having a camera so much fun for me in Amish Country.  Every Amish farm is different and unique, and this one is no exception.  It is on the upper end of the prosperity scale, and the family here is doing very well.  Just because they are Amish doesn't mean that they are poor.

Photos From Ohio's Amish Country: Spring-45

Here is one of the "New Order" (or let's say "newer Order") Amish buggies in Holmes County.  We can tell that this is not an extreme Old Order buggy, because there are reflectors on the back and mirrors on the front of the rig.  Also there are roll-down side storm flaps.  Schwartzentrubers don't allow those features on their buggies.  But how do we know this isn't one of the buggies of the most liberal New Order sects?  It's the wheels that tell us.  They are not rubber padded for comfort.  Instead the wheels have plain wooden rims.  So this is not one of the most conservative Schwartzentruber Amish buggies, but it is not one of the Newest Order buggies either.  Mirrors, reflectors, and rubber-padded wheels are some of the features to look for when thinking about an Amish buggy.  Schwartzentrubers don't make any effort to make their buggies more comfortable or more safe.  They believe they have a more sophisticated level of faith, trusting in God for everything, especially for their safety.  To my way of thinking, it just makes them more dangerous out on the roads.

Photos From Ohio's Amish Country: Spring-44

A softball game is underway here at recess, at an Amish school in Holmes County, Ohio.  The kids are dressed in standard blues and blacks.  The girls are in their everyday long dresses, and the boy's long-sleeved shirts are rolled up to the elbows for business.  I watched this game for about a half-hour, and it turned out that the girls were better hitters than the boys.  It didn't seem to matter much what the rules were.  They were all out there to throw, catch, hit, and run.  I know a couple of pro baseball teams who could benefit from some of this.

Photos From Ohio's Amish Country: Spring-43

Unless I am touring Holmes County, Ohio, I don't give much thought to milk.  It comes from the grocery store, and it comes in several varieties.  I've decided that skim milk is the best for me, but no self respecting Amish farmer would have anything to do with that.  They drink whole milk, and they milk the cows by hand.  They don't use vast herds and sanitary machines.  That's why the government regulations require that Amish whole milk be used only for the production of cheese and cheese products.  I have wondered, though.  If I drove down this lane and asked for a glass of whole milk, would I get some?  Would I like it?  On both counts, probably not.

Photos From Ohio's Amish Country: Spring-42

Here is a classic Holmes County scene - an Amish farmhouse and windmill.  Well water, a wood burning stove, kerosene lamps, and plain living are the order of the day here.  You remind yourself that it is the twenty-first century, but here you find yourself thinking back to the nineteenth century instead.  The only thing the image needs for classic authenticity is a trail of white smoke from one of the chimneys.

Photos From Ohio's Amish Country: Spring-41

The Guggisberg cheese factory and showroom is a wonderful place a few minutes north of Charm, Ohio on SR 557. They use milk from Amish dairy farms in the region, and they make a great many varieties of cheese.  The heritage and decor here is decidedly Swiss, and it's not surprising that their best selling cheese is Baby Swiss.  If you are going to be touring in Holmes County, this would be an excellent place to visit.

Photos From Ohio's Amish Country: Spring-40

Here is an Amish farm, with two residences, several outbuildings, a complex of tobacco-red barns, and a windmill.  When I took this photo a month ago, the field in the foreground still had its stubble of corn from the autumn harvest.  By now it will have been plowed, harrowed, and maybe even seeded.  The long winter of 2013-2014 in Amish country is finally drawing to a close.  Even so, we may still have snow in northeast Ohio.

Photos From Ohio's Amish Country: Spring-39

Milk cans, a country-lane mailbox (obscured by the horse) and an Amish buggy make this Holmes County, Ohio.  The untilled field makes this early spring.  The far left corner patch of blue sky makes this improbable weather for the season.  Then again, to start with, the entire scene is improbable for the twenty-first century.  Here in northeast Ohio, we have our history living beside us.

Photos From Ohio's Amish Country: Spring-38

What is parked in your driveway?  I'd bet it's not a horse and buggy.  I took this photo from the parking lot of an adjoining church, and I watched the woman driver unload groceries like anybody would have done.  It's just that she was driving a buggy, not a car.  And the house is a nice one, right?  If the buggy weren't there, you'd have no reason to expect that this was an Amish home.

Photos From Ohio's Amish Country: Spring-37

Here is an Amish couple out for an afternoon drive.  What could be more relaxing?  A blue sky, the rhythm of the horse, and no good reason to hurry.  Most runners I know would overtake and pass this rig with little difficulty.  The pace of Amish life in Holmes County is remarkably slow.