The Amish of Webster County

The Amish here in Webster County, Missouri, are resisting the progress of the 21st century. They are “Old Order Amish,” which means plain ways—buggies with no tops, no enclosed cabs, no rubber tires and plain black paint. Most of the Amish here are of Swiss-German descent. They settled in Webster County in 1968, acquiring many old rundown farms and restoring them to successful, diversified farming operations. Friendly people, they are interesting and make good friends and neighbors.

While a young man’s ambition is to own his own farm and raise his large family without having to leave the farm to work, prices for necessities have forced him to seek work away from home, usually as a carpenter. From father to son, the skills of all phases of the construction trade are handed down.

The Amish women, not unlike their husbands, hand down their skills to their daughters. They are highly skilled in maintaining a comfortable well-ordered home. They grow huge gardens and preserve what they grow. They sew all clothing for their large families, do all the laundry without the convenience of electricity, quilt beautifully, help with the outside chores and do all of the things a housewife is required to do in any household. They are busy from before sunup to after sundown.

The Amish are very frugal people and are highly respected for their honesty. A few things they do not allow themselves to possess are television sets, radios, automobiles or any motor-driven vehicles, telephones, electricity, indoor plumbing (except for pitcher pumps at the kitchen sink), insurance, government pensions or Social Security income.

However, it is not all work and no play for the Amish. They enjoy “frolics” (where they all get together and build a house or barn for a neighbor or relative), quilting bees and singing (they sing without the accompaniment of musical instruments and they yodel just like they do in the Swiss Alps). They travel a lot from community to community and out of state for weddings and visits to family and friends. They hire drivers with vans or buses to carry them, and there is always a van full of eager travelers. Weddings are large—often with as many as 400 people in attendance, traveling from other Amish communities in other sates. This is a time of fellowship and is certainly an exciting time for the whole community.

Church is observed every other Sunday, being held in individual homes. Lunch is served to as many as 200 people by the host family. Young people play softball, basketball and other active games, and the young men are strong wrestlers.

The Webster County Amish once sent their children to public schools through the eighth grade. However, with the public schools adding computers and modern technology, they felt they must establish their own schools. They didn’t want their children contaminated by outside influences.