tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20637018.post4775116843089137408..comments2024-03-09T13:49:36.566-06:00Comments on Prairie Bluestem: Mennonites and Amish in Christian County, KentuckyGenevieve Netzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08004780820713448880noreply@blogger.comBlogger26125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20637018.post-47753838637089992612019-09-27T13:33:29.260-05:002019-09-27T13:33:29.260-05:00Commenting about this paragraph:
The church that...Commenting about this paragraph: <br /><br />The church that our neighbors attend allows its members to have telephones and electricity, but does not permit automobile ownership or voting. All motorized implements must have steel wheels (to prevent them from becoming road vehicles.) I am not sure what designation this church applies to itself, but it is not Old Order.<br /><br />I came from that specific denomination / church, and they are indeed Old Order. It's a lesser known type known as Groffdale Conference Old Order Mennonite, originating in Lancaster County Pa, and in the last 100 years have spread to about 10 states in the eastern and midwestern US. They do allow landline home phones, but no cell phones or internet. They allow a certain type of word processor that looks like a computer, but supposedly cannot be connected to internet. They do allow electricity, but no automobiles. Their tractors and other self-propelled equipment must have steel wheels. They teach that a person must follow all the rules to be a good person, but they also say they can't know if they're going to heaven or not. Linus Nolthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05402042815613998653noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20637018.post-36475011667533534862013-08-07T20:12:22.192-05:002013-08-07T20:12:22.192-05:00Welcome to the Fort Campbell area, Hipmom. Yes, th...Welcome to the Fort Campbell area, Hipmom. Yes, the people who run the Guthrie Country Pantry are Amish. You are likely to hear both Mennonites and Amish speaking Pennsylvania Dutch in this area.Genevieve Netzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08004780820713448880noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20637018.post-31140084769036498152013-08-07T13:11:52.496-05:002013-08-07T13:11:52.496-05:00Thank you so much for the information regarding th...Thank you so much for the information regarding the Mennonite and Amish communities in Christian County, Kentucky! My family I just moved to Fort Campbell from Atlanta (well we were in Korea for two years before coming here). Some of the military wives and I have frequented the Country Pantry in Guthrie which we thought was Mennonite but after reading your blog, I believe they are actually Amish. This would make sense as I heard some of the ladies in the back when I went today speaking Dutch. I suppose people think they and the bakery are owned by Mennonites since they use electricity but it makes sense if they are part of the New Order Electric Amish. I am intrigued by these communities. The longer we are here (which I am sure will be a few years or more) I will get to know more as I continue to purchase the local produce and goods that they sell to the local community! <br /> Hipmomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13546630273140130052noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20637018.post-31982627200541568992013-01-04T04:00:34.591-06:002013-01-04T04:00:34.591-06:00wow, i found out about the mennonites in our area ...wow, i found out about the mennonites in our area and also found your blog! my granfather used to constantly watch the mennonites in todd county. Just last Sunday my daughter and I were driving behind a carriage and horse down the main street in downtown Hopkinsville. We were like, "Where would they be going?"jennifer andersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00376053334977127834noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20637018.post-25246583023455389882011-05-25T00:48:37.514-05:002011-05-25T00:48:37.514-05:00One way to show respect (and also to demonstrate t...One way to show respect (and also to demonstrate that you are the sort of person they might want to know) is to dress modestly around them.Genevieve Netzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08004780820713448880noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20637018.post-31057483837124154272011-05-21T16:20:08.893-05:002011-05-21T16:20:08.893-05:00I am moving to Christian County this summer (milit...I am moving to Christian County this summer (military) and the house I'm purchasing is directly across the road from a Mennonite family. I'd really like to get to know them and be friendly with them, without being intrusive, as they're my closest neighbors, but I know very little about the etiquette that's appropriate in their community. Could anyone tell me if there are any rules/considerations I should observe? I appreciate the help and love the blog. Thanks!Bearhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01816654649895690208noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20637018.post-87894298516079790772010-10-31T12:47:57.815-05:002010-10-31T12:47:57.815-05:00The squeaky cheese is known as cheese curds, fresh...The squeaky cheese is known as cheese curds, fresh ones squeak. They are sold in the US at many grocery stores.Suzihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03958919989968252715noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20637018.post-24147138358941061752010-07-02T01:36:01.684-05:002010-07-02T01:36:01.684-05:00Thanks for your explanation, Midwest Menno. It was...Thanks for your explanation, Midwest Menno. It was very interesting, particularly the part about Quaker influence on Pennsylvania Amish and Mennonite styles of dress.Genevieve Netzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08004780820713448880noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20637018.post-70516966214951203092010-06-30T23:37:09.070-05:002010-06-30T23:37:09.070-05:00"Amish America" asks about Russian Menn..."Amish America" asks about Russian Mennonites and Old Colony Mennonites. All the "Russian Mennonites" originally came from the German speaking lands of western Europe. At the time many Mennonites and Amish were coming to PA from Europe, some of the Mennonites, Amish, and all of the Hutterites accepted the invitation of Catherine the Great to come and live along the Volga or in Ukraine in "South Russia" There they maintained their own villages, taught their children their own German dialects and practiced their religion in peace. They just were not allowed by law to convert the Russian people to their "protestant" faith. After over a hundred years of peace in Russia, the German people were eventually lost their special privileges as Germans. They were to be required to teach their schools in the Russian language, pay taxes to the Czar and fight in the Russian army. This was unacceptable so they decided to move to North America. So you see, the "Russian Mennonites" are really not Russians at all. For the most part, most Russian Mennonites & Amish were more liberal in dress and practice than their relatives who came to Pennsylvania a century earlier. From these "russian" mennonites came the conservative Church of God in Christ Mennonite or Holdermans as they are commony called. Johnny Holdeman was Amish and started his own church. He made few converts among his own people but found a ready audience among the low German Mennonites in Kansas, Nebraska, the Dakotas and the prairie provinces of Canada. Too, in Kansas and Canada was a small group of Mennonites who continued to settle and live in the small village system like they had in Russia. These people also continued to dress in the old world style like they had in Russia so their clothing style doesn't have the Quaker influence that the Pennsylvania and eastern Mennonites and Amish have, but is probably more in line with how the Mennonites actually dressed in Europe. Most Old Colony people were Canadians. In the 20's, the Canadian government wanted these people to teach their children English in school instead of conducting their own schools in German. The Old Colony people found this unacceptable so many of them moved to Mexico. Over the years they have moved to other countries further south. They, like the AMish, have made an interesting mix of things they will and won't allow from the modern day world. The Old Colony people's ancestors came from the low countries of northern Europe so the language they speak is known as Platt Deutsch or Low German which is greatly different from the Palatinate German spoken by the Pennsylvania Dutch. There are Low German people in other "Russian" Mennonite groups as well. There are also some Swiss, Volhynian Amish in the "Russian" Mennonites who speak a swiss dialect that is very high German. These people are very liberal. There are also some Mennonites who speak Hutterisch, the language of the Hutterite people. These people were at one time Hutterites but they had already abandoned communal living in Russia and went off on their own taking independent farms when coming to America and their congregations eventually joined other more liberal Mennonite groups, with many of them joining the Mennonite Brethren or the General Conference.Midwest Mennonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20637018.post-39292395775287550392010-05-26T16:59:11.150-05:002010-05-26T16:59:11.150-05:00I grew up in the Guthrie area of Todd County and t...I grew up in the Guthrie area of Todd County and there were Mennonite families in that area when I was a young child...which means late fifties. In fact, I was friends with a young girl who was related on one of the Mennonite families...her father left the group and adopted the style of the "English" which is how the Amish refer to anyone outside of their Amish and Mennonite community. I am not sure if my friend's father was "shunned" for leaving his family's faith...as a young child I never questioned it. I've been gone from that area for many years, but I do remember that they were wonderful gardeners and builders.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20637018.post-35253073940420861992010-03-10T12:47:06.863-06:002010-03-10T12:47:06.863-06:00Thank you for your comments. I do want to make cle...Thank you for your comments. I do want to make clear that it was someone else, <b>not me</b>, who had trouble with a Mennonite builder.<br /><br />I'm also going to tell you in a spirit of helpfulness, not criticism, that typing in all capitals on the internet is considered shouting. I know that you are not really shouting. You have provided some interesting information and insight. However, it will be better received (and easier to read) if you don't type in all capitals. Best wishes to you for a good day, and thanks again for your comments.Genevieve Netzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08004780820713448880noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20637018.post-6770585765464454902010-03-09T19:20:34.379-06:002010-03-09T19:20:34.379-06:00MS.GENEVENA I SAID OUR PEOPLE CAME TO TODD CO.IN T...MS.GENEVENA I SAID OUR PEOPLE CAME TO TODD CO.IN THE YEAR OF1947 BUT IT WAS 1937 MY GRANPERENTS WAS ONE OF THE FIRST PEOPLE.IM GLAD TO SEE THAT PEOPLE OR THE ENGLISH ONES ARE .LOOKING AT OUR PEOPLE .AND YOU CAN AGAIN GO TO THE BISHOP AND HE WILL TELL YOU WHAT YOU WANT TO KNOW...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20637018.post-20209752897597812332010-03-08T00:09:12.510-06:002010-03-08T00:09:12.510-06:00WELL I DONT THINK YOU KNOW ALOT YET ABOUT OUR PEOP...WELL I DONT THINK YOU KNOW ALOT YET ABOUT OUR PEOPLE JUST YET.WE CAME TO TODD CO. THE FIRST 15 FAMILYS IN 1946 @ 1947 AND THE OVER INTO FRANKLIN IN 1950 .THEYWERE CALLED THE MENNIOTE FAMILYS (WE WERE BEACHY MENNIOTES ) AND WE MADE AWAY OVRE TO AUBURN KY.WITH 14 FAMILYS ,WE DO USE GERMAN IN CHURCH IN SOME GROUPS BUT NOT ALL.MOST OF THE FAMILIES IN HOPTOWN ARE NEW OLDER. THERE ARE NOT MANY OLD ORDER PEOPLE HERE,THEY ARE MANY OLD OLDER MENNIOTES IN FAIRVIEW AND IN TODD CO, BUT YOU CAN PICK THEM OUT THE MEN ARE CLEAN SHAVED.AND THEY HAVE NO PHONES IN THERE HOMES I CAN REMEBER WHEN PEOPLE WERE VERY BAD TO US BUT TODAY MOST PEOPLE JUST GO ABOUT THERE ON WAY .WE TRY TOBE VERY GIVING AND LOVING TO EVERYONE ,IM NOT SURE WHO THE BUILDER WAS ,BUT IF YOU TELL ME WHEN CAN BRING HIM TO THE BISHOP AND THEY WILL TAKE CARE OF THIS FOR YOU.WE ARE A VERY OLD PEOPLE AND MOST OF US CAME OUT OF SWISSERLAND IN THE LATE 1600S AND AS FOR THE PRAYERCAP THEY ARE AS DIFF. AS PER DIST,GOES BUT IF YOU REALY WANT TO KNOW MORE ABOUT OUR PEOPLE AND OUR WAYS GO TO AMISH OF ELKHART IN. AND LOOK AT THE COVERINGS AND OUR WAY OF DRESS, I HAVE FAMILY ALL OVER THE PLACE FROM KY,PA,IN,KASS.MO,ILL,DELWAR,OH.COSTARICA AND MANY MORE PLACES BUT DONT EVER 4 GET WE ARE JUST PEOPLE AND WE TO FALL SHORT.AS FOR AS PHOTOS GO THERE ARE SOME WHO DO TAKE PIC,AND OURS WHO THINK YOU ARE GOING AGAINST THE 10 COMMS, I WOULD NOT TAKE ANYTHING AWAY FROM WHAT I WAS TAUGHT .BUT I BELIVE ACTS 2.38 AND THERES IS NO OTHER WAY BUT THAT,,SO I ASK IF YOU DO TALK ABOUT OUR WAYS PLEASE NO THE TRUTH ABOUT IT YOU CAN AWAYS GO TO ONE OF THE BISHOPS AND THEY WILL TELL YOU WHAT YOU WANT TO KNOW AS LONG AS YOU GO IN PEACE AND LOVE DONT BE 2 OUTWARD TO HIM.. GOD BLESS AND KEEP YOU ALWAYS ,, PS ABOUT OUR DRESS 1ST TIMOTHY TELLS YOU WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW FRO ANY OF US AS CHRIST LIKE SHOULD DRESS AND 1ST CORINTHIANS CH 11.ITS VERY PLAN .1ST TIMOTHY CH 2 4--14 WILL HELP YOU.UNDERSTAND MORE ABOUT US AGAIN THANK YOU GODS SPEED TO EACH OF YOU..ONE OF GODS CHILDREN...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20637018.post-50724693794326608362010-01-09T20:39:49.395-06:002010-01-09T20:39:49.395-06:00Anonymous, there is a common misconception that be...Anonymous, there is a common misconception that because the Mennonites and Amish live simple lives, they are all saints. The truth is, all of them are <i>sinners</i>, just as you and I are. They are just people, you know. As one of our Mennonite neighbors once told my husband, "There are good ones and bad ones." <br /><br />And, within the Mennonite church, some are more serious about their Christian walk than others. That's not too unusual. If you are a church-going person, I'm sure you can think of some in your congregation who seem a lot more Christ-like in behavior than others.<br /><br />I am sorry that you have had a bad experience with a Mennonite builder and that you have problems with your Mennonite neighbors. I can only say that we have a congenial relationship with our Mennonite neighbors.Genevieve Netzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08004780820713448880noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20637018.post-68595382423413633392010-01-09T02:09:11.258-06:002010-01-09T02:09:11.258-06:00I live in Todd Co, and I have had to change my way...I live in Todd Co, and I have had to change my way of thinking about the Mennite families that live around me, I really held a lot of respect for the Mennite ways and beliefs, until I had a difference of opinion with a local Mennite builder, and since then I have come to see them in a different light " common theives", I think they are very rudd and very bullish in thier ways, " My Mennite neibors will steal white off paper!!!!!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20637018.post-27404980507019182372010-01-03T01:49:44.714-06:002010-01-03T01:49:44.714-06:00Thanks for sharing your experience and insights, M...Thanks for sharing your experience and insights, Melanie.Genevieve Netzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08004780820713448880noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20637018.post-29829411310729796802010-01-01T19:30:01.279-06:002010-01-01T19:30:01.279-06:00Hello,
Thank you for the blog!I stumbled across i...Hello,<br /><br />Thank you for the blog!I stumbled across it this New Year’s day while looking up “Mennonites 1874,” which is the year my great grandparents immigrated from the Molotschna Colony to Kansas. It is nice to see persons recognizing that Mennonites come in many varieties, my family being one of the more liberal segments. <br /><br />As a child I attended a Mennonite church in California. I do not imagine persons passing bye the church had any idea they were looking at “Mennonites” as everyone drove cars, hair was uncovered, and even the older women and men had wedding rings, etc. I wasn't really aware of rules of clothing being enforced. Really, in many instances it is only a person’s name that gives them away, and then only to insiders. Names like Unruh, Penner, Ratzlaff, Gerbrandt, Schmidt, Hildebrandt, Jantzen, etc. <br /><br />These days, many Mennonites are not at all associated with farming. In my own family there are Ivy league educated professors, chiropractors, persons working in television, missionaries, high rise welders, etc. And as you probably know, they have quite a presence on the Internet! <br /><br />For me, it is more of a cultural thing as I never actually was baptized in the Mennonite Church, although the vast majority of mother's family were. It is my heritage and history. Like Catholics, Lutherans, and Jews there are degrees. Further, Mennonites have their share of the unkind, drug use, abuse, etc. They are people and faulted as we tend to be.<br /><br />I want to mention a little about the language my grandparents spoke. I grew up understanding it as a variety of Low German, which is consistent with this article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Low_German. Clearly, the term Pennsylvania Dutch is a modern term coined by the English. I suspect that there are variations in the language, depending on where a family immigrated from and settled. "Pennsylvania Dutch" may in fact be a dialect special to that that. I do not know.<br /><br />Best wishes,<br /><br />MelanieAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20637018.post-73648284065215771582008-09-12T06:56:00.000-05:002008-09-12T06:56:00.000-05:00I think the cheese you are talking about may be wh...I think the cheese you are talking about may be what is known as "cheese curds." I've bought them in Virginia in a local Mennonite cheese shop. They are an essential ingredient in poutine, a popular Canadian dish.She'saPistolhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07514350982585132835noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20637018.post-21317497388068392622007-03-14T17:21:00.000-05:002007-03-14T17:21:00.000-05:00The cheese is also know as queso blanco. It's a po...The cheese is also know as queso blanco. It's a popular latin american cheese. It doesn't melt... well :) due to how it is made. It's nice because you can make it in very hot weather and it will still turn out unlike many hard or even soft cheeses that often culture around 70ish degrees F. You can even deep fry it if you want to. Great in stir fry! <BR/><BR/>Thanks for the great information!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20637018.post-66641981531470843942007-03-12T20:09:00.000-05:002007-03-12T20:09:00.000-05:00I did look at those photos, and I am sure the chee...I did look at those photos, and I am <I>sure</I> the cheese must have come from that colony of Mennonites. <BR/><BR/>At the market, the vendors (just regular Bolivian people) had huge rounds of the Mennonite cheese and they would slice off a kilo or 500 grams or whatever you wanted. We ate a lot of it. The cheese really didn't melt much, but we put it on bread and set it under the broiler sometimes. <BR/><BR/>The white hats that the ladies were wearing looked familiar. I never did take any photographs of them because I didn't want to be rude, so I have to rely on my memory!Genevieve Netzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08004780820713448880noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20637018.post-1458178972231650312007-03-12T17:53:00.000-05:002007-03-12T17:53:00.000-05:00That's really neat. Do you know if those were Old...That's really neat. Do you know if those were Old Colony Mennonites like in Jordi's photos?<BR/><BR/>That 'squeaking cheese' sounds familiar--I live in Krakow in Poland part of the year and in the mountains to the south they make a sheep's cheese called oscypek. It squeaks, and almost feels like it cleans your teeth when you eat it.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20637018.post-33097242449415097762007-03-11T23:41:00.000-05:002007-03-11T23:41:00.000-05:00Our cabinetmaker, the "Russian Mennonite" told me ...Our cabinetmaker, the "Russian Mennonite" told me that his family all lives in southern Texas and they own some land in northern Mexico. My impression is that his family immigrated to this continent from the Ukraine.<BR/><BR/>We lived in Santa Cruz, Bolivia, (in Bolivia's lowlands) from 1980-1982. There seemed to be a large Mennonite settlement there. We saw them in town with their horses and wagons. The ladies didn't make many concessions for the hot climate in their costume. I always felt sorry for them. <BR/><BR/>They made a great cheese that was known locally as "queso mennonito" or "Mennonite cheese". It was a white cheese that sometimes squeaked a little between your teeth. I've never found anything quite like it in the U.S.Genevieve Netzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08004780820713448880noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20637018.post-77317018850049926352007-03-11T17:04:00.000-05:002007-03-11T17:04:00.000-05:00Ah, I see I botched the html for the link...if you...Ah, I see I botched the html for the link...if you are interested, Jordi's photos and South American Amish are the Feb 22 post at the blog.<BR/><BR/>Thanks(:Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20637018.post-37274558543151335722007-03-11T16:55:00.000-05:002007-03-11T16:55:00.000-05:00Hi Genevieve, just got a chance to check your blog...Hi Genevieve, just got a chance to check your blog out again since I posted the comment--thanks for the great response. I posted a link to it in my latest blog entry for March 11: http://amishamerica.typepad.com/<BR/><BR/>It was very interesting to hear about the wide variety in your area. I really am not as up on the mennonites as I am on the Amish. I wonder about the Russian and Canadian Mennonites you mentioned--could those be related to Old Colony Mennonites? <BR/><BR/>You might know already, but that is a really fascinating group that originated in Russia, or rather Ukraine I believe, and now mostly lives in South America and Canada. <BR/><BR/>I did an entry a couple weeks ago on a photographer who lived with them in Bolivia, Jordi Busque. Jordi told me he spent 7 months on a photo trip (and nearly died along the way) and lived in some of their communities as well as with an unusual single family in the jungle that called themselves Amish, and said they originated in Tennessee. His photos are absolutely incredible. That post and link are at http://amishamerica.typepad.com/amish_america/2007/02/amish_in_the_ju.html<BR/><BR/>About the German, I am no expert on it, but I've had many Amish tell me that they can somewhat understand German tourists, if they slow down enough when the talk. The Amish tell me what they use in church they call 'High German'. <BR/><BR/>Pennsylvania Dutch is a blast for me to listen to anyway, even though I have no clue about German--I love how every here and there out pops the odd English word that they have adopted into the dialect, so you can at least sort of follow what they're saying. <BR/><BR/>By the way, I have to admit to being a bit envious of you, being able to live in an Old-Order populated area--that must be fantastic--I have only lived in Amish areas usually for short periods of about 3 months at a time. I always love it, and at least I've had a chance to visit a lot of different communities that way. <BR/><BR/>Thanks again!<BR/><BR/>Erik/Amish AmericaAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20637018.post-75595362061749005932007-03-07T23:16:00.000-06:002007-03-07T23:16:00.000-06:00I'm glad you enjoyed reading it, James. Our Menno...I'm glad you enjoyed reading it, James. Our Mennonite neighbors speak "Pennsylvania Dutch" among themselves. It is actually a German dialect that is heavily influenced by English. Pennsylvania Dutch is mentioned in the Wikipedia article, "<A HREF="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_in_the_United_States" REL="nofollow">German in the United States</A> <BR/><BR/>I don't speak German very well but I sometimes catch a few words in a Pennsylvania Dutch conversation. There's quite a bit of English thrown in too.<BR/><BR/>My neighbor Clarence says that a native speaker of German wouldn't understand much Pennsylvania Dutch, but I don't have any idea if he's right about that or not.<BR/><BR/>Before we had a Mennonite school in the immediate neighborhood, our neighbor Kathryn home-schooled their children (in English.) She mentioned to me once that she was also teaching the children German because that was the language of their Bible. That would be, I guess, High German. I am not sure if it is a <I>modern</I> High German, though.<BR/><BR/>I once took a German girl with me to the Amish store near Guthrie, KY, and she had a look at their Bible and quite an intense discussion (in English) with the Amish lady about it. She told me later that it was definitely written in German, but it seemed to her to be an archaic form of German. I guess it was kind of like reading the <A HREF="http://www.prca.org/books/portraits/tyndale.htm" REL="nofollow">Tyndale Bible</A> would be for English speakers.Genevieve Netzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08004780820713448880noreply@blogger.com