Amish Country Tourism has been at odds for a long time with the simple and plain life of the Amish. This discrepancy is at the core of my 2012 book “Selling The Amish: The Nostalgia of Tourism.”
A Life Apart
The Amish are descendants of Anabaptists who fled persecution for their faith in Europe. They live primarily in rural areas, where they strive to lead a different kind of life and resist aspects of American culture that undermine the commitments of church, family, and community.
A couple of Old Order Amish drive their buggy in Berlin, Ohio. Susan Trollinger
They drive buggies pulled by horses instead of cars to live at a more leisurely pace. Stops schooling after the eighth grade to pursue their calling of following Jesus rather than chasing personal ambitions. They prohibit televisions and internet access in their homes to avoid being distracted by consumer culture. To maintain their humility, they adhere to the rules of the community, such as dressing modestly, keeping their homes small, and running a small business.
They embrace nonviolence in their quest to follow Jesus and are inspired by the story of Dirk Willems, who was jailed during the 16th century for his Anabaptist faith. Because he was committed to loving his enemy, Willems turned back after escaping. Willems’ captor was alive to see Willems burned at the stake.
Amish people refuse to take oaths or receive Social Security, and they also do not join the military. This is because they separate church from state. Amish schools don’t display an American flag or have students recite the Pledge of Allegiance.
The Amish brand
Tourist towns that have capitalized on the “Amish Brand” are filled with gift shops offering items you wouldn’t expect to see in an Amish house – Uncle Sam cutouts and Mickey Mouse yard banners. Ornate lace curtains, Elvis Presley figurines, and ornate lace drapes.
He is a scholar in rhetoric and religion. I have long been interested in Amish Country Tourism, as it appeared to me that it had little to do with Amish people.” selling the Amish was my attempt at explaining why so many Americans find Amish Country compelling.
My answer was Amish Country Tourism offered visitors a nostalgic feel of a time when Americans could imagine themselves in charge of technology, that men were called “men” and that women were called “women”, and that every family sat together to eat Mom’s home cooked meal.
Tourist towns in the region play on this nostalgia that visitors feel for a past that they can imagine. They would like the Amish to escape the cultural forces they believe have compromised America’s capability to be the Christian country that it once was.
Real life: A look at the real world
Since 2008, I have taken students from the University of Dayton to the Amish settlement in Holmes and Wayne Counties in northeastern Ohio.
The Swartzentruber Amish Farm in Wayne County, Ohio. Visitors can buy homemade treats and baskets. Susan Trollinger
We visit a New Order Amish two-room school, whose daily rules are the most relaxed among Amish. We then see a candle-making shop run by five Old Order Amish women and an Amish farm. Swartzentruber Amish are one of the most strict Amish groups. A young woman in the small shop between the woodworking shop and the house sells wood furniture and preserves made by her father. Two Amish homes also offer us meals and conversation.
The stops we make are a part of the tourism business. Many Amish earn their living in this industry. They may be crafting solid wood furniture or serving diners at Amish-style restaurants.
The Amish do not own any of the large Amish-style hotels, restaurants, gift shops, or restaurants. We spend very little time in these tourist towns because I want to allow my students the opportunity to speak with people they are studying.
I had to visit these tourist towns when I was asked to give a presentation on Amish Country Tourism last summer – a sort of update to “Selling the Amish.”
Crosses and guns
What I saw was incredible. The number of Amish congregations was the largest in the world. Nearly 40,000 Amish live in this area. They are deeply committed to peace and would prefer to be confined to solitary confinement or receive reduced rations, as they did during World War I.
On May 30, 2023, beverage containers and coffee cups will be sold in Berlin, Ohio. Susan Trollinger
The Stars and Stripes were everywhere. On T-shirts and ball caps. On decorative wreaths and candles. And, most strikingly of all, on wooden crosses. There were concrete statues of men kneeling before crosses, as well as patriotic bunting, images of Founding Fathers, and a variety of patriotic bunting. Also nearby, there were facsimiles of The Declaration of Independence, Ten Commandments, and Pledge of Allegiance.
One Berlin store had a large display of merchandise from “hold fast “, a company that says on its website that it is for “freedom loving Americans who are committed to Biblical values and want to make their voices heard.” The merchandise featured flags and messages such as “One Nation under God.” Psalm 33.112. “Hold Fast.”
I was more surprised by the home decor items that announced that “the 2nd Amendment is my permit,” along with thermoses that challenged government authorities to “come take it” (a gun) and coffee cups that listed gun calibers.22,380,9 mm,.40,.45 and declared, “All quicker than dialing 911.”
Amish Country Tourism has never been just about the simple and plain life of the Amish. Sites that combine Christian symbols and sacred text with a brand of nationalism that celebrates masculine brilliance, guns, and the military mark a further and drastic departure from the Amish way of life.
Even if you venture down a backroad and end up behind a slow-moving buggy or duck into an Amish-owned shop that sells bulk foods, handmade brushes, or half-moon pie, you can still find people who live a life that is so different from the mainstream America of today.