We visited the Amish Country in Tennessee, the South's largest "Old Order Amish Community." The Amish went to Lawrence County in January 1944. There were three families that went there first from
Mississippi. There are approximately 100 families in the Lawrence County area with an average of 5-7 members per
household. The Amish ask only to be left alone to worship and live their beliefs. They are excellent neighbors. They prefer to associate with their own people. They have greatly
improved the land in the Lawrence County area with lots of manure, lime, fertilizer and rotation of crops. Care is taken to prevent soil erosion. All of
their farming is done with horse and without the aid of tractors or modern equipment. No
electricity is used. They have been living this way for over 300 years. The Amish derive their
livelihood from growing crops such as: corn, pepper, wheat, oats, hay, tobacco, peanuts and popcorn. They also sell fresh vegetables, milk sorghum molasses and make several household goods. In the village women sold the goods that the men brought in from the field. We bought bread and jams and fried pies from their bakery that they women had just freshly made. A guide to Amish goods and services is provided so a person can drive to the various locations to either look or buy goods from the Amish farms. As you can see by the pictures the children learn to work in the fields at a very young age as well as the men and women.
The Amish have sawmills and buggy and wagon makers in their community. The roads have a lane designated just for those whose form of transportation is by buggy. The women wear black, dark blue, green or brown dress with black aprons for everyday and white for Sunday. Teenage girls wear black caps until they marry. Men wear no collars, barn door britches, felt hats for winter and straw for summer (handmade). Buttons are used on men's shirts, trousers and underwear, but only hook and eyes on coats and vests.
