My Mennonite Neighbors

[sjerden]

Here's some photos I've taken of my Mennonite neighbors. They started moving in around me about 10 years ago from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. So these are from the original settlement of Mennonites. They are Old Order Mennonites. Some might call them Amish, but when I ask them, they say they are Mennonites. I have one who bought the 80 acre field across from me. Most of these photos are of him. When I ask him if he minded if I take pictures of him he said he didn't mind, but "he wasn't going to pose for one".

Most of these I took from my front yard.


Planting corn


Laying plastic mulch


Laying plastic mulch







Tilling his 20 acre truck patch


100 hp Duetz Air Cooled Diesel



Spreading manure


Another Mennonite mowing wheat straw

 

[CBW1999]

Always interesting to see people living this way. There are times I truley think that they "get it" much more than the rest of us.

I would suspect they are good neighbors to have around.

 

[sjerden]

Always interesting to see people living this way. There are times I truley think that they "get it" much more than the rest of us.

I would suspect they are good neighbors to have around.

They are the best neighbors to have around. Always friendly and willing to help. The children are well behaved. You can trust them with anything.

 

[dmccarty]

To each his own I suppose. :laughing: I "get" the idea of saying away from SOME modern technologies and conveniences, but when they use a team of horses to pull a big honking engine, they kinda loose me there.

I will forever be thankful for the help the Mennonites gave to people in NC after the Floyd flood. If the Mennonites want to pull a big oil burner behind a team of horse, so be it. I don't think I will ever know WHERE those Mennonites came from though. I should have asked when I had the chance, but the Mennonite women saw me waiting for someone, meaning I was not doing when I could be doing, so they put me and my team to work. :laughing::laughing::laughing:

Later,
Dan

 

[Cub 7274]

I cannot imagine how loud that engine must be sitting there and the heat wow

 

[seymojo536]

Speaking on behalf of "New Order" Mennonites, we consider them Amish too.

 

[MIKE R]

Thanks for the pics. They are very nice people to talk with.

 

[reggiejr]

That is very interesting to see.
Their way of live must be very refreshing.

 

[MIKE R]

That is very interesting to see.
Their way of live must be very refreshing.

And they still know what work is and aren't afraid to get dirty.

 

[grsthegreat]

I play around with horse drawn equipment for the fun of it, and believe me its ALOT of work. It takes alot of dedication to want to do this as a way of life. Its not for me, thats for sure.

i dont mind hooking up the team for a carriage drive or a sleigh pull, even for a day of spreading manure. but everyday....NO WAY

Where are the keys to my tractor

 

[EE_Bota]

I doubt it is for me, but I sure do admire them. I admire their skills too, not just their work ethic.

 

[Bob77064]

We have a lot of Mennonites in this area. They are very fine people.

 

[sjerden]

I doubt it is for me, but I sure do admire them. I admire their skills too, not just their work ethic.

Carmi Horst bought my wife's uncles place around the corner from me. When I bought my New Holland baler a couple of months ago he told me about Ed Nolt, a Pennsylvania Mennonite who invented the knotter. A brief history of baler twine baler twine has an interesting story in agriculture.

 

[cqaigy2]

Great pictures! I'd sell my next door neighbor's place to Mennonite's any day. Not really, i'm very fortunate and have good neighbors, but wouldn't mind at all, if more Mennonite's moved into the area.

 

[DKCDKC]

With all the talk about doomsday preppers... Mennonites and Amish are miles ahead of the rest of us. I have always found them open and friendly. I've had them go out of their way to do a favor, and they live by the notion of helping their neighbor.

 

[plowindeeper]

We have around 100 Old Order Amish families living in our county also. Don't really think they are as self sufficient as most "English" think they are. They go to Fred"s, Wal-Mart, Dollar General, Salvation Army, Grocery Stores, Feed Stores, Part Houses, and buy a lot of non-ethanol gas to run those engines.They run abut 6 sawmills
They don't have cars or phones but don't mind borrowing yours for long distances as long as you drive or do the talking.

I buy a lot of garden plants from them (they use miracle grow potting mix)and also buy fresh vegies also.

Our local Wal-Mart has watering troughs for the horses at the front door.

I just wish they would either put lights or reflectors (SMV) on there buggies which is against there religion . Sometimes they leave out at 4:00 in the morning and don't get in till after dark. Been several bad accidents were everyone died Amish and English.

 

[Mace Canute]

Carmi Horst bought my wife's uncles place around the corner from me. When I bought my New Holland baler a couple of months ago he told me about Ed Nolt, a Pennsylvania Mennonite who invented the knotter. has an interesting story in agriculture.

Let's give credit where credit is due.

From A brief history of baler twine:

"It wasn't until 1872 that the first reaper (also called a binder at this point in history) using a knotter device was invented by Charles Withington."

"John Appleby devised a knotter device that used twine rather than wire. Shortly after, William Deering & Company reached an agreement in 1879 to commercially produce a reaper using the Appleby knotter."

"By the late 1940s Nolt redesigned the basic Appleby binder knotters to work far more reliably and better quality twine again became available."

 

[sjerden]

Let's give credit where credit is due.

From A brief history of baler twine:

"It wasn't until 1872 that the first reaper (also called a binder at this point in history) using a knotter device was invented by Charles Withington."

"John Appleby devised a knotter device that used twine rather than wire. Shortly after, William Deering & Company reached an agreement in 1879 to commercially produce a reaper using the Appleby knotter."

"By the late 1940s Nolt redesigned the basic Appleby binder knotters to work far more reliably and better quality twine again became available."

Mace,

Those weren't my words, they were Carmi's. He told me Ed Nolt invented the knotter. He explained that Ed became a millionaire through the patent on his knotter from New Holland. Charles Withington may have done some development work on a not-so-good knotter, but Ed is the one with a successfully working, patented knotter, and to his Mennonite neighbors like Carmi was back in "Penn" (their slang), Ed Nolt invented the knotter.

 

[Don87]

To each his own I suppose. :laughing: I "get" the idea of saying away from SOME modern technologies and conveniences, but when they use a team of horses to pull a big honking engine, they kinda loose me there.

I will forever be thankful for the help the Mennonites gave to people in NC after the Floyd flood. If the Mennonites want to pull a big oil burner behind a team of horse, so be it. I don't think I will ever know WHERE those Mennonites came from though. I should have asked when I had the chance, but the Mennonite women saw me waiting for someone, meaning I was not doing when I could be doing, so they put me and my team to work. :laughing::laughing::laughing:

Later,
Dan

I have to agree...........when I see 4 horses pulling (what is described as) a 100hp engine, with a 3 pt. tiller attached.............i'm at a loss for words.

 

[whistlepig]

We have Mennonites and Amish that shop the hardware/farm stores in Richmond, Indiana. Not far from home. They are highly respected there. They should be.