The Troyer Amish or Stutzman-Troyer Amish are a conservative subgroup of Old Order Amish .
16-769: In 1932 bishop Eli A. Troyer withdrew from the Swartzentruber Amish in the Holmes/Wayne County settlement in Ohio and began the Troyer church in Wayne County, Ohio . He did this over several issues, e.g. Bann (excommunication) and hat brims. Swartzentruber wore hats the same as the rest of the Amish up to this time. Up to 1942 free moving from one sect to another was also allowed without penalty in
32-419: A fine for refusing to display an orange reflective triangle on their horse-drawn carriages. Swartzentruber Amish normally do not allow teenagers to leave the community during rumspringa , although most of them allow teenagers to "court" in order to find a marriage partner, which includes hugging in a bed while being fully clothed and rocking in a chair together. As with other conservative affiliations,
48-551: A growth of 171 percent. In 1936 there were three Swartzentruber church districts and in 1957, five, with approximately 200 families. In 1944 a settlement was founded in Ethridge, Tennessee , which had ten church districts around 2013 with a population of 1,520 people. It is the largest Amish settlement in the South. The settlement near Lodi and Homerville , Ohio , which was founded in 1952 had 14 church districts around 2013 with
64-541: A population of 2,148 people. In 1975 the settlement near Heuvelton, New York , was founded, that had 12 church districts around 2013 with a population of 1,671 people. As of 2000, the Swartzentruber Amish had 64 districts, 3,165 members, a total population of 7,101 in 12 states with 33 districts in Ohio alone. There are nineteen districts of Swartzentruber in Holmes County and Wayne County , where
80-755: The "Jeck Jeckey Leit", is now affiliated with the Nebraska Amish . In the 1990s, two more splits occurred, resulting in three Swartzentruber Amish groups: the main Joe Troyer group; the Mose Miller/Isaac Keim group; and the Andy Weaver group. The Swartzentruber Andy Weaver group should not be confused with the Old Order Andy Weaver group. In this three-way split, the Andy Weaver group is the most conservative, while
96-974: The Englishers and tourist trade. The Troyer church eventually moved to numerous locations in Pennsylvania , New York , Michigan and Canada as did the Swartzentruber Church. In 1949 the Troyer Amish started a settlement in the Conewango Valley in New York . In 2010 there was only one church district left in the Holmes/Wayne County Amish settlement, where they originated. As of 2011 the Troyer Amish had 53 church districts in 6 states. Swartzentruber Amish The Swartzentruber Amish are one of
112-534: The Joe Troyer group is at the other end of the spectrum, leaving the Mose Miller group somewhere in between. Riding in cars is prohibited among the Swartzentruber Amish, except in emergencies, whereas average Old Order Amish are allowed to use cars as long as they do not own them. Swartzentrubers are the most restrictive concerning the use of technologies among all Amish affiliations: The Swartzentruber style of dress tends to be heavier and plainer, especially in
128-464: The Old Order contain either gravel or paving to keep out the mud. The roofs of the houses and outbuildings are often made of tin . The clothing differs from that of the other Old Order Amish in subtle ways: all colors are dark and somber rather than the bright blues and mauves; more common is navy, dark burgundy, and even gray. The dresses of the women, rather than reaching mid-calf, usually reach to
144-475: The Swartzentruber tend to have more children than the average Old Order Amish. In one sample that Kraybill et al. give, the average number of children born to Swartzentruber women was 9.3. Combined with a high rate of retention concerning their youth, the Swartzentruber have one of the highest growth rates among all Old Order Amish. Between 1991 and 2010 the number of church districts grew from 38 to 103,
160-469: The Troyer Church. Troyer Amish are very conservative. Their order resembles the one of the Swartzentruber. They do not allow indoor plumbing, linoleum flooring, carpeting, upholstered furniture, or lamps powered by means other than oil. It is forbidden to ride in a car unless it is an emergency. Their primary focus for income is farming and dairy products, though they do allow themselves to work with
176-626: The case of women; only the Nebraska Amish dress in a more conservative style. Swartzentruber church services tend to be longer, even up to four hours. Like some other Old Order groups, they avoid the use of electricity and indoor plumbing . Many other common devices and technologies are also disallowed for being too worldly, including Velcro and bicycles . Swartzentruber farms and yards are often unkept. The Swartzentrubers discourage interest in outward appearance, as such an interest could promote vanity and pride . Their farms can be identified by dirt drives and surrounding roads, while most roads of
SECTION 10
#1732780212185192-553: The largest and most conservative subgroups of Old Order Amish . The Swartzentruber Amish are considered a subgroup of the Old Order Amish , although they do not fellowship or intermarry with more liberal Old Order Amish. They speak Pennsylvania German as their mother tongue as well as English (with outsiders). The Swartzentruber Amish formed as a result of a division that occurred among the Amish of Holmes County, Ohio , in
208-559: The other, so as not to appear like the tail lights of a vehicle. There have been several court cases across the country where the state and county challenged the local Swartzentruber group to use the regulation orange triangle . So far, even as far as the federal Supreme Court , the Amish have prevailed, although statistics suggest that in areas where these groups exist, accidents involving buggies are more prevalent. On September 13, 2011 (13 years ago) ( 2011-09-13 ) , nine Old Order Swartzentruber men were jailed for not paying
224-635: The subgroup originated. The Swartzentruber share of the Old Order Amish is about 7 percent. As of 2011 there were 119 Swartzentruber Amish church districts and 43 settlements in 13 states of the US as well as in Ontario , Canada. Swartzentruber is a Mennonite and Amish surname of Swiss origin, coming from the Trub river valley, located approximately midway between Bern and Lucerne . It has been thought to mean "seller of black grapes". Other English spellings of
240-573: The top of the shoes. The brims on the hats of Swartzentruber men are four inches (10 cm) wide, wider than the brims of more liberal affiliations. The tack on the horses and buggies is often all black, rather than brown leather. Swartzentruber Amish use reflective tape on the back of their buggies, in place of bright triangular "slow moving" signs for road travel, which they regard as too worldly. These buggies will also use lanterns , rather than battery -operated lights or reflectors. The lanterns are also often staggered, one side slightly higher than
256-689: The years 1913–1917. The bishop who broke away was Sam E. Yoder. The Swartzentruber name was applied later, named after bishop Samuel Swartzentruber who succeeded him. In 1932, a split among the Swartzentrubers resulted in the formation of the Troyer Amish in Wayne County, Ohio . In the early 1980s, several church districts in Minnesota, Tennessee, and Ohio split from the Swartzentruber church districts elsewhere because of disagreements over shunning ("Bann und Meidung"). This group, known as
#184815