Preserving Lancaster's Farms - Page Z
10/31/07, 08/30/20

My favorite place in this part of the U.S. is Lancaster, Pennsylvania.  The farms are incredible.  
There is peace and tranquility there like no other.  The food is also good!  
(Yes, Jeanine, the food is GOOD!)  I have been visiting since about 1983.  First it was with a
company in NJ called Domenico Tours.  They went out of business so I began going with Biss Tours.  
As of September 1, 2007, Biss Tours closed.  For a while Crosby took over where Biss left off but
that company also went out of business.  I am now using L & M Tours.

Tourist to any area create problems.  Businesses have to accommodate the increase of traffic.  
Things begin to change.  During every visit, I see more and more farms being converted to
commercial and residential areas.  

There is a non-profit organization, Lancaster Farmland Trust, that is trying to save some of the farms.  
Since I think their goal is a good one, I make contributions to this organization whenever I can.  
You can also contribute to this worthy cause by buying Turkey Hill ice cream.  
Turkey Hill donates money to the Trust.  (At least when I wrote this.)

Kitchen Kettle, a mall we visit during our tours of Lancaster, recently began "Pave the Way to
Preservation".  The brick below can be found in the walkway at Kitchen Kettle.  
It's close to the popcorn stand.  Part of what was paid for the brick goes to Lancaster Farmland Trust.  
Ma and Maria were born in Vieques, Puerto Rico (PR).  
I was born on St. Croix in the Virgin Islands (VI) and Elton was
born in New York (NY).  This photo was taken October 27, 2007.  
The brick was laid down on October 10th.

Group photo

Since the 80s, I have been visiting the Amish Country in Pennsylvania.  I began visiting Lancaster with co-workers
while I worked at SSA and now visit the area with family and/or friends or by myself.  

Who are the Amish? (Pronounced Ah-mish.)  Let me tell you the little I know.  The Amish have their roots in the
Mennonites.  Both are part of the early Anabaptist (which means re-batizers) movement in Europe that began
during the Protestant Reformation.  They believe that baptism should be conferred only on adults.   Early
Anabaptists were persecuted by many.  The Mennonites were followers of a Catholic priest from Holland named
Menno Simon.  However, within this group there was a split.  Jacob Ammann’s followers became known as the Amish.
Both groups share the same beliefs concerning baptism, nonresistance, and basic Bible doctrines but differ in
matters of dress, technology, form of worship and interpretation of the Bible.  In the early 1700s, the Amish and
Mennonites came to Pennsylvania with the help of William Penn due to his religious tolerance.  The Amish speak
English and a dialect of German called Pennsylvania Dutch (Deutsch) and use High German in their services.  
They have no set structure in which they worship but use member’s homes to worship and rotate between the
members of the community.  Worshipping is done every other Sunday.  The children are taught in one-room schools
and by law are allowed to study only until the 8th grade.  The children are taught basic reading, writing and arithmetic.
The Amish have spectacular farms. Though the Amish may not use electricity and other modern conveniences,
they do use gas to operate water heaters, stoves, and refrigerators.  Each community decides what new invention
will be used or not used.  If it does not assist in keeping their families together and assist in maintaining a simple
life, it would be rejected.  

To some people this system may seem contradictory.  How can they use skates but not ride a bicycle?  How can
they not have a phone in their homes yet have one outside on the property?  How can they have an answering
machine?  Since they are farmers they need to be able to get their goods sold and thus they have determined
that the phone is essential for business and so is an answering machine.  Skates are less mechanical and thus
need more human energy to make them move.  The Amish can ride in cars but cannot own one.  They are great
farmers, carpenters, etc.  It is said that the Amish do not like their photos taken because of their literal
translation of Exodus 20:4 which states, “Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of
anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.”   They feel
a photo is a graven image.  However, some dispute this interpretation and you may hear other reasons why they do
not care to be photographed.  The men do not wear moustaches because it reminds them of the military.  
They do not serve in the Armed Forces and are against any form of violence.  The Amish stress humility, family
and community, and separation from the world.  It should be noted that the Amish pay all taxes except for
Social Security.  Since they take care of their own senior citizens and do not collect Social Security benefits, they
see no reason to pay into it.  The largest Amish community can be found in Ohio, and some as far north as Canada.  

The second largest Amish community is found in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.  From my visits, I have been told that
there is an Old Order Amish and a New Order Amish.  The New Order is not as strict as the Old Order and tends
to be somewhat more inclined to use modern ideas and technology.

The divorce rate of the Amish is very, very, very low according to one of the guides.  It is said to be about 1%.  
The Amish see matrimony as a commitment and will work together to resolve any differences.   I suppose since the
couple has the same ideals – family, land and community - it would be easy for them to stay together and work things
out.  In our society men and women come from different backgrounds and set different goals.  With such
differences, it is harder for us to work out our difference.  Again, I applaud the Amish for their convictions
and commitment to what they believe in.

I enjoy visiting Lancaster because of the peace and tranquility I find there.  It reminds me a lot of St. Croix back in
the 50s and 60s.  The green of the growing corn reminds me of the cane fields on St. Croix.  There are many
great farms, cattle, windmills, flowers, etc.  The Amish use buggies to get around, something that a lot of people
did when I was growing up.  I try to imagine being able to live the way the Amish do.  Would I be able to live
such a life?  Would I be able to do without TV, radio, and a computer?  

The towns have incredible names:  Blue Ball, Bird-in-Hand, Intercourse, and Paradise, to mention a few.  We are
told that Intercourse could have come from Enter Course, since there was once a race track in the area while others
say it was the way to enter the highway at the time.  Others say it has to do with conversation, definitely not sex.  
Supposedly, Bird-in-Hand got its name when someone said that a “bird in hand is worth two in the bush”.   
The local pub used the name and since people met there, the town began to use the name.

The one day tours I take are with a local bus company.  (I began with Domenico Tours then switched to Biss Tours
when they closed.  In 2007, Biss ceased operations and I began traveling with L & M Tours.  Recently, a new
company has emerged, Crosby Tours.  It is said that Crosby was started by people from Biss.  Crosby eventually closes
down.)  We meet the bus on Queens Blvd. next to the Burger King about 7:15 a.m. and return about 9:00 p.m.  The bus
has other pick up locations.  Lunch is included with the tour.  You have not eaten good food until you have had the
food at Good 'N Plenty Restaurant or an Amish home.    One sits to eat in what is called family style – a table for about
10-12 people and the food keeps coming as the serving dishes are emptied.  They serve real mashed potatoes, fried
chicken (like NO other), meatloaf, baked ham, fresh steamed green beans (or sweet peas), butter noodles, fresh bread
(white and wheat), sweet corn, and chicken salad.  I don’t like celeryand/or onions in my salads but they are chopped
up so finely in the chicken salad that I don’t even know they are there!  Everything melts in your mouth!!  For the bread
there is home made butter (white in color, not yellow), cream cheese and/or apple butter.  The apple butter is similar to
applesauce but dark brown and sweeter.  It may be made with molasses.  For dessert there is usually apple and/or shoo
fly pie, home made ice cream (one picks up the bowl thinking it’s heavy due to the amount of ice cream in the dish only
to find out how light it is) and Jell-O (usually with fruit), and sometimes a tapioca pudding.  Shoo fly is very sweet and is
made with molasses.   A sliver of shoo fly pie is all one needs to eat.  It is said that the pie was used to attract flies thus
keeping them from the rest of the food in the Amish homes as they ate and later became part of their desserts.   After
lunch, we are given a tour of the farm areas as the local guide talks to us about the Plain People, the Amish.  We also
have time to shop at the Bird-in-Hand Farmer’s Market, a farm, a roadside stand, and later at Kitchen Kettle.  

In 2003, a friend and I got to see “Who Are The Amish”, a presentation done on 3 screens of photos as the
narrators tries to explain who the Amish are.  It was a very touching piece.

I recently discovered that a farm in Drumore Township, Lancaster was part of the Underground Railroad.  It was
known as Station Eleven.  The farm is said to have been owned by a black abolitionist, Mr. Joseph Smith.  He was
referred to as Switch-Turner because he made the final decisions as to which direction the slaves would take.  
There were other individuals in the area that helped the slaves.

I wish the world would learn from the Amish.  I think if we copied some of their ways we would be a lot better off.  
Penn-Dutch Amish Tour with L & M Tours, May 26, 2008.  Maria can be
seen front row extreme right.  Elton (green shirt) behind the
gentleman with red shirt holding sign.  I am next to Elton.  Local Guide, Jane,
can be seen over right shoulder of man in red shirt.  Photo taken at Riehl's
Quilts and Crafts.  Photo taken by Tour Director, John.
Interested in more information about Lancaster?  You can click here.
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