About the Illinois Amish
The Illinois Amish community surrounding Arthur Illinois is unique to Illinois in many ways and as all Amish communities are across the country differing in many ways from all the others.
The Amish came to East Central Illinois in the 1860's and settled on the outskirts of the little county line and railroad intersection called Arthur. Since then they have grown to well over 4000 people, and along with their "English" neighbors make up the Arthur area.
They live almost entirely out in the country, and structure most of their daily lives around their religious beliefs and goals. Their dress, absence of electricity, use of horse drawn transportation, and their dependence on community and family are a main basis for their communal and spiritual lifestyle.
The Arthur Amish tend to work in Amish owned businesses and shops out in
the country side. There are hundreds of Amish owned "cottage businesses"
scattered around Arthur. They vary from machine shops to grocery stores,
furniture shops tp quilt supplies, animal feed to hardware, all welcoming
customers and visitors from away, but also all focused on local needs.
Most Arthur Amish farmsteads are neat and well kept, with large gardens of vegetables and flowers in season, and multiple dwellings grouped together to house the extended families. The absence of electric wires leading to the house, the common blue curtains, roadside stands of various products and the unique outhouse styled phone booths out by the fence are common features across our countryside.
Much information is available in books and over the internet that can enlighten and expose you to some of the basis of Amish life that is reflected in and around Arthur. Other Arthur websites discuss some aspects of the local community and we reference them at the bottom of this page. But nothing can match a visit to the Illinois Amish area for an up close and person experience. You can visit with the shop keepers, observe the daily life styles, and enjoy our area.
Sources of information on the Amish in general and the Arthur Amish Area in particular are...
http://www.religioustolerance.org/amish.htm
http://www.holycrosslivonia.org/amish/
http://www.illinoisamishcountry.com
Plan a visit to Arthur soon!
