A study of three Amish homesteads: one in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, one in Holmes County, Ohio, and one in LaGrange County, Indiana. Scott examines the history and cultural development of a typical Amish house and barn, one in each of the three largest Amish communities in North America. Home is the center of Amish life and most life events:birth, marriage, daily work and play, retirement, and even death happen there. Stephen Scott explores the history and cultural development of three Amish homesteads, each of which has been occupied by the current family of residence for at least four generations. The Stoltzfus Farm of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, the Yoder-Miller Farm of Holmes County, Ohio, the Bontrager-Miller Farm of LaGrange County, Indiana. Amish Houses and Barns also includes a photographic essay of typical Amish architecture in each of the three communities. Its numerous anecdotal stories,"Barn Fire," "The Farm Is Strip-Mined," and "Amish Style Graffiti", enhance the human story.

From bestselling authors in the Amish genre come three sweet stories centered around Amish traditions and the possibility of romance. Building a Dream by Amy Clipston Though they’ve known each other a long time, Kathryn and Anthony have finally decided to try becoming more than friends—but they are devastated when Kathryn’s father won’t allow them to date. He wants his daughter to marry a man with a more respectable job than building gazebos for Englishers. But when Kathryn’s father’s dairy barn burns down during a thunderstorm, Anthony is the one to arrange a barn raising. Will Kathryn’s father realize he has misjudged Anthony? To Raise a Home by Kelly Irvin A year after the wildfires, life has returned to normal for the West Kootenai Amish community. Evan Eicher, son of Deacon Tobias Eicher, has done his best to move on too. Helping his neighbors and friends rebuild has helped soothe a heart broken when Delilah Mast—the woman he loves but never had the courage to approach—moved with her family back to Kansas. At his father’s urging he courts Anna Burkholder, a sweet woman who adores him. But when Delilah moves back to teach school, Evan must wrestle with feelings he’s tried so hard to put in the past. And an accident at a barn raising will force Anna, Delilah, and Evan to face the truth about their hearts. Love’s Solid Foundation by Kathleen Fuller Devon Bontrager only returned to his old hometown to make good on a past misdeed. He hadn’t counted on reconnecting with Nettie Yoder, especially since she strung along his younger twin brothers some years ago. Nettie knows she’s made some mistakes in the past, but she’s determined to be an asset to her community from now on. But just as she’s making headway, her family’s barn burns to the ground. Why does it seem like God is punishing her family when she’s finally starting to turn her life around? Can she convince Devon that she has changed? Can Devon trust the woman who broke his brothers’ hearts? Three sweet contemporary Amish romances Stand-alone novella collection Book length: 80,000 words Includes discussion questions for book clubs

Looks at European barn construction and how it changed in the United States, post-Civil War barns, Shaker barns, Pennsylvania Dutch, English, and German models, and other versions.

At Home in the American Barn examines the fascinating possibilities for living and adaptive reuse provided by the expansive spaces and rough-hewn look of these traditional structures. Nationwide, Americans are turning to structures such as the barn with a mind to renovating them to fit the lifestyles of today, redesigning these often-wonderful places of the past into residential spaces. At Home in the American Barn embraces the dream to slow things down and return to basics and shares some success stories, as made plain by the buildings themselves.This richly illustrated volume focuses on the barn as home. Each of the structures featured has been adapted from its original utilitarian purpose to allow for comfortable, joyous living. Built at first as places for work, barns nevertheless often demonstrate fine craftsmanship and artistry. This volume emphasizes the rare beauty of these structures and shows throughout elegant solutions for living in these beautifully imagined homes. Soaring rafters here allow for dramatic chandeliers in one home or a wall of magnificent bookcases in another. Spaces that are unconventional in a traditional domestic sense here serve as springboards for inspiration that allow for, in one home, a spiral staircase of fantasy made from hand-planed wood, and, in another, a wall of glass that lets in the sun. At Home in The American Barn shows the way that this can be done successfully and artfully.

Amish culture has been rooted in the soil since its beginnings in 1693. But what happens when members of America's oldest Amish community enter non-farm work in one generation? How will hundreds of cottage industries and micro-enterprises reshape the heart of Amish life? Will traditional eighth grade education still prove adequate? What about gender roles, child-rearing practices, leisure activities, and growing ties with outsiders? Amish Enterprise was the first book to discuss these dramatic changes that are transforming Amish communities across North America. Based on interviews with more than 150 Amish entrepreneurs, the authors trace the rise and impact of businesses in Lancaster's Amish settlement in recent decades. In this new edition, the authors update demographic and technological changes, and also describe Amish enterprises outside of Pennsylvania in a new chapter.

Homesteading is a lifestyle that people around the world gravitate toward—and for good reason. In today’s high-stress world, many people dream of heading off to their own cabin in the woods or to their large rural oasis to escape the anxieties and complexities of daily life, to live in a more natural state. Others have embraced the agricultural lifestyle of farming as a career, serving as fundamental contributors to sustaining society. With this classic guide from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), learn about the architecture of rural life and the design elements of these amazing structures. This manual, originally published and distributed in 1972, includes government-issued designs and requirements for log cabins, farmhouses, firepits and barbecues, greenhouses, storage sheds, stables, and more! Black-and-white diagrams and illustrations fill these pages, displaying the intricacies and dimensions of these incredible structures in their entirety. Brimming with ideas and inspiration, Log Cabins and Outbuildings is the perfect starting point for building your new rural retreat.