When Debi and I moved to this area in 2001, one of the more familiar aspects of the York-Lancaster region was the Amish and their communities. We lived for two decades in northeastern Ohio, where the Amish population rivals Lancaster County, albeit without the massive tourism and commercialization. The characteristic black, horse-drawn buggies of the Amish are a very common sight in much of Ohio, so we were quite prepared to see them (and drive on the same roads).
During the American Civil War, the Amish and their fellow Anabaptists such as the Mennonites were largely pacifists, preferring to stay away from secular politics and political movements, and the war created by regional differences within the country. Cannonball reader Jonathan Stayer, head of the reference section of the Pennsylvania State Archives, called my attention to a 2007 book that I was previously unaware of, Mennonites, Amish, and the American Civil War, a treatise that explores the religious minorities of this area. Jonathan wrote, "156 York Countians sought exemption from military service on grounds of conscience in 1862 (conscientious objectors), the sixth highest number in the counties of Pennsylvania. Even tiny Adams County was home to at least 129 conscientious objectors. The reason? Both counties were (and are) home to significant communities of Mennonites and Dunkards (Brethren), and to a lesser extent, Quakers. "
Authors James O. Lehman and Steven M. Nolt have written a fascinating book that examines the Amish and Mennonites of Pennsylvania and other states during the Civil War. Published by Johns Hopkins Press, this book is perhaps the first detailed study of the pacifistic perspective of the local Amish and Mennonite communities. The book is wonderfully written, flows well, and offers fresh information and a new perspective on the home front in the Civil War that is rarely (if ever) covered in other works.
