I wish, I wish, I wish I could have taken a picture of Mary and her children. We pulled up to her house on a narrow back road in Holmes County that was indistinguishable from other homes except for the sign out front: Baskets for Sale.
As LaVonne lead us to the barn she explained that Mary’s family was Old Order Amish. They did not use any form of power and still collected ice off of ponds in the winter and stored it in an ice house. Mary, her husband, and their 11 children live here and make baskets to sell on their porch.
I wish I could have captured the image of these children in their straw hats and caps, dressed in plain black and blue clothing, huddled together to stare at my blonde, blue-eyed 16-year-old daughter as we looked through the baskets. She was as eager to take in the sight of them as they were her, but she let them have their turn to stare at her long, wavy hair and yellow skirt. She must have seemed as otherworldly to them as they were to her. But since LaVonne had brought ice cream as a treat for Mary’s children, we all had ice cream together and took in the experience.
“She’s a writer from Cincinnati,” LaVonne told Mary as she introduced me. “She travels around the world and writes about what she sees for magazines.”
Mary’s eyes grew wide. She stared at me as though I were a creature from another world. I wasn’t sure she was very familiar with magazines, but I knew for sure that she wouldn’t have any concept of what blogging is all about.
“Would you be willing to put Mary’s address in your writing?” LaVonne asked me. “She doesn’t do any sort of advertising.”
“Of course! I’d be happy to!” And I meant that. I’d love to bring the world to Mary’s door. She was such a gracious, welcoming person and she and her children have created beautiful baskets and rugs. I am more than happy to provide her address here and encourage anyone who visits Holmes County to find their way there.
Because trust me; you’ll never meet another person like Mary. Or her children. 🙂
Mary Miller
9112 T.R. 614
Fredericksburg, Ohio 44627
Browsing The Atlas 
This Holmes County trip of yours is making me envious of all your discoveries and your insight, Juliann! Thanks, too, for these incredible pictures. The wash hanging on the clothesline brings so many good memories to mind of my childhood long ago.
I love hanging laundry out myself. There’s something so calming about it to me. And if you look in the far right, I see I accidentally got one of the girls in the frame.
Thanks for the compliments! Glad you’re enjoying the posts.
I’m loving your Amish county trip posts! It’s so other worldly.
Thanks so much! It’s a wonderful place to explore. Especially when you can meet some of the people. I’ve been a few times since it’s only 3 hours away from home, but this trip was so much better because I got to immerse myself in the culture a little more.
I love that your post this time about visiting the Amish featured a single family, really makes me feel like I’m getting to know just a little bit more about the culture. I’m sure it was also quite an experience for your daughter to see how the Amish live on a day to day basis!
Yes. It was very nice to go into a family’s yard and see and talk with them up close. I had that chance a few times and loved it. Very gracious people.
Awesome! I visited a broom maker in Holmes County. It was fascinating to get to know some of the local Amish merchants.
And I didn’t see a single broom while I was there. There are so many things to see and do. I imagine everyone who visits Amish country will have different experiences. But getting to know some of the people there is what makes any visit special.