The Amish Walmart with a Side of Stolen Livestock

Dear Uncle George,

May 21, 1907

Cold this morning.  I rose about 5:30 a.m.  Foot bath.  Charles Ferat moved to Jameson.  Fattening stock and hogs there.  Has about 192 or 200.  

Pork is a sweet meat

Dr. John Cravens had a store there in 1838 (Cravens purchased most of the land in the central area and renamed it Cravensville).  Also, Benjamin Kimbal Clendersen was the last man to run store in Diahman.  North and South Methodists divided in 1844.  

A old lady neighbor of Mrs. Cravens, when she heard I was from Utah, said that the Mormons when here would steal cows and horses etc. and that caused the trouble.  A Mormon went to one of his Gentile neighbors and told him he had revelation from the Lord that the cow belonged to him.  The neighbor said he had seen the Lord since and He told him the cow to belonged to him.

May 21, 2013:
Talk about a rough neighborhood.

Fat hogs...at least 192...or 200.  Stolen livestock.  Divided Methodists.  A defunk grocery store.  Old lady neighbors.  A deity into horsetrading.  And that is just what you wrote down.

I will say that this county was strangely attractive for being turkeyless.  Or so I thought.  As a matter of fact, it wasn't turkeyless at all!

I stopped by Jamesport, the home of the largest Amish community west of the Mississippi River.  Modern convenience isn't really their strong suit so imagine my surprise that they have what is basically an Amish Walmart.  


Oh, the things I saw!  Things that are particularly useful to their community.

Let me list some here with illustrative images in no particular order:


Mossy Oak Clothing 

Computer Printer Ink Cartridges

Chocolate Candy Rocks

iPhone Cases

A truckload (catch the irony...truckload) of frozen turkeys, 
which would have been useful 
at the Subway for my turkey sandwich

Film for a camera...but no cameras (btw, the Amish feel like
photographs steal their soul so they never allow people to take their picture)

I can't forget to mention the braless woman.  

There is one more thing about the Amish.  

The Amish only speak Reformed German, however, they have learned helpful phrases like "Credit or cash?" or "Have you tried our famous Caramel Apple Butter?"

Fortunately for the rest of us, they have mastered the most important phrase of all:  

"Next time, wear a bra."

Love,
Valsy

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