Geauga Amish Historical Library

15848 Nauvoo Road
Middlefield, OH 44062

440-682-0606   |  GAHL@windstream.net
Saturdays, 9 a.m.-2 p.m., or by appointment
Free

A small museum and research library acquaints visitors with Geauga County Amish heritage.

Tucked in a corner of the Heritage Marketplace, the Geauga Amish Historical Library holds Amish artifacts and a large collection of research materials. Exhibits include early Bibles and prayer books once used by the community in Geauga County, along with a small display of Amish clothing. The library offers genealogical research services. The Amish settlement in Geauga County, now the fourth largest group in Ohio, began around 1886 when a single family moved from larger settlements in Holmes County. The Amish trace their origins to the Reformation, when the Swiss Brethren separated from the Protestant and Catholic churches. Persecuted as heretics for their pacifism and belief in adult baptism, the Amish began immigrating to the New World in 1736, welcomed in Pennsylvania by William Penn’s “holy experiment” of religious tolerance. The first communities established in Ohio migrated west from Somerset, Pennsylvania in 1809. In time, the Amish settled in 31 states, as well as four Canadian provinces; the largest populations reside in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Indiana. The community of the faithful in Geauga County now numbers approximately 15,000 individuals.

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Credits

Pat Williamsen

Additional Resources

The Amish, by Donald B. Krabill, et al