Amish in Indiana

The state of Indiana is home to a large Amish population, estimated at 67,310 in 2025, the third-largest behind the states of Ohio and Pennsylvania.[1] Around 1 in 6, or 19% of all Amish in the United States reside in Indiana.[2][3] The largest numbers of Amish are primarily concentrated in the northwest of the state, however, smaller communities in the south also exist.

Locations

Adams County

Adams County has the second largest grouping of Amish in the state behind the Elkhart/LaGrange County region, with an estimated 11,055 adherents in 2025.[4] The population in the county is primarily Swiss Amish.[3] Amish settlement in the county began in the 1850s around the town of Berne.[5]

Allen County

Amish settlement in Allen County began in 1853, when a group of Amish families migrated to the area from Stark County, Ohio, and before that the area surrounding the town of Montbéliard in France.[6] In 2020, Allen County had an Amish population of 4,577.[7]

Elkhart/LaGrange County

The combined Amish population in Elkhart and LaGrange counties in northern Indiana was 29,905 in 2025, making it the third-largest Amish settlement in the United States and the largest in Indiana.[4] Amish settlement in the region first began in 1841.[8] In 1986, roughly 75% of the farming population of LaGrange County was Old Order Amish.[9] Due to their lifestyle, as well as their decision to not attend higher education, their high population has negatively affected the county's per-capita and educational attainment levels.[10] As of 2020, LaGrange County was over one-third Amish.[11]

The Menno-Hof Amish & Mennonite Museum, a museum which displays the history of both groups, is located in Shipshewana, in LaGrange County.[12]

Parke County

In 1991, two Amish families moved from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania in Pennsylvania and began a settlement in Parke County, primarily due to overpopulation in Pennsylvania.[13] In 2020, Parke County had a population of 1,351 Amish adherents.[14]

Population

In 2025, estimates from Elizabethtown College in Pennsylvania placed the Amish population in Indiana at 67,310, which accounted for .97% of the overall population, the highest percentage of any state in the country.[1] In 2020, there were roughly 8.4 Amish for every 1,000 people in Indiana.[15]

Counties in Indiana by population (2020)[16]
County Amish population (2020)
Adams 8,088
Allen 4,577
Clark 64
Crawford 64
Daviess 5,106
Decatur 46
Elkhart 7,886
Fayette 62
Fulton 16
Henry 249
Howard 86
Jay 1,272
Jefferson 207
Jennings 162
Kosciusko 2,472
LaGrange 17,567
Lawrence 234
Marshall 1,636
Martin 33
Miami 103
Noble 1,589
Orange 523
Parke 1,351
Randolph 95
Ripley 148
Rush 275
St. Joseph 172
Steuben 187
Switzerland 470
Washington 811
Wayne 1,045
Wells 110
Whitley 266

References

  1. ^ a b "Amish Population Profile, 2025". Elizabethtown College, the Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies. 2 July 2025. Retrieved 29 November 2025.
  2. ^ Hicks, Michael. "The Amish in Indiana, part of our economy". The Star Press. Retrieved 29 November 2025.
  3. ^ a b Daniels, Casey. "Indiana's Amish spreading beyond the Hoosier State". WIBC. Retrieved 29 November 2025.
  4. ^ a b "Twelve Largest Amish Settlements, 2025". Elizabethtown College, the Young Center for Amish and Pietist Studies. Retrieved 29 November 2025.
  5. ^ Hansen, Bob. "Old Order Amish families moving to southwestern Fayette County from Adams County where their ancestors began settling in the 1850s". Indiana Economic Digest. Retrieved 29 November 2025.
  6. ^ Petrovich, Christopher (April 2013). "Realignment and Division in the Amish Community of Allen County, Indiana: A Historical Narrative". Journal of Amish and Plain Anabaptist Studies. 1 (1): 168. Retrieved 29 November 2025.
  7. ^ "Allen County, Indiana - County Membership Report (2020)". Association of Religion Data Archives. Retrieved 29 November 2025.
  8. ^ "Amish Population in the United States by State, County, and Settlement, 2025" (PDF). Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies, Elizabethtown College. Retrieved 29 November 2025.
  9. ^ "Population and Economic Framework" (PDF). in.gov. IN.gov. Retrieved 29 November 2025.
  10. ^ Farrant, Rick. "Amish talents critical to LaGrange County economy". Indiana Economic Digest. Retrieved 29 November 2025.
  11. ^ "County Profile: LaGrange County". Indiana Connection. 22 December 2020. Retrieved 12 December 2025.
  12. ^ "Menno-Hof - Amish/Mennonite Information Center". mennohof.org. Amish/Mennonite Information Center. Retrieved November 29, 2025.
  13. ^ Wesner, Erik. "The Amish of Parke County, Indiana". Amish Country. Retrieved 29 November 2025.
  14. ^ "Parke County, Indiana - County Membership Report (2020)". The Association of Religion Data Archives. Retrieved 29 October 2025.
  15. ^ "Amish Groups". The Association of Religion Data Archives. Retrieved 29 November 2025.
  16. ^ "Association of Religion Data Archives". Retrieved August 11, 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
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