What Kinds of Places Attract and Sustain Amish Populations?

Rural Sociology

Anderson, Cory, and Loren Kenda. 2015.

80(4):483-511.

Amish tend to settle in low-density rural areas with low population growth/density, proximity to small towns, inexpensive farmland with moderate topography, and within historic Amish settlement regions of the mid-Atlantic and Midwestern U.S.

Amish settle in counties with 60 people per square mile on average. However, density does not significantly predict settlement survival.
50% of settlements are established near towns of 2,500-5,000 people. Settlements survive longer the farther they are from large population centers (each additional mile increases survival odds by 11%, p>.01).
New settlements are an average of 27 miles from existing settlements, versus 40 miles for extinct settlements.

Greater distance from existing Amish settlements and higher county population growth rates increase chances of community extinction

Settlements within 10 miles of an existing settlement have 94% higher odds of survival (p>.10).
Each 10 additional miles decreases survival odds by 10% (p>.01).
Every 1% increase in county growth rate decreases odds of settlement survival by 92%.

Some factors like smaller farm sizes and lower prices are attracting Amish but do not significantly predict community survival

Average farm size in settled counties is around 225-250 acres, well below national averages of 400-500 acres.
Average farmland prices in settled counties range from $1,400-$2,600 per acre.

The Amish are repopulating stagnant/declining rural areas unlike amenity-driven growth, representing an unusual source for rural revitalization; new settlements also hold implications for transportation, land use conflicts, and social changes.