Karen M. Johnson-Weiner Papers, 1844-2022 | Earl H. and Anita F. Hess Archives and Special Collections

By Emily Erdlen '23

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Collection Overview

Title: Karen M. Johnson-Weiner Papers, 1844-2022

ID: MSS/MSS-0014

Primary Creator: Johnson-Weiner, Karen

Extent: 10.42 Linear Feet

Date Acquired: 05/13/2022

Scope and Contents of the Materials

This collection contains materials from 1844-2022 and spans fourteen boxes donated by Johnson-Weiner in 2022. The collection contains correspondence, photographs, handwritten and typed notes, research materials, Dr. Johnson-Weiner’s published work, and an assortment of artifacts including hats, bonnets, dolls, children’s clothing, and a school bell. This collection includes Johnson-Weiner’s correspondence with Amish and non-Amish individuals, and her research on Amish schools, language, Amish women, the Amish in New York state, and other topics relating to Amish life.

Collection Historical Note

Karen M. Johnson-Weiner, Ph.D. is a linguistic anthropologist who has been studying Amish and Mennonite communities for over 30 years. She is a Distinguished Service Professor of Anthropology Emerita at SUNY Potsdam. Johnson-Weiner received her B.A. from Hope College in 1975, her M.A. from Michigan State University in 1976, and her Ph.D. in linguistics from McGill University in 1984.

Johnson-Weiner has written multiple books on the Amish: Train up a Child: Old Order Amish and Mennonite Schools (2006), New York Amish: Life in the Plain Communities of the Empire State (2010), The Lives of Amish Women (2020), and All About the Amish: Answers to Common Questions (2021), as well as a number of articles on Old Order Amish language, culture, and education. She also co-wrote The Amish (2013) with Dr. Donald Kraybill and Dr. Steven Nolt.

Administrative Information

Repository: Earl H. and Anita F. Hess Archives and Special Collections

Use Restrictions: All researchers must complete a privacy agreement provided by the Archivist.

Box and Folder Listing

Browse by Series:

[Series 1: Correspondence, 1985-2023],
[Series 2: Amish Schools, 1892-2008],
[Series 3: Language, 1969-2005],
[Series 4: Research and Publication Materials, 1844-2022],
[Series 5: Artifacts],
[All]

Series 2: Amish Schools, 1892-2008

This series spans three boxes and contains photographs, handwritten and typed notes, artwork, Johnson-Weiner’s published articles, and research materials relating to Amish schools and education from between 1982-2008. Topics covered include information on specific schools, materials from her book Train Up a Child (2006), minutes and information on teachers’ meetings, children’s artwork, and youth groups. Locations of schools include Indiana, Michigan, Missouri, New York, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. Some photographs are available in digital format.

Box 3

Folder 16: Children's Artwork
Folder 17: Indiana Schools
Folder 18: Indiana- Brookside School, Middlebury
Folder 19: Indiana- Clinton Center School, Goshen
Folder 20: Indiana- Indian Trail School, Howe
Folder 21: Indiana- Meadowbrook School, LaGrange
Folder 22: Indiana- Northside School, Shipshewana
Folder 23: Indiana- Oak Hill School, LaGrange
Folder 24: Indiana- Pumpkin Vine School, Middlebury
Folder 25: Indiana- Sunny Side School, Topeka
Folder 26: Michigan Schools
Folder 27: Michigan- Bear Creek School, Leonidas
Folder 28: Michigan- Pleasant View School, Centreville
Folder 29: Michigan- Sherman Hill School, Sturgis
Folder 30: Michigan- Twin Maple School, Centreville
Folder 31: Michigan- Woodlawn School, Centreville
Folder 32: Missouri- Track Run School- Richards
Folder 33: New York- Anderson Valley School, Kendrew Corners
Folder 34: New York- Deer Crossing School, Norfolk
Folder 35: New York- Norfolk Interviews
Folder 36: New York- Hill and Valley School, Heuvelton
Folder 37: New York- Maple Ridge School, Heuvelton
Folder 38: New York- Mud Lake School, DePuyster
Folder 39: New York- Path Valley, Lowville
Folder 40: New York- Philadelphia Christian Fellowship School
Folder 41: New York- Plimton School, DePuyster
Folder 42: New York- Plumbrook School, Norfolk
Folder 43: New York- Townline School, Heuvelton
Folder 44: New York- Single Family School
Folder 45: New York- Swartzentruber School Tests
Folder 46: Ohio- Interviews
Folder 47: Ohio- Susie Troyer Correspondence
Folder 48: Ohio- County Line School, Mount Gilead
Folder 49: Ohio- Cunningham School, Holmes County
Folder 50: Ohio- Dividing Ridge School, Ashland
Folder 51: Ohio- Hopewell School, Somerset
Folder 52: Ohio- Meadowbrook School, Ashland
Folder 53: Ohio- Meadow View School, Ashland
Folder 54: Ohio- Meadow View School, Fredericktown
Folder 55: Ohio- Rock Valley School, Holmes County
Folder 56: Ohio- South Mount Hope School, Holmes County
Folder 57: Ohio- Weaver School, Millersburg
Folder 58: Pennsylvania Parochial Schools
Folder 59: Pennsylvania- Chestnut Hill School, Lancaster County
Folder 60: Pennsylvania- Churchtown School, Lancaster County
Folder 61: Pennsylvania- Conestoga School
Folder 62: Pennsylvania- Hillside
Folder 63: Pennsylvania- Mill Road School, Lancaster County
Folder 64: Pennsylvania- Pennytown, Lancaster
Folder 65: Pennsylvania- Pequea Mennonite School
Folder 66: Pennsylvania- Rockvale School, Lancaster
Folder 67: Pennsylvania- Valley View, Lancaster
Folder 68: Pennsylvania- Wide Hollow School, Lancaster County
Folder 69: Weaverland Mennonite Schools- Correspondence, Interviews
Folder 70: Weaverland Mennonite Schools

Box 4

Folder 1: Special Schools
Folder 2: School Correspondence, Misc.
Folder 3: School Research, General
Folder 4: Pathway School Survey, Lancaster County
Folder 5: Pennsylvania Amish Directory- Schools, 1973
Folder 6: Notebooks A: Contains four noteboooks with Johnson-Weiner's handwritten notes at multiple Amish schools.
Folder 7: Notebooks B: Contains one noteboook with Johnson-Weiner's handwritten notes at multiple Amish schools.
Folder 8: Background of Old Order Mennonite Schools in Pennsylvania
Folder 9: Beiler, Joseph- Leacock Township School History, 1972
Folder 10: Haight, James- The Amish School Controversy, 1958
Folder 11: Hershberger, N.- The Struggle to be Separate
Folder 12: Hostetler, J.- Educational Achievement and Life Styles
Folder 13: Hostetler, J. A.- Amish and Public School, 1956
Folder 14: Hostetler, J. A.- Amish Education, a Bibliography, 1966
Folder 15: Hostetler, J. A.- Education
Folder 16: Hostetler and Huntington- Amish Elementary Schools, 1976
Folder 17: Lindholm, William C.- Kansas v. Gerber, 1967
Folder 18: Luthy, D.- Haunting Questions, 1970
Folder 19: Luthy, D.- Turnpike Traveler, 1993
Folder 20: Madeira, Sheldon- Education of Old Order Mennonites, 1955
Folder 21: Makosky, Don- One Room Schoolhouses
Folder 22: Newcomb, T. L.- Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic
Folder 23: Parsons, E. A.- Teaching Amish Students in Public Schools, 1983
Folder 24: Payne, James I.- Teacher-Student Interaction, 1970
Folder 25: Stoltzfus, R.- Unsere Eignen Schulen: Article written in Pennsylvania German
Folder 26: Stoltzfus, Sam- The Amish Parochial School System
Folder 27: Sugg, S.- Was Hostetler's Data Dubious?
Folder 28: Tortora, V.- Amish in One Room Schoolhouses
Folder 29: Wagler, D.- Education: Coming Full Circle, 1995
Folder 30: Wenger, A. D.- Who Should Educate Our Children?, 1926
Folder 31: Yoder, J.- Development of the Amish School System, 1998
Folder 32: Yoder N. and F.- Amish Schools Today, 1989
Folder 33: The Amish Moving to Maryland
Folder 34: Informative Letters- Education
Folder 35: German School/ Sunday School Articles
Folder 36: The Blackboard Bulletin
Folder 37: Norfolk School Language Survey
Folder 38: Schoolaid- Hoover, Alta
Folder 39: Johnson-Weiner Paper- Educating in English to Maintain Pennsylvania German, 1999
Folder 40: Johnson-Weiner Paper- English in Swartzentruber Schools, 1993
Folder 41: Johnson-Weiner Paper- One-Room Schoolhouses, 2006
Folder 42: Johnson-Weiner Paper- Old Order Private Schools, 2008
Folder 43: Johnson-Weiner Paper- Teaching Identity, 2006
Folder 44: Johnson-Weiner Paper- Textbooks and Identity, 2007
Folder 45: Johnson-Weiner Paper- Weaverland Mennonite Schools, 2008
Folder 46: Michigan-Ontario School Meetings, 2002
Folder 47: Teachers' Meetings, various
Folder 48: Teachers' Meetings- Hillside, Lancaster PA., 2002-2003
Folder 49: Teachers' Meetings- Hillside, Lancaster PA., 2004-2006
Folder 50: Teachers' Meetings- Old Order Mennonite, Lancaster, 2002-2004
Folder 51: Teachers' Meetings- Old Order Mennonite, Lancaster, 2005-2007
Folder 52: Teachers' Meetings- New York, 2015
Folder 53: Minimum Educational Standards
Folder 54: Qualifications of a Christian Teacher, 1963
Folder 55: School Directories
Folder 56: Report of Committee of Plain People, 1939
Folder 57: Train Up a Child Art, Photographs
Folder 58: Train Up a Child Appendices
Folder 59: Youth- Young Folks, Lancaster County

Box 5

Folder 1: Youth- Mazie, S.- Rumspringa, 2005
Folder 2: Youth- Ben Riehl Youth Group Notes A
Folder 3: Youth- Ben Riehl Youth Group Notes B