Category: Simple Life

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Amish of Webster County

From the Greater Seymour Chamber Of Commerce:
The Amish of Webster County

The Amish in Webster County, Missouri, are resisting the progress of the 21st century. They are “Old Order Amish,” which means plain ways—buggies with no tops, no enclosed cabs, no rubber tires and plain black paint. Most of the Amish here are of Swiss-German descent. They settled in Webster County in 1968, acquiring many old rundown farms and restoring them to successful, diversified farming operations. Friendly people, they are interesting and make good friends and neighbors.

While a young man’s ambition is to own his own farm and raise his large family without having to leave the farm to work, prices for necessities have forced him to seek work away from home, usually as a carpenter. From father to son, the skills of all phases of the construction trade are handed down.

The Amish women, not unlike their husbands, hand down their skills to their daughters. They are highly skilled in maintaining a comfortable well-ordered home. They grow huge gardens and preserve what they grow. They sew all clothing for their large families, do all the laundry without the convenience of electricity, quilt beautifully, help with the outside chores and do all of the things a housewife is required to do in any household. They are busy from before sunup to after sundown.


The Amish are very frugal people and are highly respected for their honesty. A few things they do not allow themselves to possess are television sets, radios, automobiles or any motor-driven vehicles, telephones, electricity, indoor plumbing (except for pitcher pumps at the kitchen sink), insurance, government pensions or Social Security income.

However, it is not all work and no play for the Amish. They enjoy “frolics” (where they all get together and build a house or barn for a neighbor or relative), quilting bees and singing (they sing without the accompaniment of musical instruments and they yodel just like they do in the Swiss Alps). They travel a lot from community to community and out of state for weddings and visits to family and friends. They hire drivers with vans or buses to carry them, and there is always a van full of eager travelers. Weddings are large—often with as many as 400 people in attendance, traveling from other Amish communities in other sates. This is a time of fellowship and is certainly an exciting time for the whole community.

Church is observed every other Sunday, being held in individual homes. Lunch is served to as many as 200 people by the host family. Young people play softball, basketball and other active games, and the young men are strong wrestlers.

The Webster County Amish once sent their children to public schools through the eighth grade. However, with the public schools adding computers and modern technology, they felt they must establish their own schools. They didn’t want their children contaminated by outside influences.

City Of Seymour

Please note: I tried to link to the Chamber and found nothing to link to. The Chamber may have disbanded, not known.

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Kindall’s General Store

Kindall’s old General Store is one of the oldest continuously operated businesses in the Ozarks. The Old Store has been serving generations for well over 60 years. The business, situated in front of the majestic and scenic Ozark Mountains, continues to be operated to this day.

The interior of the store is much the same as it was when constructed with many old features and antiques. The original board floor, the antiques, metal, stamped tin ceiling, the original shelving and counters, and numerous antiques give the visitor the feeling of stepping back in time. The architecture of the building along with the big front porch represents the vintage of middle and late 1800s.

The current operator plans to keep the store as is, even though it’s not as profitable as it needs to be. There’s more to this labor of love than money.

The original ceiling tin is intact, more than one person has tried to pry it out of the store, there’s not enough money to make that happen. The oak tongue and groove floor is soft in spots, heck I would be too if I were that old. It just adds to the ambiance of the place. The wood stove still sits in the back but due to insurance it’s disconnected.

The Store is an antique and be truly an educational experience.

Across the street is where the Kindall’s lived, underneath the giant oak sits the homestead.

The house appears to be the same time period as the store, the chairs out front were a perfect place to watch traffic on the highway.

Living on top of the hill meant a storm cellar was a must, tornado’s are common place in this part of the Ozarks. This place was old but I was directed to the original home site which was much older and still standing.

Like taking a step back in time, walking into the general store in the community of Olga, Missouri takes you to a place in Ozark history. In the 1980’s, Corda Kindall kept her store alive even though supermarkets in nearby towns got most of the business. At that time, her store was like a museum, full of items once commonly sold in country general stores. She stocked modern necessities as well, but mostly just enjoyed the people dropping by for a chat, a loaf of bread and way of thanking her for keeping the store open and welcoming to local people. Corda Kindall passed away in 1995. Video Produced by Ed Fillmer.

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Barns of the Ozarks – Part 1

Ozark’s barns are fantastic testaments to the hardscrabble way of life, a life centered on the land, work, family, ingenuity, and perseverance. Many think of barns as integral landmarks along the byways. Others have their favorite barns like the well-kept, Meramec Caverns advertising barns dotting the interstate highways or the faded milking barn near their hometown. Others know these barns more intimately, barns are part of their family and home.

They are barns built by hand in wood, stone, brick, or metal and dating as far back as 1860. I’ll try to capture the beauty of these barns. You might see the making and breaking of a barn as it plays into the life and sustenance of several generations of a family who settled the land and now the farm is left abandoned, barns and buildings left to endure the mercy of time and mother nature. Now, who is up for a barn dance?