Following a dispute over the introduction of a pulpit in place of the traditional preachers' table at the Lichty meetinghouse, Weaverland circuit, Lancaster Conference (Mennonite Church), Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, in 1889, Jonas Martin led a conservative schism in October 1893, popularly called "Martinites." This group in 1926 suffered another schism under Bishop Joseph Wenger, who led a still more conservative faction, commonly called "Wengerites." The Martinite group had Moses Horning as their bishop after 1914, and after 1926 have been popularly called "Horning people," although their official name is Weaverland Conference of Old Order Mennonites. Their membership (1955) numbered 1,710, with congregations at Weaverland, Groffdale, Martindale, Bowmansville, Churchtown, Pequea, Meadow Valley, and Springville in Lancaster County; Fairview and Myerstown in Lebanon County; and Winner and Stony Brook in York County. About half of their services were still conducted in German in the 1950s. They have no missions, Sunday schools, summer Bible schools, nor youth activities. They have automobiles, but paint the bumpers black (in the 1950s) and are therefore sometimes termed the "Black Bumpers." They are chiefly farmers and live mostly in the northeast sector of Lancaster County. The bishops in 1953 were Moses Horning, Joseph Hostetter, and Joseph O. Weaver. The conference in 1953 included 11 ministers and eight deacons.

This group joined with the 1889 Martinite division of Waterloo County and elsewhere in Ontario and the Wisler division of 1873 in Elkhart County, Indiana, to form the Old Order Mennonites. The Old Order church is found elsewhere in Markham Township, Ontario, Dayton, Virginia, Wayne County and Mahoning County, Ohio, numbering 5,277 baptized members in 1953. They are not to be confused with the Old Order Amish Mennonites. They do not require beards and hooks and eyes and they use meetinghouses.

Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Scottdale, Pennsylvania, and Waterloo, Ontario, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 2, p. 813. All rights reserved. For information on ordering the encyclopedia visit the Herald Press website.

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