Long Green Amish Mennonite Church (Baltimore County, Maryland, USA)
The Amish Mennonite congregation in Baltimore County, Maryland, began when Moses Miller moved from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, to Long Green valley in 1833. Others from Mifflin County, Pennsylvania, and from Lancaster County followed in 1834. By about 1849 the following families had arrived: Christian Hertzler, Isaac Hertzler, Jacob Hertzler, John Kennel, John Mast, Daniel Nafzinger, Peter Nafzinger, Christian Neuhauser, Aaron Smoker, John Smoker, Jacob Waltz, David Warfel, and Solomon Yoder. The first church officers were Daniel Nafzinger, deacon; John Mast, minister; and Solomon Yoder (d. 1880), bishop. Andrew Miller was ordained later, but moved to Union County before 1875. Solomon Yoder's son Lewis was ordained minister in 1880. He died 16 June 1893. Isaac D. Hertzler was ordained in 1894, but moved to Warwick County, Virginia, in 1897. Following this the congregation was left without a resident pastor until 1909.
In 1894 the congregation was temporarily accepted by the Indiana Amish Mennonite Conference. Membership was transferred to the Ohio and Pennsylvania Amish Mennonite Conference in 1899. Ministers from these areas visited Long Green about once a month. For years Bible study was held in the homes each Sunday afternoon. Though the congregation had dwindled to 20 members, a frame meetinghouse was built and dedicated on Christmas Day of 1898. The first Sunday school was opened about 1895, and soon was held weekly the year round. In 1909 John M. Hartzler moved to Long Green as pastor. For a time the congregation seemed encouraged, and a few members were added to the group. But the meetinghouse burned down in 1915, the Hertzlers moved to Belleville, Pennsylvania, and other families moved away. Some of the young people united with other church groups. The last surviving member died in 1953. The cemetery was cared for by a permanent committee of five descendants of former residents, who lived in Pennsylvania and Virginia.
Bibliography
Diary of Isaac D. Hertzler, 1875.
Herald of Truth, (April 1880): 77; (December 1880): 221; (1 July 1893): 214; (15 June 1899): 186; (1 February 1899): 42; (6 January 1910): 649.
| Author(s) | Silas Hertzler |
|---|---|
| Date Published | 1957 |
Cite This Article
MLA style
Hertzler, Silas. "Long Green Amish Mennonite Church (Baltimore County, Maryland, USA)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. 1957. Web. 16 Apr 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Long_Green_Amish_Mennonite_Church_(Baltimore_County,_Maryland,_USA)&oldid=83334.
APA style
Hertzler, Silas. (1957). Long Green Amish Mennonite Church (Baltimore County, Maryland, USA). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 16 April 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Long_Green_Amish_Mennonite_Church_(Baltimore_County,_Maryland,_USA)&oldid=83334.
Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Harrisonburg, Virginia, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 3, p. 389. All rights reserved.
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