News-Sentinel.com

Thursday, 03/18/1999

NAFTA

Amish fight proposed highway to preserve traditional way of life

An Amish settlement has asked the state of Indiana to put the extention elsewhere.

By CHRISCIA JACKSON of Southwest Texas State University



News-Sentinel photo by C. Somodevilla
Quiet, for now Amish farmer John Wagler Jr. keeps an eye on some of the 25 Belgian horses on his farm in Plainville, a small town in Daviess County, Indiana. Wagler bought the farm in 1971 and he and his wife have rasied seven sons there. The Indiana Department of Transportation has introduced a proposal to build the I-69 NAFTA highway through Daviess County and just past Wagler's home. The limited-access highway would seriously limit Wagler's movement. He would not be legally able to cross the highway in horse-drawn buggy (the form of Amish transportation) or on foot. When asked about what he thought upon hearing about the planned highway, he said, "I thought about the quiet and my neighbors and how that will be gone."

WASHINGTON, Ind. — For generations, Amish people near here have lived a peaceful agrarian life isolated from politics and most modern conventions.

Now with their livelihood, families and way of life threatened, one thing has forced them to speak out — the proposed extension of Interstate 69.

"I see my sons every day," said Eugene Stoll, an Amish farmer. "My grandkids just walk up the drive to visit us any time they want. If the highway comes, it will run directly in between my sons' houses and mine, leaving me completely landlocked. It's kind of hard to cross a highway in a buggy."

The Amish are happy with their lifestyle and would like to preserve it. So they have banded together to do the unconventional — speak out politically to save their land.

An extended I-69, sometimes referred to as the NAFTA highway, promises to expedite and expand trade among the United States, Mexico and Canada. But for the four-lane highway to be built, the Stolls and other Amish families who live in the path of the planned route would have to sacrifice their homes.

While proponents of the highway say it will benefit the economy, the Stolls and other Amish whose families have lived in the area for generations see it as the beginning of the end of their way of life.

The Stolls enjoy the solitude and serenity of life on their farm. The family built their own house and do not own a phone or use electricity. They depend on a wood stove for heat and work their farm by hand and with horses.

"We usually feel safe sending our kids two miles down the road," Stoll said. "If the highway comes, it would not only increase the traffic but also crime.

"Some say that the highway would increase the amount of jobs in the area, but this is farmland. If you run out of gas, where would you go? And many of the new people it would bring here have no idea how to deal with a horse and buggy trotting down the road."

Typically the Amish don't get involved in politics. However, when residents heard about the proposed highway, Stoll and fellow farmer John Wagler searched for a way to stop the road. They contacted non-Amish farmers who also opposed the road and decided to circulate a petition.

"We asked our ministers if it would be OK," said Wagler. "We didn't think it would be too impolite to ask the officials to put the road someplace else."

John McCall, a non-Amish farmer who lives in the midst of the Amish community, offered his aid.

"They told me what they wanted to say and we drafted a petition," said McCall. "They circulated it on Sundays when they met for church and collected signatures."

Once assured of its importance, more than 400 Amish signed the petition. However, it was sent to the wrong department in the Indiana Department of Transportation. Stoll and Wagler then had to convince the Amish to sign another petition.

"We heard nothing after we sent the first petition, so we decided to send another one," said Stoll. "Many members did not want to sign the second one because they thought that it would move the highway from their land onto their neighbor's.

"They did not want any of their neighbors to lose their farms."

The second petition amassed more than 650 signatures and gained national recognition.

Although the Amish oppose the highway, they say they are not trying to stop progress. They want to understand why the government would want to build an interstate through their community and back yards when other roads could be upgraded without affecting them.

"I guess it makes a big difference whose hog is being stuck," Stoll said. "If it's mine you won't care. If it's yours you're going to squeal."

Petition requests re-routing

The Amish community has petitioned Indiana Gov. Frank O'Bannon and Lt. Gov. Joe Kernan to stop the Interstate 69 extension from being routed through its farmland. It reads:

"We, members of the substantial Amish settlement in Daviess County, respectfully ask that you consider the tremendous harm that the proposed new Interstate 69 highway would do to our community.

"The highway would bisect Amish farmers and church districts and cut off members of our community from each other. Many of us would have to drive for miles by horse and buggy to attend church services or visit with our neighbors and families.

"We do not understand why it is necessary to do such great harm to our settlement and to our way of life. We ask you to consider alternatives to the new highway, such as upgrading existing highways.