Early June, 2009 - The Elkhart Visitors Center is a great resource. Not
only did they help us locate the RV/MH Hall of Fame, but they gave us a
list of RV factory tour schedules. It was astonishing to see how many
manufacturers are based in this town, and more surprising to see how
many weren't offering tours because they weren't in business any more.
I wanted to find out how to experience some of the local Amish culture,
and the lady at the desk handed me a CD called "The Amish Heritage
Tour." You pop the CD into your car's player and it guides you through a
90 mile tour of the surrounding countryside. The accompanying paper
map helps you figure out where you are going. The CD assumes you
drive the speed limit, and gives directions on where to turn. As you drive
it narrates the history of the area, describing the industries that support
Elkhart today, pointing out the Amish settlements and giving insights into
their lifestyle, and explaining the Indian and European roots in the region too. The sound effects and accompanying music are
delightful, and the driving instructions are terrific. Every 5-10 miles there
is something worth stopping to see, and the CD explains where to park
and what to look for as you walk around. We returned the CD to the
Visitors Center at the end of our tour and later found out you can
download the MP3 files from their website instead of borrowing the CD.
We spent a very happy day with that CD. The first stop was Bonneyville
Mills. A beautiful iris garden out front caught my eye.
The second suggested stop was the RV/MH Hall of
Fame, which we had seen the day before. I don't think
you could squeeze both tours into one day. What we
were most eager to see was the Amish countryside. We
learned that some 20,000 Amish live in this area, of
about 225,000 worldwide. They are a subset of the
Mennonites who number about 1.5 million in 65 countries worldwide. With a birth rate of 6.8 children
per family, the Amish population is growing at 4% annually, making it one of the fastest growing
cultures in the world. Customs vary by community, but in this area their homesteads have white barns
rather than the usual red ones in the rest of Indiana and Michigan.
The essence of their beliefs is twofold: humility and isolation. Their forebears were so terribly
persecuted for their religion in Europe in the 1600's that they withdrew from society at large, preferring
to nurture their own community's independence while keeping the rest of the world at bay. Therefore,
when electricity became available in the 1920's, they rejected it, as it would bind them to the non-Amish
around them. Similarly, they prefer to travel by horse and buggy and work the fields manually. A
horse's range is perhaps 25 miles before it needs to rest and eat, shortening the distance they can
travel outside the Amish community. Manual field tools prevent anyone from attempting to acquire a
larger field than his neighbor and thereby aggrandize himself rather than remain humble. All this adds
up to an extremely simple lifestyle that thrives without much technology. However the rejection of
technology is not so much of technology in and of itself but of things that could lead to one individual
standing apart from the rest or that could make the community dependent on the outside world.
I had seen photos of Amish horses and buggies but
couldn't really believe it, so when I saw them all tied to
hitching posts at the local hardware store and local
dentist's office I was quite startled. The biggest
grouping was at the local bulk food market, a huge
building that must have had 40 horses and buggies
lined up outside. All the horses were dark colored and
the buggies were black. Most had a roof, windshield
and doors, though some were open air buggies.
The kids get early equestrian training and learn to
drive on the roads responsibly at a young age.
The CD instructed us not to take photos of the Amish, which I
mostly obeyed. However, in every Amish shop we entered
(which were staffed exclusively by Amish), there were arrays
of books and information about the Amish for sale, featuring
photos of all kinds, including some beautiful coffee table
books that had very intimate photographs of the Amish in all
aspects of their lives. Who took those lovely photos, and did
the Amish object? Apparently not, as they were happy to
display and sell the books. The Amish are not totally
independent of the world around them, as they need to buy
homes and land as their population increases, so they interact
financially. Some rely on the tourist trade for money and
others hold jobs. They have been affected by the economic downturn as well, and I read one local newspaper article about an
Amish man who had lost his job in an RV factory and had to rely solely on his farm. He liked spending more time at home with his
kids and wife, tending their farm together, but he said if his job were available again he would return to work without hesitation.
In our search for trailers last year, we had
encountered several manufacturers who
advertised that their trailers were Amish
made, especially the interior woodwork. The
image of a man with beard, suspenders and
wide brimmed hat carefully crafting the
cabinetry with hand tools while his horse and
buggy wait patiently outside can be
appealing. But it isn't quite accurate.
Jayco, in particular, advertises this Amish connection. We came across
their holding pen for trailers ready to be shipped across country. It was
an open field with space for rows and rows of trailers. Only about half of
the rows were occupied, but it was interesting to see rows of their high-
end Designer fifth wheels and light-weight Jay Feather travel trailers
ready to go.
Directly across the narrow lane from this holding pen
was an Amish farm, complete with a large barn and
several buggies parked out front. The woman of the
house was tending her vegetable garden and the
clothes line was full of clothes swaying in the breeze. I
was fascinated by the juxtaposition of the simple living
and home based values sandwiched into the modern,
mass market standards of the surrounding community.
We found this odd mix of cultures on the road too, as the horses and
buggies fill all the roads in the area. We stopped at the Rise 'n Roll
Bakery and were enchanted with what lay inside. A group of young
Amish were baking and selling their goods. The girls were singing
together as they worked, and when they stopped periodically to talk
together they spoke German (we later found out it is a dialect of Swiss-
German). Of course their English is perfect as well, and the young boy
at the cash register was utterly charming as he offered us samples of
the most amazing donuts I have ever tasted. There was an innocence
and sweetness among those teenagers at that bakery that I have
rarely experienced elsewhere.
And what better place for sweetness than a bakery; the sugar coated
delights were heavenly. I wanted so much to photograph the charming
scene there: the girls in their bonnets laughing and singing; the boy in
his suspenders gently teasing them. Instead, I took a picture of a little sign they had hanging below the cash register: "As you
travel on life's pathway, may this always be your goal: Keep your eyes upon the doughnut and not upon the hole!"
We took a fresh raspberry pie and some donuts out to a little bench in
front of the bakery and watched the Amish world go by for a while. The
horses and buggies were more common than the cars, and they moved
at quite a clip. I was amazed looking at one of my photos later to see
that all four of the horse's hooves were off the ground. The Amish may
not travel long distances, but they have the same urgency to get where
they are going as we do.
I read later that in some Amish communities only the young use open-
air buggies, and they are used for courting. That didn't seem to be the
case with the this open-air buggy, but it sure looked like a fun way to get
around. Of course they travel on all the state and US highways that we
do, and those roads are maintained by the governments that govern us
as well as them.
The Amish pay all taxes except social security tax (because they never
apply for social security, relying on families to take care of their disabled
and elderly instead) and Worker's Compensation (because they do not
use insurance). Again, both Social Security and insurance would bind
them too tightly to the community at large. However, some hospitals
have begun to offer special care for the Amish when they are sick, and
they have been participating in studies of genetic diseases and disorders,
as most Amish today are descended from just 200 original European
ancestors, and genetic disorders have become an issue.
We found ourselves eating our way across Amish land as we stopped
next at the "Deutsche Kase Haus," the Cheese Factory. They had a
seemingly infinite variety of cheeses, and all were available for sampling.
Mark was immune, because he doesn't like cheese, but I tried almost all
of them, and they were delicious. I noticed that other tourists were
stocking up on goodies, both here and back at the bakery, and I
discovered that many people come into Amish country on a regular basis
just to buy their amazing foods.
One fellow who was traveling through ("I come here twice a year every
year!") highly recommended that we stop at the Blue Gate Restaurant in
Shipshewana and have the "Amish Plate." He said it would be one of
the best meals we'd ever have.
We didn't make it there, but we did get to Yoder Popcorn where we
bought a bag of Tender Tiny Whites.
Across the street we watched a man working his fields with a team of six
horses. The notion of using manual labor to discourage individuals from
trying to outdo their neighbors by having a bigger farm was intriguing.
The very essence of western culture can be such a Darwinian survival-
of-the-fittest scramble to the top, where aggrandizement is
revered and everyone wants to stand out. It was hard to
imagine a culture where the drive for achievement was
capped. We learned that the Amish don't go to school past
eighth grade, usually attending one-room school houses in
their communities. In order to comply with the
government's minimum age for leaving school, they simply
repeat 8th grade until they are the acceptable age. Amish
students score higher than average on all standardized
tests except vocabulary.
Down the road we saw a man working his field with a single
horse pulling a cart that he sat in, and which, in turn, towed
a gas powered tractor. Because it wasn't a riding tractor,
his farm size was naturally limited by his horse's stamina.
We did not see any churches in their communities, as they prefer to
worship in each others' homes, every other Sunday.
It was a perfect spring day, and every home had a prominent
vegetable garden out front. Almost every vegetable garden was
being tended by a woman in her long dress and white bonnet. The
division of labor between the fields and the homes was distinct.
Women also mow the grass in the yard. I stopped counting after
then 7th woman I saw pushing a lawn mower.
These weren't little manual rotary mowers like my brother used to push in
our tiny city yard in Massachusetts. These were big gas mowers that could
really get the job done. One thing we noticed is that extreme obesity is not
a problem with the Amish. All that work around the home and farm keeps
them trim.
There are
Mennonite
communities in
the area too, and they are much more lenient in their interpretation of
how to live humbly, simply and without ties to the outside world. At the
local supermarket I watched a group of women in long dresses and
bonnets filling their baskets with many of the same goods we rely on,
and when they got outside they hopped in a car and drove off.
Near the end of the tour we emerged back into the familiar
Indiana countryside with red barns. They were beautiful
too, but it was a sign we were coming back to a society that
is more familiar.
HEARTLAND RV FACTORY TOUR
We enjoy factory tours, and we wanted to visit Heartland RV, one of the very successful newcomers to the fifth wheel market.
Having left the rundown looking but elite Tartan yacht factory a few days earlier, what a contrast it was to pull up to this modern
building topped with a proud sign and a new Mercedes parked out front. We walked inside, inquiring about a tour, and several
people instantly scurried off and came back with a salesman for us. He was clutching some papers and thrust them towards me as
he said excitedly, "Sales are down 27%!" I raised an eyebrow. "We're number three in the industry!" He handed me the papers,
and sure enough, out of 30 or so manufacturers, where sales were down 40-60% across the board, Heartland was third from the
top for smallest decline in sales volume. What a sign of the times that a 27% drop in sales would be news to brag about.
He led us on a brisk walk to the beginning of the line, explaining to us that
Heartland's founders had been in the RV industry since time immemorial,
coming from Coachmen years ago and starting several other RV
enterprises before opening Heartland. The place was abuzz with activity.
Drills, saws, stacks of parts, people moving fast: it was like a movie set. A
feeling of purposeful, focused ambition filled the air. We came out into
the sunlight where the line begins with stacks of chassis made by Lippert.
Once inside, each chassis gets its water and holding tanks and wheels
installed. Then the flooring is laid.
Unlike the traditional trailer manufacturing techniques we have
seen elsewhere, Heartland has a unique method for getting the
trailers down the line. Most manufacturers line the trailers up
nose to tail and let them stand on their own landing legs and
wheels as they do at a campground. They roll down the line all
in a row on their own wheels. In contrast, Heartland puts each
chassis on a dolly system, both the front landing legs and the rear wheels. They stand cheek-to-cheek and roll down the line
sideways. The trailers don't come off the dollies until they leave the building, fully assembled. This allows Heartland to put twice as
many trailers on each assembly line. In addition, each station on the line has a scaffolding system mounted to the ceiling that can
be lowered around the trailer once it is in place to allow workers easy access to the high areas.
After the flooring is installed on the chassis, the furniture
can be put in place. The furniture modules are largely pre-
assembled.
Then the walls are installed. The gaskets for the slides are
installed next, and the windows are put in place.
Then the slide-outs, which are assembled and furnished
separately, are mounted in place.
Last of all the front cap is installed on the nose of the trailer.
Finally, the trailers emerge into the sunlight, ready for shipping to
the dealerships.
There is a lot of pride in this bustling factory. But when I
asked about warranties and repairs, it didn't sound like the
Heartland factory wants to see their trailers once they leave
the plant. Unlike NuWa, which offers phenomenal
personalized service at the factory for both in-warranty and
out-of-warranty work, resulting in a steady stream of loyal
customers visiting their plant in Chanute, Kansas,
Heartland's repair service is handled exclusively by the
dealers.
Elkhart is loaded with RV manufacturers, and most offer
tours. However, we were ready to change gears and go up
Michigan's west coast to visit some of the cute waterfront
towns that line Lake Michigan's shores.