As most visitors to Lancaster County quickly notice, a large number of the Amish earn a living in non-farming occupations.
Amish shops selling everything from quilts to gazebos dot the countryside.
Horse-drawn equipment became increasingly scarce after 1940, as more American farmers began using tractors. Consequently, several Amish mechanics opened machines shops to refurbish horse-drawn implements. Taking a major turn, they also began buying implements designed for tractors and adapting them for use with horses. For example, they mounted engines on hay balers that were pulled by horses instead of tractors. Thus, somewhat ironically, the Amish were nudged into business in order to preserve their horse farming in the face of a booming agribusiness enamored with tractors.