Wellesley Township Heritage & Historical Society
  • Home
    • About Us
  • Built Heritage
    • Heritage Designations
    • Historic Neighbourhood Study
  • Cemeteries
    • Rushes Cemetery - Cryptogram Tombstone >
      • Bean Cryptic Tombstone
  • Church History
  • Digital Collection
  • Exhibits
  • Family History
    • Wellesley Roots
    • Family Histories in Our Collection
    • Marriage and Wedding Notices
    • Obituaries and Death Notices
  • Historical Room & Collections
    • Research Guide
    • Photograph Collections >
      • Wellesley Then and Now
      • Charles Ottmann jr Photograph Collection
      • Deborah Glaister Hannay Collection
      • Jessie Harkness Collection
      • Views of Wellesley Village
    • Historical Records in the Township Office
  • History of Wellesley Township
    • Settlement Patterns of Wellesley Townshiip
    • Queen's Bush Settlement
    • Huber Cider Mill Explosion 1908
    • Linwood Clippings 1868 - 1952
    • Linwood Scrapbook
    • Wellesley History In The News
  • Land Ownership
    • Tax Assessment Rolls
    • Maps
    • Township Papers
  • School History
  • Walking & Driving Tours
  • "Wellesley Maple Leaf" Newspaper
  • Wellesley Township Council
    • Wellesley Township Council Minutes
    • Wellesley Township Councillors
    • Waterloo County Councillors from Wellesley
  • Women's Institute
    • Wellesley Women's Institute Minutes
    • Wellesley Women's Institute Poster
    • Wellesley Women's Institute Slideshow
    • Tweedsmuir Histories
  • Gift Shop
  • Events
  • Contact Us
  • Membership Form
Picture

Old Order Amish Mennonite Congregation

Begun: 1859

Services of the Wellesley Amish Mennonite congregation are reported to have begun in 1859 when bi-weekly services were held in homes. The first Bishop was John Jantzi.

A small frame building, which was used primarily as a funeral shelter, may have been erected as early as 1867 on the site of the present cemetery on the 3rd Line. The north halves of lots 11 and 12 were purchased by Leonhard Streicher from Samuel and Margaret McKee in 1869. The next year, on July 11, 1870, Streicher deeded a half acre of property to the Amish Mennonite congregation on which a cemetery and "funeral chapel" were to be located. The chapel was built during the years 1871-1872. Worship services continued to be held in homes, although services at times may have been held in the funeral chapel.

When a larger church building was erected in 1886, some members of the congregation began to hold regular services in it, while other members continued to meet in homes. The latter group, which became known as Old Order Amish, are generally members of either the North or South Church District. Those members who live north of the Millbank/Crosshill road are in the North Church District, and those who live south of that road are in the South  Church District. The members continue to meet in homes; there are no meeting houses.

After the 1886 division, the Old Order Amish group had as its minister the deacon, Joseph G. Jantzi. Joseph Jantzi's brother, Peter Jantzi, was ordained minister in 1891. Peter Jantzi became bishop in 1902.

An Old Order Amish Cemetery, used by members living in Waterloo Region, is located on Lot 3, Concession VI, West Section, Wellesley Township, between Crosshill and Millbank, on the south side of the road.

Records:
For information regarding the availability of any early records, please contact the Archivist at Conrad Grebel College, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON N2L 3G6.

References: Burkholder 1935:233-234; Wall, Madill et al. 1992; Roth 1993.

Information excerpted from: Waterloo County Churches, A Research Guide to Churches established before 1900, by Rosemary Willard Ambrose © Waterloo-Wellington Branch, Ontario Genealogical Society, 1993. It is reproduced by permission.

For a complete list of resources mentioned above, please click
here.

                        -----------------------------------------------------