CHESTERVILLE -- The oldest known Amish house in Illinois is on the move -- or at least it will be during an event on Tuesday.
The home, built some time around 1865 by Moses Yoder, will be moved from it's lot near Arthur to the new Illinois Amish Museum and Heritage Center just west of Chesterville.
According to a news release from the Heritage Center, Yoder, Daniel Miller and Daniel Otto and their families were the first Amish immigrants to settle near Arthur in 1865. Yoder's home, along with one other, were saved from demolition in 1999. They have been in storage behind Yoder's Kitchen in Arthur ever since, waiting for a new home.Â
Plans are to move the Yoder house part of the way with an eight horse hitch of Amish horses starting around 7:30 a.m. on Tuesday. Then at 9 a.m., both houses will complete the three-mile move with more modern truck power. The new five-acre site is located on the north side of Route 133 about a mile west of Chesterville.
The Museum and Heritage Center will feature tours of Amish homes, farms, businesses and dinners in an Amish home. Also a wide range of special events will showcase historic agriculture activities such as horse plowing and steam threshing.
