Beth Oberholtzer, author of “Plain Meetinghouses: Lancaster County Old Order Mennonites Gather to Worship” will present this evening. Oberholtzer and John Herr, photographer, collaborated to create the book published by Schiffer Publishing in 2017. Old Order Mennonite meetinghouses dot the countryside of Lancaster County and silently embody deeply ingrained religious traditions and yet few outsiders have seen the startling utilitarian beauty of these rural structures up close. Oberholtzer and Herr were allowed rare access to 22 austere houses of worship. They created a one-of-a-kind book featuring over 300 photos and diagrams that document all aspects of the meetinghouses, from the design of their benches and buggy sheds to the arrangement of tables central to worship. This event is free and open to the public.

Beth Oberholtzer is a graphic designer, illustrator, and photographer from Lancaster, Pa. She is the daughter of a Lancaster County farmer whose Mennonite ancestors crossed the Atlantic in 1727. A Manheim Township resident, Beth set out to write about Plain architecture and its beautiful simplicity.
John Herr is an architecture photographer from Lancaster, Pa., whose work portrays contemporary and historic buildings.