Upper Barton Creek is a mixed

Mennonite Mennonites are groups of Anabaptist Christian church communities of denominations. The name is derived from the founder of the movement, Menno Simons (1496–1561) of Friesland. Through his writings about Reformed Christianity during the Radi ...

settlement and expats in Cayo District in

Belize Belize (; bzj, Bileez) is a Caribbean and Central American country on the northeastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a wate ...

in the area of the

Barton Creek Barton Creek is a tributary that feeds the Colorado River as it flows through the Texas Hill Country. The creek passes through some of the more scenic areas in Greater Austin, surrounded in many parts by a greenbelt of protected lands that serve ...

. The

Mennonites Mennonites are groups of Anabaptist Christian church communities of denominations. The name is derived from the founder of the movement, Menno Simons (1496–1561) of Friesland. Through his writings about Reformed Christianity during the Radic ...

in Upper Barton Creek are

ethnic Mennonite The term ethnic Mennonite refers to Mennonites of Central European ancestry and culture who are considered to be members of a Mennonite ethnic or ethnoreligious group. The term is also used for aspects of their culture, such as language, dress, and ...

s of the Noah Hoover group. Upper Barton Creek use to be a unique settlement of reformers from different Anabaptist backgrounds, who wanted to create a Mennonite community free of modernistic trends and in nonconformity to the world to live a simple Christian life. It was established in 1969 by Plautdietsch-speaking "Russian" Mennonites mostly from Spanish Lookout and later also from Shipyard in Belize, and Pennsylvania German-speaking families from Old Order Mennonite and

Amish The Amish (; pdc, Amisch; german: link=no, Amische), formally the Old Order Amish, are a group of traditionalist Anabaptist Christian church fellowships with Swiss German and Alsatian origins. They are closely related to Mennonite churc ...

backgrounds, who originally came from the US and settled first in Pilgrimage Valley. In the founding of Upper Barton Creek three men and their families were very important, two of them came from Pilgrimage Valley and one from Spanish Lookout. Following their

Ordnung The Ordnung is a set of rules for Amish, Old Order Mennonite and Conservative Mennonite living. '' Ordnung'' () is the German word for order, discipline, rule, arrangement, organization, or system. Because the Amish have no central church governme ...

the Mennonites of Upper Barton Creek at one time did not own any equipment with motors, including cars, nor do they use electricity. A saw mill there was powered by horses. However after 2017 these Mennonites moved to center vill and more progressive Mennonites from Canada have moved in .. They farm with horses on a small scale, producing vegetables, fruit, cattle, honey, fruit trees etc. They practice strict

church discipline Church discipline is the practice of church members calling upon an individual within the Church to repent for their sins. Church discipline is performed when one has sinned or gone against the rules of the church. Church discipline is practiced wi ...

. Both men and women dress

Plain In geography, a plain is a flat expanse of land that generally does not change much in elevation, and is primarily treeless. Plains occur as lowlands along valleys or at the base of mountains, as coastal plains, and as plateaus or uplands ...

similar to Old Order Mennonites and Amish with men wearing beards. There is no education above elementary school.Friesen, Heinrich P. "Upper Barton Creek Colony (Belize)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. 1989. Web. 9 Oct 2014. The Mennonites of Upper Barton Creek are counted to the Noah Hoover group, which originally is from central

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

. Daughter colonies of Upper Barton Creek are Springfield and Pine Hill. In 1980 the total population was 60, in 1988 the total population was 157 including 45 church members and 2 ministers. In 2010 it had a population of 380, with an average household size of 7, reflecting the family-oriented conservative Mennonite culture.

Literature

*Carel Roessingh and Tanja Plasil (Editors): ''Between Horse & Buggy and Four-Wheel Drive: Change and Diversity Among Mennonite Settlements in Belize, Central America'', Amsterdam 2009. *Dale J. Nippert: ''Agricultural Colonization: The Mennonites of Upper Barton Creek, Belize'', Memphis 1994. *Helmut Schneider: ''Tradition und Veränderung in Belize (Mittelamerika): ein soziologischer Vergleich der Gemeinden San Ignacio und Upper Barton Creek'', Berlin 1990.

References

{{reflist Amish in North America Cayo District Populated places established in 1969 Populated places in Cayo District Mennonitism in Belize