Early On
Kishacoquillas Valley was named in 1754 to honor Chief Kishacoquillas, who was a leader of the Shawnee Indian Tribe. The Shawnee Indians were very friendly towards the white people and loved to hunt and fish the grounds in the Big Valley. 

Geography
This fertile limestone laden valley almost covers all of Central Pennsylvania including five townships, Armagh, Brown, Union, Menno, and Brady located across the county line in Huntingdon. The County line crosses the valley diagonally and is a "live-to-line" which has not been established in over 2 1 0 years. Numerous court cases have been won or lost since 1789 over the indecision of the county officials. 

The Towns
There are approximately 13,500 people who call Kishacoquillas Valley their home. Kishacoquillas Valley consists of five towns and villages situated on the valley floor. These villages and towns consist of Allensville, Reedsville, Belleville, Milroy, and Siglerville. Each of these individual towns has their own Lutheran Church. St. Paul Lutheran Church in Allensville sits on the summit of the valley approximately 980 feet above sea level. This is the oldest church in Mifflin County.

The Mountains
The Standing Stone Mountain, which is located to the west, is named for its rich deposits of-silica sandstone. To the east, there is another mountain, which is Jack's Mountain. Jack's Mountain was named after a frontiersman and a pioneer fur trader named Jack Armstrong who was abused by hostile Indians. This mountain extends from Bloomsburg, PA to Hagerstown, MD, which is approximately 170 miles. 

The Amish
There are three different groups of horse and buggy Amish who reside in the Big Valley. The black top groups, which are rather liberal, are made up of seven congregations. The yellow top group, which is made up of three congregations, seems to be the most progressive. Nine congregations make up the white top group, which are the most conservative. Around 2400 men, women, and children belong to these 19 congregations. Usually one Bishop, two Ministers and one Deacon oversees caring for one congregation. These three Amish groups use the Martin Luther German Bible in their worship services. An average of 130 people are members of a congregation and they meet in their homes to worship their lord and savior. After the service, they all share a, typical Amish Church Dinner. This dinner includes homemade bread and butter with a delicious cheese spread, pies, pickles, red beets, pickled eggs, etc.

More Amish Lifestyle
Since 1791, the Amish have lived in this valley maintaining an Agrarian lifestyle. All this time shunning many conveniences of modem living. Many of them have divided their farms to the point where a small farm has become insufficient to support a family unit. Many Amish have to work elsewhere to provide for their families. All the Amish children are educated in one room schools from grades one through eight and are taught by a certified Amish teacher. At about fourteen years of age, they enroll in vocational training for no more than two years. The majority of these three groups of Amish are farmers and all use draft horses to cultivate the land. Steel wheeled tractors and stationary engines are used to thrash grain and fill silos. Smaller engines power washing machines, lawn mowers, chain saws and numerous hand tools, etc. Large diesel engines run coolers, saw mills, pallet shops, machine shops and welding and repair shops. All their equipment is mounted on steel wheels. They do not have cars, use little or no electricity, and own no telephones but use them frequently. When they travel, they like to go in groups usually in vans.

The Mennonites
The Pleasant View Mennonite Church Amish groups drive black cars and trucks and the Valley View Amish groups drive cars and trucks. To this group, the color of the vehicle does not matter. They both have their own schools situated next to their church buildings. These schools teach grades one through eight. Both groups worship in plain church houses and provide Christian education for their children. This group of Amish includes farmers, tradesman of all sorts, and operate a variety of businesses. They use all kinds of modern equipment and conveniences. There are a total of ten Mennonite churches throughout the valley with a membership of around 1800. The Mennonites have their own Christian education school, which includes grades kindergarten through twelve. Many Mennonites are farmers as well as owning and operating all kinds of businesses. In recent years, their churches have introduced organs and pianos to assist on special occasions in services.

Singing in Big Valley
The Kishacoquillas Valley hears lots of beautiful singing. Among the Amish and Mennonite congregations, singing is perfon-ned acappella. This singing is lead by a chorister or a song leader. Some singing is done in unison and voices blend.

Religious Diversity
There are other churches located in the Big Valley, four Presbyterian, several Methodist, and two Christian Missionary Alliance, and Brethren in Christ. All other denominations go outside the valley to worship.

Agriculture
There are over 1000 farms located in the valley and less than half are commercial. These farms are grossing $35,000 to over $400,000. They are operating from the "tight end", the south end, of the Kishacoquillas Valley a distance 30 miles to the foothills of the Seven Mountains. The north end, adjacent to New Lancaster Valley, Havice Valley, and Treaster Valley jetting down out of the mountains. 

Cultural Diversity
Route 322 crosses the valley where it is about five miles wide. Route 655 intersects at Reedsville and runs through the center of the valley all the way to Mill Creek. Agriculture is the largest industry here in the Kishacoquillas Valley. It is highly diversified using hi-tech equipment and ultra-modern methods to primeval ways of doing things. You can experience first hand culturally the extremes. As you pass by our farms you will see Amish horses, drawn implements being pulled by four to eight horses abreast and sometimes teams double hitched. In the next field, you may see the most modem farming machinery, touch controlled, air conditioned and even computerized. What a remarkable sight.

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