North Dakota Hutterites: Who Are They & What Are They About?

Did you know we have two different groups of Hutterites that call North Dakota home?

They are the Schmiedeleut group, that has most of its colonies in southeast North Dakota.  The other group is the Dariusleut group, which has one colony in southwest North Dakota.  That colony is not too far from Bismarck and is located north of Elgin, North Dakota close to Lake Tschida.  This colony is known as the Wollman Ranch colony.

A third group of Hutterites do not have colonies in North Dakota.  They are called the Lehreleut and are located in mostly Canada, and Montana.

I feel like Hutterites are mostly misunderstood, and often confused with the Amish and Mennonites.  Yes, they dress modestly, but unlike the Amish, they embrace technology and modern life.  They go to school (even college), drive, and have electricity in their homes.

I got to know a guy who once lived in a Hutterite colony in Forest River, North Dakota.  He told me Hutterites are pietist Christians believing in adult baptism and pacifism, as do other Anabaptists such as the Mennonites, and the Amish.

He told me they are held together by their strong religious beliefs.  They are a self-sufficient people, living a completely communal lifestyle within the bounds of the colony.

Most Hutterties immigrated from Europe to Russia, and then to the United States after hundreds of years of persecution.  This caused Hutterites to relocate several times,  according to Prairie Public Newsroom.

The Hutterite movement began in the early 1500s.

They're named after their founder, Jakob Hutter.  They didn't arrive in the United States until the 1870s.

When World War 1 started, they were persecuted for their pacifist beliefs.  17 of the 18 American colonies moved to Canada.  After the United States passed laws protecting pacifists or conscientious objectors, some Hutterites came back to America.

You will only find Hutterite colonies in northern states in America. 

They are located in North Dakota, Montana, Minnesota, Washington, and Oregon, but you will find most of them located in South Dakota.

Hutterites are more numerous in Canada.

You will find large numbers of colonies in Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and Alberta.  There are also a couple of colonies located in British Columbia, Canada.

Here's a map from Google Maps that shows the distributions of the different groups of Hutterites and their colonies.