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  • An Introduction to Dutch Blitz

    Camera: Charlie Weber
    Editing: Sonia Harnish
    Photo: Phillip R. Lee

    Members of Mennonite churches from around the D.C. region came to the Smithsonian Folklife Festival to share their singing traditions, but they also came to play—Dutch Blitz, that is. The fast-paced card game, invented in the 1930s by a German immigrant in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, found footing in the region’s Dutch Amish and Christian communities, particularly among Mennonites. While the tabletop version can be played inidividually, pastor Nathan Zook explained, this lawn version is a team sport. (Watch this video for more complete instructions on how to play!)


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