In 1860s and '70s the traditionalists among the Brethren opposed the adoption of innovations such as revival meetings, Sunday schools, and foreign missionary work.
The more conservative of the two groups, centered in Camden, Indiana, was organized in 1939 and took the name Old Brethren German Baptists.
They continued as an independent congregation until they made contact with a few Old Order Brethren near Bradford, Ohio, who met in the home of Solomon Lavy.
Old Brethren German Baptists differ from their predecessor groups by stricter adherence to traditions, such as the use of horse and buggy, instead of automobiles, as a means of transportation.
The church at Arcanum, Ohio, does not exist anymore and the congregation at Goshen, Indiana, is down to two elderly members, but there is a new settlement between Trenton and Spickard, Missouri.
This group has many members who came from the car-driving Old German Baptist Brethren and who withdrew over concerns about a perceived slide to modernity in their church.
Besides horse and buggy transportation, Plain dress and low technology, they share traditions stemming from their common Pennsylvania German heritage.