I can't imagine any reason to have a 3" bottom crust. I assume they are referring to pressing the crumbs up the side of the pan and the 3" refers to the vertical dimension. For the typical cheesecake I make using a 9" cake pan, the basic ingredients are 2- 8oz packages of cream cheese, 2 eggs and 1 pint of sour cream. For a less dense texture, whip the eggs whites separately from the other ingredients then gently fold into the batter. Bake at 300 for about 1 hour. Cheesecakes are a baked custard, so baking at too high a temperature is what causes cracking. I get the best results baking it longer at a lower temp. Water bath insures a more even distribution of the heat during baking. I like using a cake pan since you can place it in a water bath without worrying about the water seeping into the pan and ruining the cheesecake. When done baking, let it completely cool then invert out of the pan. Turn over a second time so the crust is on the bottom. Every oven cools at a different temperature. Recipes that suggest finishing the baking with oven door open or oven turned off may not work for you depending on the type of oven you have. Some of the newer recipes suggest a desired internal temperature which is a far more accurate/consistent way to get repeatable results.
Even if you line the outside of a springform pan with foil, it only takes a pinhole size leak to ruin it. Cake pans work much better and yield more consistent results.
There are lots of cheesecake recipes online and I find it best to check the RATIO of certain key ingredients such as cream cheese/eggs/sour cream/sugar. Typically, you will find most cheesecake recipes use 1 block of cream cheese for every egg. Other flavorings such as white chocolate, vanilla extract, etc. are used depending the specific flavor you are looking for. Some recipes call for a 10" pan which is HUGE and nearly twice the volume of a 9" pan.
I also have never heard of an Amish cheesecake, but perhaps you can search around online for a recipe.
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