A joke from 1881...

From the North Wales Express (UK) for November 25, 1881:

Harfensall (Harp Hall)

In 2019 the writer was an international delegate to Germany for a convention at the Olympic stadium. One of the tours arranged was to visit the original German Bethel at Magdeburg. Shut down by the Nazis and then shut down again by the East German authorities, the building (or at least part of it) still belongs to the Watchtower Society today. In 2019 part was still used as a Kingdom Hall and a large basement area was used to feed the many visitors.

It had a small museum, mainly rare books in the German language. However, on a wall there was also the photograph reproduced above.

There was no caption, and I neglected to ask my hosts what it was. However, it was of a large group assembled together, nearly all men, and they are surrounding a well-known picture of Jesus, as well as a picture of the Watch Tower Society president, Joseph F Rutherford.

The picture of Jesus was very large as shown by this close up.

Rutherford was not there in person for the photograph, which, from its background, would have to relate to Germany.

Subequent research provided the background, and I am grateful to Bernhard for most the information that follows.

The photograph was taken in what was called the “Harfensall” (Harp Hall) which was the meeting hall for the Bethel family working at Magdeburg. Today it would be called the Kingdom Hall. Because the group was the Bethel family, most in the picture are men. The original was reportedly a panoramic view measuring 9.25 inches high, and six feet and one inch in length.

The photograph was probably taken in 1931, a little later than one might expect. Or, if it dated from a little earlier, it provoked a very negative response in 1931. In that year a new dining hall was built at the Magdeburg headquarters and JFR was expected to officially open it and other new facilities before attending a convention in Berlin. So the Bethel family had all posed for their photograph with the pictures of Jesus Christ and JRF to greet him. This is likely why the signboard caption “Joined in Faithfulness” is in English rather than German. However, the days of photographs of the Society’s president – a practice that started with CTR – were now over. JFR reportedly stopped the circulation of photo cards at the 1931 Berlin convention, and also objected to the above photograph being hung on the dining room wall. It therefore disappeared, although not for good as we can see it reproduced today.

The photograph has a poignant quality. Within a couple of years after the incident, the property was seized by the Nazis and the Bible Students were banned. Many pictured in the photograph would be arrested, and some would ultimately lose their lives for their faith.

Frank L Draper

Edited from material provided by Bernhard

Frank Draper was at the forefront of Bible Students for 25 years and was one of the most prominent and beloved, though he was never an officer of the Watchtower Society, nor did he write articles for the magazine now known as The Watchtower and hereeafter referred to by that title. But he was a leading evangelist, colporteur, pilgrim brother, pastor, convention speaker and loyal supporter of Charles T. Russell.

When and where was Frank born?

The US Census for 1910 provides some basic information. Around 1908-1910 and maybe some later Frank was a member of the Brooklyn Bethel family in New York. The census tells us he is 54 years old and was born in Ohio. This leads us back to the years 1856 or 1857.

In the Daily Heavenly Manna book, owned by Rose Leffler, we find the entry that Frank was born on March 2. The Leffler family (parents and eight children) embraced the Truth in 1897, when Frank Draper spoke on “The Second Coming of Christ“ in Tiffin, Ohio.

   

With this information we can find Frank Draper in the familysearch system. He was born on March 2, 1856 in Pottsville, Pennsylvania. His father was James Draper, born 1831 in England, and his mother Jane Smith who was born 1833 in Ireland. He had four siblings: William H., Annie, Emma J. and Mary Elizabeth.

Around 1879/80 he married 19 year old Elvira, born in Ohio in 1861, and from then on lived in Niles, Trumbull, Ohio. (US Census 1880). His profession at this time is “laborer in R. M.”, his wife is a housekeeper. He lived for a long time in Ohio and that's maybe the reason why he told the 1910 US Census that he was born in Ohio, but actually it was in Pennsylvania. Tragically, his wife died relatively young, possibly from a serious illness and Frank became a widower.

 In July 1890 Frank is mentioned for the first time in The Watchtower (July 1890, p. 5443, reprints). He wrote a letter to Brother Russell:

“Brother Wise (Aaron C.) and myself are pushing the battle. Many are becoming awakened on these questions which are so dear to us. There is an increasing demand for reading matter, especially Old Theology Tract No. 1. Last evening we held a street service. People crowded us almost to suffocation for Tracts and Slips, and some wanted DAWN. We expect to open a building  for meetings soon. In the midst of reproach and evil speaking we are "looking unto Jesus."“

This shows that Draper joined the Bible Students before 1890.

When there were accusations against Russell by J. B. Adamson, Otto Von Zech and others in 1894, Draper took a stand for Russell. He wrote in The Watchtower June 11, 1894, p. 7963:

“Am doing what I am able to support and spread the truth.“

In 1894 he began as part-time pilgrim. In The Watchtower, December 1894, we read:

Brother M. L. McPhail only has been giving all of his time to this work, and he alone has all of his expenses paid out of the Tract Society's fund, the other laborers in this branch of the service, Brothers Antoszewski, Austin, Bell, Blundin, Bohnet, Draper, Merrill, Murphy, Owen, Page, Ransom, Richards, Thorn, Webb, Weber, Weimar, West, Williams, Wise and Witter, being traveling salesmen, colporteurs or business men whose expenses are met by their business or otherwise and who delight to give an evening or a Sunday, as they can arrange it, in serving the Lord's flock--pointing to the green pastures and the still waters and feeding and rejoicing with the "sheep."

He was already giving speeches at least as early as July 1895. [1] At the end of 1896, while in Kentucky, he held 14 meetings in one week, three in private homes and 11 in public places. He reported that in one particular county he had experienced the prejudices of locals against Bible Students, who even used guns, and opposition from a member of the Baptist Church which tried to prevent the holding of meetings, but they did take place anyway. In another place, the Shakers, who usually did not allow preachers of another religion to hold meetings among them, allowed Draper to preach in their school; he was able to hold three meetings there with an average attendance of 75 or 80. [2] In August 1899, Russell had planned to send Draper to Kansas by October 1 of that year, [3] and he was supposed to deliver speeches at the St. Louis convention assembly on October 6. [4] In November 1899 he visited Indiana Territory. [5] By early 1900 he was in Texas and Edward Brenneisen praised him, considering him a capable orator. [6] At the 1903 Memorial, he was in Chetopa, Kansas, [7] and was one of the speakers at the convention in Denver, Colorado, July 10-12 of the same year. [8] He visited Texas in early 1904, [9] and was a speaker at the Los Angeles conventions [10] in St. Louis in October of the same year, [11] in Asbury Park in July 1906, [12] from Indianapolis in 1907, [13] in July he was on his way to Kokoma, [14] from Norfolk on October 3 of the same year, [15] from Put-in-Bay on September 3, 1908, [16] and Denver, Colorado, in July 1909. [17] In 1911 Russell sent him to his parents homeland, the United Kingdom and Ireland. [18]

Samuel Kuesthardt give us the report that Frank Draper was also a baptizer, for example he baptized two in Toledo, Ohio (The Watchtower, August 15, 1898).

In 1908, he was among those who reacted favorably to Russell's vow, made by adherents concerning the attitude to be adopted towards the opposite sex. [19] Likewise, during the New Covenant schism, he positioned himself vigorously in favor of Russell: indeed, he praised the latter for his articles published in October and November of 1909.

In 1913, he congratulated Russell for not having insisted too much, in the last two or three years, on a date concerning the end of Gentile times. [20] He highly praised the Photo-Drama of Creation, which he described as "the most successful project the Society has ever launched". [21]

Draper's personality?

Morgan T. Lewis, a staff member at the Bible House, described him  (The Watchtower, February 15, 1898):

His talks and his fine Christian character impressed us very much, and we want to express our gratitude for the helpful occasion. He has a remarkable talent for presenting the truth; so easy do the words flow and so forceful, that they impress the candid hearer. He spoke Saturday evening at Troy and Sunday morning at my home to sixteen of us on the "Narrow Way," and in the evening on the upper features of the chart to about twenty-five, mostly interested ones. The talks did me much good, as I learned how to arrange the talks, and will make use of his plan when I have occasion to speak in public. I want to express myself in regard to the work that Bro. Draper is doing. I think it is one of the best opportunities to help on the cause, and I almost envy the dear Brother the great blessing he must get in going around and meeting and helping the friends. What a joy his must be.

Draper even allowed himself to advise Russell on certain matters. In 1905 he criticized the translation "running towards the goal" in Philippians 3:14, a translation which had been suggested to Russell by one of the pilgrims claiming to have received it from a Hellenist scholar. As the translation does not fit the picture of a race, Draper disagreed with Russell and suggested that "the thing be presented to us as someone who knows Greek".

By the end of 1915 he stopped touring as pigrim. In the St. Paul Enterprise (January 1916) he explained that he came to Detroit, Michigan, and stayed there at 148 Lincoln Avenue. The reason was that his aged mother lived there and he needed to care for her. He became a part of the 250 strong Detroit class. In this class he met a sister named Lois (Louise) Haskins, nee Swain.

In April 22, 1916 he gave a talk at O.E.S. (Order of the Eastern Star) Temple, 43 Alexandrine West, at 3 p.m., Subject: “Do the Scriptures Teach that the Dead Are Asleep?“

One month later he married Lois Swain (daughter of Alexander Swain und Julia Arn) on May 29, 1916. The marriage entry shows that Draper was still an evangelist. Lois (Louise) was born on February 26, 1871).

Lois Swain had previously been married to Seth L. Haskins (1866 - February 18, 1909) on January 7, 1888, and they had one daughter Bertha E., born 1894.

On October 31, 1916, Charles T. Russell died and the funeral took place on November 5. Many prominent brothers gave funeral talks. But remarkably Frank Draper was not at the burial. Nowhere is he mentioned; although he was a capable speaker he did not give a funeral talk.

On June 1, 1917, p.175 Draper was mentioned for the last time in The Watchtower:

FORMER PILGRIM HEARD FROM

Although dear Brother Russell will be greatly missed by us all, he is greatly the gainer, having gone beyond the veil to forever with the Lord. You may be assured that whatever influence I can exert in the interest of the SOCIETY and the work it is doing, I will be very glad to exert. My humble prayer is that aIl the dear brethren at the Headquarters and everywhere may work together most harmoniously and successfully. With much Christian love and very best wishes in which Sister Draper joins me, I am. Your brother in the Lord, Frank Draper, Michigan.

On November 10, 1917 he gave a talk  at the O.E.S. Temple: Subject: “The Judgement Day. What is it for? How long will it last?“

Although he urged for others to work harmoniously with the I.B.S.A. he was obviously no longer willing to do so himself. By 1919 he was supporting a group who did not remain with the I.B.S.A. although he never held office in their alternative organization. By 1932 he had recanted on his position over the New Covenant schism back in 1909, and offered that separate group his support.

There is a little more we can find out about him. The 1920 US Census shows that Frank and Lois still lived in Michigan, and stepdaughter Bertha E., was living with them. The census gives Frank‘s occupation now as masseurist in an auto factory. Bertha married a Howard E. Waite on November 23, 1920.

Then on September 15, 1929 Lois died at the age of 58 in Detroit and Frank was again a widower.

The 1930 US Census shows him now living in Los Angeles. Maybe he decided to move after his wife died. He now lives there as a lodger.

Frank L. Draper died on October 4, 1937 at the age of 81 and he was buried in the same cemetery as his second wife in Detroit, Wayne, Michigan. His death certificate gives his occupation as minister, retired for twenty years.

References – page numbers relate to the reprint volumes.

1. The Watchtower, July 15, 1895, p. 1843

2. The Watchtower, December 1, 1886, p. 2076

3. The Watchtower, August 1, 1899, p. 2515

4. The Watchtower, August 1, 1899, p. 2516

5. The Watchtower, April 15, 1900, p. 2605

6. The Watchtower, February 1, 1900, p. 2576

7. The Watchtower, May 15, 1903, p. 3194

8. The Watchtower, October 1, 1903, p. 3250

9. The Watchtower, April 1904, p. 3349

10. The Watchtower, June 15, 1904, p.3383

11. The Watchtower, October 15, 1904, p. 3444

12. The Watchtower, August 15, 1906, p.3838

13. The Watchtower, July 1907, p. 4026

14. The Watchtower, July 1907, p. 4032

15. The Watchtower, November 1, 1907, p. 4081

16. The Watchtower, September 15, 1908, p.4244

17. The Watchtower, September 1, 1909, p. 4462

19. The Watchtower, June 15, 1908, p. 4192

20. The Watchtower, November 15, 1913, p. 5355

21. The Watchtower, April, 1914, p. 5447

BOOK

This story of Frank Draper is included in the book Who's Who – in the Bible Student Movement before 1920. In it we find over 4000 names, some biographical notes and short biographies. Also included are over a thousand portrait photos. The latest edition can be found on Amazon.

Another postcard

Below is a nice postcard reproduction of an official issue by the British branch of the Bible Students, The headquarters address of Eversholt Street predate the more familiar Craven Terrace, and the date of the postcard being sent is February 24, 1911.

The previous article on this blog showed what can be gained historically from studying the messages sent in this way. Alas, this card was not so productive, but nonetheless, a little history was gleaned. The message side of the card is below.

The actual message provides very little actual Bible Student information, other than the use of the abbreviation “Sis” for “sister.”

The recipient was a Mrs Ferguson of 131 Elgin Road, Seven Kings (in the UK county of Esses). The 1911 census identifies this as being a Catherine Ferguson, originally from Ireland. She is 35 with four living children. These include Lily (who is eight and is mentioned on the postcard) and a son, Dugold, who is four and probably the “dear Boy” mentioned on the card. There is no husband at the address and Catherine is down as the “head.” However, when husband Colin died in 1921 the probate registers give the Elgin Road address and list Katherine Ferguson (variant spelling) as the widow. Colin left not far short of two thousand GBP in his estate. That they were reasonably well off is shown back in the 1911 census when the household included a live-in domestic servant.

And there the trail goes cold.

All we know about the sender, who obviously chose a Society postcard to send, is that she is “your loving Sister Ainslee” (or possibly “Ainstee”). Without a forename or address the search for her is pretty hopeless, although an independent Bible Student magazine in its “Gone from Us” feature did list a “Sis. J. Ainsley” of Wallsend who died in May 1948. Maybe the writer? Maybe not.

This therefore is one of those cases where the graphic on the front of the card is of the greater interest.

The Channel Islands

Many readers of this blog will be collectors of Watch Tower related postcards, official IBSA issues, the Photodrama cards, the Lardent cards and the like. While the picture side is the obvious attraction, sometimes the message side gives us historical information that we would not have had preserved otherwise. This article is about one such example.

In 1986 the Awake magazine had an article about the Channel Islands, British owned but quite near the coast of France. It stated (Awake April 22, 1986, page 19):

“Seeds of Bible truth were sown here back in 1925 when Zephaniah and Ethel Widdell arrived from England with their bicycles to organize a regular program of Bible studies. As a direct result of their work, congregations of Jehovah’s Witnesses were soon formed in both Jersey and Guernsey.”

A postcard message now takes that history back a further fourteen years to 1911.

But first, where did the 1925 account come from? One must remember that there was never any official attempt to document the growth of interest in places like the Channel Islands at the time. We have to rely on people looking back long after the event. In 1970 the Society sent a lengthy letter to all old-timers asking for their reminiscences. The letters sent by return will have numbered into their hundreds, possibly thousands, around the world, and formed the basis for the various histories that subsequently appeared in the Yearbooks. These covered not just countries like the United States and Britain, but everywhere. This testimony was supported by documented proof in some cases. For example, the son of one of the editors of the St Paul/New Era Enterprise was moved to send his files to the Society. However, in other cases it was simply the anecdotal memories of older people looking back. The account in the 1986 Awake may date from that 1970 initiative. No-one alive in 1970 had any memory of events before 1925 for the Channel Islands. However, the 1925 account of the Widdells arriving to organise a “regular program of Bible studies” might suggest some prior interest.

That is why the ‘find’ of a post card from 1911 is so useful. It is reproduced in full below. Grateful thanks are due to Franco, who owned the original and made it available.

The picture is simply a Guernsey location. The sender was A W Bowland of 4 Union Street, St Peter’s Port, Guernsey, and the date of the message was 9/11/11, which (the way the British write dates) would be November 9^th, 1911. The recipient was A Weber, Tour de Garde, Convers [Canton], Berne, Suisse.

The message transcribed, reads:

Dear Brother, Thanks for card. We have received parcels safely today. We also thank you very much for Millenial Cards. Glad to say we are still selling a good number of volumes here. With much love in the Lord. Yours in his service, A W Bowland.

The card was sent to a very well known figure, Adolphe Weber (1863-1948). Weber became a Bible Student in America and worked as a gardener for CTR for a short while in the 1890s. He went back to Europe and was involved in the German language Watch Tower. His story can be found in a number of Yearbook histories for various European countries and also in the Proclaimers book on page 409 with his photograph.

The writer was A W Bowland, who wrote to Weber in English. I could only find one male named Bowland (the variant Boland) in Guernsey in the 1911 census, which was taken in April 1911, living in a street quite near Union Street in St Peter Port, from whence the postcard was later sent that year. This Bowland/Boland was a labourer working in the stone industry, aged 31, with a wife and two children. However, the initials don’t match. So the writer of the card could have traveled to Guernsey after the census was taken, perhaps to specifically do colporteur work.

If that was the case, there was a British Bible Student Alfred Whittome Bowland, who was born in 1884 in Cambridgeshire. In the April 1911 census he is lodging with a family named Beavor in Middlesex, one of whom, Ernie Beavor, would have a long history with the Watch Tower Society. Alfred lists his occupation in 1911 as ‘Colporteur Bible and Tract.’ Later in 1916, while living at St Austell, Cornwall, he was a conscientious objector, listing himself as colporteur for a ‘Bible Tract Society’ and adding that he was an IBSA member. In 1938 he wrote a letter to The Watchtower (June 1^st issue) headed LORD IS USING PHONOGRAPH TO HIS PRAISE where he wrote “it has been a happy privilege to be twenty-seven years in the full-time service” – which would go back to 1911. He was currently working in the “special business house service.” The next year, in the UK 1939 census register, A W Bowland and wife Gertrude are listed as evangelists, but now in Northumberland. This same A W Bowland died in Swindon at the end of 1967 or early 1968 (death registered in the first quarter of 1968).

On a personal note, I knew Ernie Beavor in the early 1970s when he stayed at my parents’ home, and also when A W Bowland died in Swindon I was “pioneering” in the next congregation. Unfortunately, I wasn’t researching this particular article at the time…

So what does the postcard show? It takes the work in the Channel Islands back another fourteen years from the time the Widdells worked the area on bicycle. The Bible Students’ evangelising work was happening there way back in 1911. Since the card states: “we are still selling a good number of volumes here” perhaps even earlier. It may be that several Cornish colporteurs could have had ‘working’ holidays in the Channel Islands.

This all illustrates that even the smallest piece of ephemera is well worth checking in the search for a more complete picture.

With grateful thanks to Franco who supplied the postcard, Bernhard who provided the lead for Alfred W Bowland, and Gary who provided further research on World War 1 conscientious objectors. Truly a team effort.

From Zion's Watch to The Watch Tower - Why?

Guest post by Gary

First produced in July 1879 as Zion’s Watch Tower and Herald of Christ’s Presence, on January 1, 1909, the magazine’s title was changed to The Watch Tower and Herald of Christ’s Presence. But why was this?

The book Jehovah’s Witnesses – Proclaimers of God’s Kingdom explained that the name of the magazine changed “in order to focus attention more clearly on the objective of the magazine.”(1) But more can be added which it was not necessary for the passing mention in the Proclaimers book to include.

Popular religious ideas in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century featured the thought, still held by many today, that the Jews who had become dispersed throughout the nations would eventually return to the Holy Land under the slogan of “Zionism.” Indeed, Pastor Russell shared such a belief which is apparent in his writings and perhaps reflected in the name originally chosen for the magazine he published. But it was not until the 1930s that Jehovah’s Witnesses adjusted their perspective from the natural nation of Israel to “Spiritual Israel.”(2) So why was it that reference to Zion was dropped from the name of the magazine as early as 1909? 

The answer is provided in the magazine’s last issue of 1908 which explains that some members of the public were wrongly assuming the magazine was related to John Alexander Dowie, who in 1900 had founded the city of Zion, Illinois, 40 miles north of Chicago.  To quote:

“With the New Year we expect to drop the word "Zion's" in the title of our Journal, because many of the friends inform us that the word is objectionable, having been so much used by Mr. Dowie and his followers. They report that our Journal is frequently cast aside under the supposition that it is published under Dowie's auspices, or in some manner affiliated with Zion City, which he founded. The new name, THE WATCH TOWER, is the one by which the Journal is usually mentioned.”(3)

So who was Dowie and why did Russell see need to distance from him?  Dowie was a Scottish-Australian immigrant who, like Russell, believed in an end-times restoration of true worship. Unlike Russell, Dowie believed this restoration necessitated a return to apostolic gifts including faith healing. In contrast, Russell believed that “the necessity for miracles as introductions to the Gospel message is no longer manifest” and that, consequently, “We are inclined to look with suspicion upon miraculous healings of the present time, whether done by Mormons or by Christian Scientists or by Christian Alliance people or by Mr Dowie and his followers or others.”(4)

A charismatic figure, Dowie had settled in Chicago and in 1893 gained considerable attention at the World’s Fair.  He launched his own publishing house, Zion Publishing, and started a weekly newsletter, Leaves of Healing which ran until 1909. Between 1894 and 1901 Dowie founded the Christian Catholic Apostolic Church which is said to have attracted some 6,000 adherents by the start of the twentieth century, some of whom were keen to invest money in Dowie’s new city, founded in 1901, and its Zion Bank which, of course, was controlled by Dowie. In 1899, Dowie claimed to be "God's Messenger" and, by 1901, was considered by followers to be Elijah the Restorer.  

Dowie taught adherents to abstain from tobacco, alcohol, pork, doctors, medicines and “apostate churches.”

Additionally he welcomed African-Americans into his new city which had only one church.  All seemed to be going well with this utopian city, but as it grew in size and prosperity, Dowie adopted an increasingly lavish lifestyle, building himself a 25-room mansion and adorning himself in ornate ecclesiastical robes modeled after those worn by Aaron, the high priest of Israel.

Picture of Dowie from Wikipedia

Unsurprisingly perhaps, Dowie proved spiritually and financially untrustworthy as the entire structure of Zion soon fell into debt, and eventually crashed with Dowie becoming unable to handle his affairs. By 1905, he had suffered a stroke and left Zion to recuperate. While absent he was deposed from his business affairs and religious leadership by a colleague whose investigators claimed huge amounts of money were unaccounted for. A splinter group rejected the new leadership and left Zion with some embracing the budding Pentecostal movement.  Meanwhile Dowie attempted to recover his authority through litigation, but ultimately retired and accepted an allowance, which was paid until his death in 1907.

Evidently therefore, the deletion of the word “Zion’s” shifted focus away from a disreputable competitor, as Russell was keen to distance his magazine from even the slightest semblance of Dowie.  In so doing, the magazine could “focus attention more clearly on its objective” as Herald of Christ’s Presence.

References:

(1) Jehovah’s Witnesses - Proclaimers of God’s Kingdom p.724

(2) In discussing Jeremiah 31:31-34, for instance, the book Jehovah, published by Jehovah’s Witnesses in 1934, stated conclusively: “The new covenant has nothing to do with the natural descendants of Israel and with mankind in general, but . . . is limited to spiritual Israel.”

(3) Zion’s Watch Tower December 1908, p.372, R4294. Another concern, at the time, was that African churches and papers used the word ‘Zion’ extensively, which led some to inquire whether the magazine was written for black people when, in fact, the Watch Tower aimed for a multiracial audience. 

(4) Zion’s Watch Tower January 1904 p.14, Reprints p. 3301.                               

(5) For further reading on Dowie, see From Sect to Cult to Sect: The Christian Catholic Church in Zion, Ph.D dissertation by Warren Jay Beaman, Iowa State University, 1990.

JFR and the assembly hot dog

A postcard from Magdeburg from 1926. With grateful thanks to Markus who provided the image.

The story behind a picture

 Back in September 2020 this blog published an article “Whatever happened to the faces in the old photographs?” – a line taken from the song Mother Country by John Stewart. It was about a detailed photograph from a Photodrama of Creation showing in Toledo, Ohio from February 1914. It was in such high definition in the original that you could make out many of the faces.

Readers may wish to go back to that article which presented some selective enlargements. From them it was possible to see the faces in the original photograph. No doubt the Photodrama made a big impression on all those standing there, including a number of young people.

It prompted an interesting response from correspondent Moses G. who had photographs of the theater where the Photodrama was shown in four parts for one of the first times. He also supplied correspondence about the showing and people who were there. All the material that follows is gratefully credited to Moses.

The Camden-Post newspaper (Toledo, Ohio) for February 2, 1914, carried the story.

First, the venue was generally called Burts Theater, in Toledo, Ohio. Here is a postcard from that era showing it.

It still exists today. Here is a more recent photograph of the venue.

Most likely attending that very early showing was a young colporteur, Walter Kessler from Auburn, Indiana, who wrote a letter to Wayne Brooks from Oil City, Pennsylvania. Moses has a collection of letters stretching from 1905 to the 1940s, showing these men and others working as colporteurs, working in the Bethel Home, and also working with the Photodrama of Creation.

Walter lived from 1892 to 1973.

The letter relating to the Photodrama indicates that maybe Walter was one of those in the photograph of the people in front of the theater in the original post. It is dated February 27, 1914.

In the letter, Walter writes that he saw the Photodrama at Toledo three weeks before. So far we do have not have a photograph of him to try and pick him out from the group photograph. What we do have is his draft registration card when he was called up in 1917. It shows he claimed exemption as a minister with the IBSA. Sometimes these form have a photograph attached, but sadly not in this case.

Returning to his 1914 letter, it is full of news about different individuals and thus is a store of information about names from the past.

Walter indicated that he supported his colpoteur activity for a short time by working for a new automobile company called “Imp Auto Cycle.” It operated in Auburn, Indiana, for only two years, 1913-1914. Here is one of their advertisements.

One final thought from his letter. He mentions a Brother Higbe from Toledo using his auto to advertise the Photodrama. Perhaps it looked like the model in this 1914 photograph.

Russell-Rutherford postcards

 After J F Rutherford became Watch Tower Society president in 1917, it was not uncommon for postcards to be sent showing both his photograph and that of Charles Taze Russell. Below are two examples.

The photograph of CTR appears to be the same, but reversed for one printing; however, there are two different photographs for JFR.

Nun or none

Collecting Watch Tower literature for many includes collecting variants of publications. Sometimes changes were made due to refinements of belief, other times proof reading glitches or copyright issues played a part. Sometimes what was produced caused questions to be raised. One example of the latter is the picture found in the book Riches (1936).

The original line drawing showed a witness preaching to an elderly gentleman. In the background is a nun who appears to be holding out a collection bag to the householder, while discouraging the witness from his work. The only problem was that, if you looked at the picture quickly, it might appear to some that the nun was “blessing” the witness’ efforts. A quick check of the text in the book would immediately disabuse anyone of that idea, but feedback showed the advisability of changing the picture. As a result, a new picture was drawn, which replaced the nun with a phonograph.

This meant that there were soon two editions of Riches in circulation. As a result, some wrote in. More than one copy of the standard reply has survived, but the one pictured below was sent to a John Shearrow from Alliance, Ohio. The identical address on a 1940s registration card identifies him as John Cunningham Shearrow (1890-1962) who married and had one daughter, but no further information has been gleaned.

The letter advised any with the “nun” copy to carefully remove the page, and these could still be placed without any picture at this point. As there was no text on the reverse of the picture, this was quite easy to do.

So collectors can find at least three versions of Riches, one with the nun, one with a page neatly cut out, and then a later printing with a replacement picture.

The family Knorr

This blog concentrates on the era of C T Russell, but sometimes material comes to light that reaches beyond that. Below is a cutting of a wedding announcement from 1903.

The groom was D Ellsworth Knorr. Certificates for his birth, marriage, death, and some census returns make the D stand for either Donal, Donell, or Donald, although with the census the enumerator could easily just have misheard. Generally in life the issue was fudged with just an initial: D Ellsworth Knorr. This is how trade directories and his death certificate read. Maybe the query rumbled on during his lifetime, a bit like Malcom (or was it Malcolm) Rutherford? 

There are quite comprehensive details of this Knorr family on Ancestry. D Ellsworth Knorr was the son of Aaron Herb Knorr. His grandfather was Samuel Knorr. The line is traced back to Hans Knauer born 1720 in Airfeld, Bavaria. D’s mother was Mary Margaret Schmidt (1835-1900). As shown by the cutting D married Estella Bloss.

He spent most of his life as a movie theater manager in Allentown. In 1910 the famous thespian, Sarah Bernhardt visited the theater and D Ellsworth Knorr, as manager, showed her to her seat to witness a new projection system. (Event reviewed in his obituary in The Morning Call, for April 10, 1964.)

D Ellsworth (1872-1964) and Estella (1882-1973) had three children.

Robert Ellsworth Knorr, 1903-1972.

Nathan Homer Knorr (1905-1977)

Isabel Estella Knorr, 1906 – 1999.

Incomplete records on Ancestry and newspapers.com show that both the mother Estella and daughter Isabel had funerals linked to Kingdom Halls.

Nathan of course became president of the Watchtower Society, from 1942 to his death in 1977. Ancestry provides his High School Yearbook photo, details of his marriage to Audrey, and other aspects of his life.

Because of copyright and privacy issues I am not reproducing any of this material, and also as stressed at the outset, it is events from the CTR era that mostly concerned us here.

So perhaps we could just end on an event (or rather a non-event) from the 19^th century.

Maria Frances Ackley married CTR in 1879. She had previously been a school teacher.

The year before her marriage she received some unwelcome publicity in the newspapers. From the Pittsburgh Daily Post for January 19, 1878:

The name of the boy she was accused of assaulting? Knorr.

It appears that a fellow teacher in the North Avenue School, Mary Lecky, was concerned that someone might think it meant HER. There was a hasty bit of damage limitation. The Pittsburgh Daily Post for January 22, 1978, carried a clarification:

Putting this in context, we must remember that corporal punishment was allowed at this time and the complaint may have been malicious. However, for a 27 year old female teacher to be accused of “cruelling whipping” a 12 year old boy still seems unusual.

There is no information in the newspapers as to how the investigation turned out, but we must assume Maria was cleared of misconduct. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette for July 3, 1878 carried a report of the latest election of teachers. For the Second Ward, North Avenue School, Marie F Ackley was elected again; as was Mary Lecky.

However, with that kind of experience and after a decade of teaching (with yet more of the same looming ahead) perhaps Maria was getting tired of it all. Getting married, as her two older sisters had done before her, was the normal escape route for a single woman.

Just over a year later, on March 13, 1879, she married Charles Taze Russell.

Still, I am pleased to confirm that there is absolutely no connection with Nathan Knorr’s extended family. While they came from Pennsylvania, it was a different part of the State and also from a different era.