Watch Tower Society Enters Publishing Field

FROM 1884, the Watch Tower Society had concentrated on administering funds for expanding distribution of Bible literature. The publishing of such literature was cared for by the Tower Publishing Company, a firm owned by Charles Taze Russell, which also owned the “Bible House” on Arch Street, Pittsburgh.

In April of 1898 the publishing rights together with all publications and printing materials on hand were donated to the Watch Tower Society, along with the property. In accepting this, the Society obligated itself to publish only materials in harmony with its stated purpose and not to publish any other publications involved with different religious views.

The Watch Tower Society continued to have the printing of books, magazines and booklets done commercially. However, in 1919 the Society decided to do the printing and producing of its literature in its own facilities using dedicated, voluntary, nonsalaried workers. Thus, it could continue to produce literature at low cost and make possible a greater distribution. The New York Corporation would care for this activity.

So a small factory building on Myrtle Avenue in Brooklyn was rented, and a used web-rotary press was obtained (which was soon named the “Battleship”). By the spring of 1920 the Society began to print The Watch Tower, as well as a new magazine The Golden Age (now Awake!), that was designed to reach out to many more people with the Kingdom message. In 1922 a move was made to larger facilities at 18 Concord Street in Brooklyn. Additional equipment was installed and the Society now began to produce bound books.

Five years later, in 1927, factory operations were moved to even larger facilities, a newly constructed eight-story building, at 117 Adams Street in Brooklyn. This building had been designed specifically for our purposes. In order to provide housing for the additional workers needed, the old buildings at 122 and 124 Columbia Heights, as well as that on the newly acquired lot at 126 Columbia Heights, were razed and a new residence building constructed, rising seven stories above street level.

As the years passed, additional buildings were constructed or purchased adjacent to the  Adams Street factory. Later the building complex at 25-30 Columbia Heights was obtained for shipping facilities as well as additional space for offices and storage. The most recent acquisitions are the factory building at 175 Pearl Street and the very large building at 360 Furman Street. For the additional housing, new buildings were constructed at 107 and 119 Columbia Heights, and later the Towers Hotel was purchased and converted into a suitable residence building.

Up at Wallkill, New York, the Society obtained sizable farms, and eventually built large residence buildings there as well as factory and office facilities.

Production of all forms of Bible literature continued to grow to meet increasing needs around the world. Eventually the Society had in use nearly 70 web-rotary presses: 40 in Brooklyn, 13 at Watchtower Farms and 18 others in nine countries around the world. In addition, many flatbed presses were producing publications in other countries.

By the late 1970’s the entire publishing industry had gone over to the more modern computer processing of text, phototypesetting and offset printing. In order to continue to produce Bible literature to meet the growing needs in the preaching of the good news of the Kingdom, the Watch Tower Society saw the necessity of converting to these latest processes, thus endeavoring to solve the problems connected with producing magazines and other literature in many different languages. It directed the necessary development and set up operations for computerized text entry and page composition, phototypesetting and offset printing.

The Society now has the capability of processing and producing literature in some 190 languages. At present, Society-designed computer entry and composing equipment is being used in 20 different countries. There are now a total of 14 high-speed web-rotary offset presses printing publications in Brooklyn and at Watchtower Farms, and 25 in 18 other branches. All these presses, plus a number of sheet-fed offset presses, are used in furthering the purpose of disseminating Bible truths by means of the printed page.

All of this, together with building up qualified translating departments in many lands, has provided the capability of publishing The Watchtower simultaneously around the world. With the January 1, 1985, issue, The Watchtower will publish the same articles simultaneously in English and in 21 other languages.

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Concord Street factory, Brooklyn

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First rotary press, “Battleship”

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Factory complex, Adams Street

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World headquarters offices

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Farm and factory operations, Wallkill, N. Y.

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MEPS computer and composing terminal

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Web-rotary offset press