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Sunday, February 19, 2017

Welsh


This is a personal historical request. Has anyone ever come across a Welsh translation of Tabernacle Shadows? The received story is that the Millions booklet was the first Watch Tower publication produced in Welsh. (I donated my copy last year to a Welsh translation office). But very many years ago I visited an elderly lady in Wales in a tumbledown cottage who had been associated with the Bible Students since before the First World War. I have a memory of seeing a Welsh Tabernacle Shadows and asking her about it. But it had belonged to her late husband and she couldn’t give any more information. Unfortunately for posterity, I wasn’t interested in Welsh at the time but in obtaining some Photodrama of Creation postcards from her, which I duly did. Later I learned that, on her death, the cottage was raised to the ground - it was in danger of falling down anyway - and everything thrown away. A sad story, too often repeated as other collectors can no doubt confirm.


I know the activities of the Bible Students only really reached Wales about 1903 and the first known congregation in Wales dates from 1906. BUT, American States like Pennsylvania were full of Welsh immigrants who had gone over to work the coal, the iron and the steel. If such a volume ever existed it would likely have been produced - officially or unofficially - in America. 


4 comments:

Chris G. said...

20 years collecting, never seen one. USA

jerome said...

WT November 15, 1911, mentioned free literature being available in 23 languages, including Welsh. WT September 15,1912, also offered People’s Pulpit tracts in various languages, again including Welsh. That is not going to be Tabernacle Shadows, but a BSM under one of its mastheads. However, this does pre-date the Millions booklet by nearly a decade.

With grateful thanks to Soren who sent me these details back-channel.

Anonymous said...

I'm much looking forward to Jerome sharing what he knows about the early Welsh Bible Students. Is this in the pipeline please?

Son of Ton

jerome said...

I hadn't thought of doing anything on the history of the Bible Students in Wales, but did prepare some notes for a Kingdom Hall dedication talk a few years back. I will dig them out when I can.