Sowing Seeds from a Great Height

   

     The history of the Watch Tower Society using public witnessing to spread the message goes right back to the booths at World Fairs in the very early days and is continued today with the modern use of carts and trolleys with banners and sample literature.

     A more unusual version of this public activity occurred in 1921, when advertizing material was showered onto a public gathering from a great height. The occasion was the Pasadena Rose parade, held each year on New Year’s Day. Apart from the interruptions of Covid it has been held each year since 1890.

     Numerous floats and marching bands travel in convoy (mainly along Colorado Boulevard) and it all ends with a football game in the Pasadena Rose Ball. From an estimated 2000 spectators in its first year, 1890, approximately 700,000 people watch the parade each year in modern times.

      The Pasadena Post for 1 January 1921 carried this announcement:

 An airplane will drop messages over the line of march. Special booths will be located all over the city for the distribution of literature and the sale of books. All this to bring to your attention that Millions Now Living Will Never Die. Book can be had at any of the stands for 25c.  Or Call Colorado 2275.

     The same story had been carried in the Pasadena Star-News the day before, 31 December 1921.

     So, leaflets would be showered onto the crowds who witnessing the procession encouraging all to visit booths strategically located in the city.

     The actual leaflet was a flyer, sized 3 ¼ by 8 ½ inches, and at least one has survived to this day.

      Note the address: International Bible Students Ass’n, 1051 So. Grand Avenue.

     This was the local headquarters for the IBSA. Shown here in the picture below, it is the house on the left, which had formerly been a funeral home before being taken over by the Bible Students in March 1918.

     It remained their local headquarters until 1923, when it was destroyed by fire. The replacement headquarters would be situated at 1023 Sentinel Avenue, which was the home address for Bible Student, Robert Montero. He is pictured with his wife in the photograph below, c.1921.

     Returning to the flyer, the reverse of this copy had a pencilled annotation.

     It reads “These slips were droped (sic) from a small ( ? ) over Pasadena, Ca. Looked like a snow storm. Seen by O.G.H.”

     Several photographs exist of the two-seater bi-plane that took off from The Sierra Airdrome with its large sign “Millions Now Living Will Never Die.”

     We are reliably informed that the figure on the left of the last photograph is Melvin Sargent of the Los Angeles area. His life story was in the Watchtower for 1 August 1987.

     This account of an eventful life does not mention this 1921 incident, nor does it indicate that Melvin was a pilot. We can reasonably assume that his role was to sit behind the pilot and throw out handfuls of leaflets over the Rose parade on the day. As described by the eyewitness above: “it looked like a snow storm.”

     

With grateful thanks to Tom who supplied both the story and the graphics.