The J.F. Rutherford Era

This era in Society history is the one most people view as a golden age, (in fact it was near the beginning of this era that The Golden Age journal was released.) Many recall these years for the amazing refining and growth that took place. Rutherford wrote a massive amount of information, and some of the books and booklets were so limited in circulation that few people even know about them today. This section of our unique and massive eBay store brings those obscure publications back, after so many years...

Before you select a category from the list to the left, or from the box below, take a few moments to educate yourself about this area of antique publications by reading the details below. You’ll find it very helpful toward getting a grasp on the J.F. Rutherford era publications.

Ready to explore the history of this era? Click a link on the list to the left, or select one of the catagories below... VERY Special Items The unique items from the Society's earliest days Misc. Rutherford Items Some of the most common originals and rare reproductions Tracts & Resolutions These unique items are are connections to the most historic past Rutherford Books "Rainbow Books" and other highly sought after hardcovers from the Rutherford era Actual recordings of J.F.R.! Hear Rutherford's own voice as he delivers the historic discourses you've read about! Our Reproductions The perfet way to own the rarest items- Authentic! Learn about them here... RARE WT & GA Mags These are the early journals that were at the forefront of history! Rutherford Booklets There were so many, but we've assembled some of the rarest Russell Era 1879-1916 If you haven't already been to this section, it's well worth a peek! Post Rutherford Era When you're done with this era, Click here to go to the next section of the store. Collections on CD-ROM The rarest and most valuable items, ready to read in the most cost effective way ANTIQUE BIBLES Visit our beautiful collection of RARE leather bibles, some are as many as 150-200 years old! Don't see what you're lookinf for? We post new items all the time! So sing up for the newsletter (HERE) and visit often!:The Watchtower Collector's Archives

A Quick Guide to Rutherford’s Publications…

Earliest: Rutherford was baptized shortly after the turn of the century, and soon was working full time as the Society’s lawyer. Russell saw his grasp for bible truths, and asked him to write a couple of books- “from a lawyer’s point of view”. Among them was the incredible rare God’s Plan of Salvation and the unique Great Battle in the Ecclesiastical Heavens. Very few collectors can hope to even see original copies of these, but reproductions are available.

Most Historic: After Russell died, there was a panic over who would succeed him as president, and some prominent members, led by P.S.L. Johnson, attempted to undermine Rutherford’s authority. This led to their ouster and a bit of a shakeup that changed the direction of the organization. Two rarely seen papers were written by Rutherford, called Harvest Siftings, exposing the matter. Soon after that was settled another matter threatened to derail the progress- the political controversy surrounding the publication of the seventh volume of Studies in the Scriptures (The Finished Mystery), culminating in the imprisonment of the Society’s directors.  It was a dramatic time in Society history, and items from that period (1917-1919) are among the most sought after of the era.

Books: As the 1920’s began a need was seen to update the Studies in the Scriptures, which had for so long been used as the primary bible study aids. Beginning with The Harp of God, a set of 21 books with brightly colored covers were released, the last one appearing shortly before Rutherford died in 1941. These “rainbow books” are a cornerstone to any collection, and can be assembled in full with a bit of searching. Harp of God came in several cover styles, as well as a rare pocket edition. Deliverance and Creation also came in two different styles.

Booklets: While Rutherford was cranking out his “rainbow books” at a rate of about 1 a year, he was also writing a massive amount of booklets. The earliest (and most desired) were thick soft cover books called Millions Now Living Will Never Die and Talking with the Dead (also came with a longer title). The “Millions” campaign resulted in the wide distribution of these two books, but sadly, not a lot remain today. They are highly sought after by collectors. The mid 20’s saw the release of several 64 page, medium sized booklets with color covers, and from 1931 to 1936 a large amount of smaller color cover booklets were released on all sorts of subjects. Throughout his life Rutherford continued to write, and there were so many booklets that few collectors are able to collect them all.

Tracts: With the end of the Old Theology Quarterly tracts, there was a need for another series. The persecution of WWI led to the answer- Kingdom News was released. But after only three issues it was stopped. Not until persecution was stepped up prior to WWII did the series really take hold. In the meantime a wide assortment of flyers, tracts, letters, handouts and the like were used, some are quite rare, others are fairly common, it is impossible to collect them all.

Below are some of our Cd-Roms...