For anyone whose interested in the history of the Watchtower Society, there is a fascinating list and summary of Bible Student associations who broke away from the Society and formed their own groups.  Many of these still hold to C.T. Russell's teachings. 

You can find it on the Yahoo Search under "Daughters of the Tower." 

Now that you have broached the topic, you will be interested to learn of the influence that the Watchtower Society (Russellism) exerted on different groups that still proliferate in Africa. 

http://www.watchtowerinformationservice.org/josephbooth.htm

Kenneson:

Thanks for the additional information.  I had heard about the other Watchtower movement in Africa.  But I didn't realize there was an indirect connection with Russell. 

For several years I had correspondence with G. Boccaccio from the Christian Millennial Fellowship.  He told me that his group had roots back to the "New Covenant Believers" that broke from Russell back in 1908/09 and included very close associates including Russell's sister, Mae Land.  (Apocalypse Delayed)  For a short time, Russell taught the church was not under the "new covenant."   This caused division within the ranks.  Among this group, two important men, Henninges and McPhail, had played a vital role in the organization.  There were only about 10,000 members in the Watchtower at the time.  Several hundred left the organization over this issue. 

jgnat:

We had always been told by the Watchtower Society that most of the "evil servant" class had faded away because of their break with "God's organization."  Obviously, it was not true since many of these "Bible Student" groups still exist.  In the 1950s I remember two groups in the city where I lived:  The Dawn Bible Students and the Associated Bible Students.  Occasionally, we would meet members of this group when going from house to house.  Most were elderly and friendly.  I remember several trying to tell me that they represented Russell and his movement not the Watchtower Society.    Of course, I was too young and naive to accept their explanations.  And we were warned not to get into discussions with any "evil servants."

Today, it amazes me how the life of one man, C.T. Russell, has influenced the lives of so many other people.  Some of the Bible Student groups still study his writings and view him as the "faithful and discreet slave" and the "Laodicean Messenger."  Yet, his writings are a classic example of failed predictions and expectations.   

I looked back and found it myself...

They call themselves

"Church of Jehovah"...

 

special K

Fascinating stuff.... I wonder if there is more information as to how the isolated JW groups in Eastern Europe evolved away from Brooklyn?

As a JW in the early 90's we had been taught that literature was smuggled in and imagined that things were pretty much the same as here only underground. We saw pictures of the mass baptism in Kiev and sort of assumed all was well. What we did not hear is how some groups had totally diverged. Did they have mass disfellowshippings?

A

The WTBTS version is in  a fairly recent yearbook -- mid 1990s off memory