I'm reading an excellent book about defectors from the Mormon church called Differing Visions: Dissenters in Mormon History. Through a collection of essays from many academic authors it looks at the life stories of dissenters and reasons for departure, as well as analysing the impact of their dissent on the church itself. Fascinating stuff and makes me wish there was a similar volume looking at the key dissenters from JWs/Watchtower and the impact they had. If we were to compile such a list who should be included and what was their major impact?
Here is a very cursory list off the top of my head. Please tell me who I have most gratuitously missed out.
Nelson Barbour: Russell claimed he abandoned ransom doctrine, but perhaps commercial rivalry was involved in the split too. Barbour's own group fizzled out, but his impact in terms of JWs interest in eschatology endures to this day.
Maria Russell: money troubles and unusual marital arrangement may have contributed to split, but Watchtower has long claimed Mrs Russell was dissatisfied and wanted a bigger role for herself. On the other side it's been claimed Mrs Russell wrote large parts of Watchtower output including Studies in the Scriptures and was never given credit. Without answering those issues it's hard to assess fully Maria Russell's true impact on Watchtower history.
Paul Johnson: is painted as bit of a maniac by the Watchtower who went to London around the time of Russell's death, called himself a prophet and tried to take over the British branch. But were his claims really any more grandiose or delusional than Rutherford would go on to make for himself? Little impact on Watchtower movement other than an interesting anecdote to include in Proclaimers book.
William Schnell: initially a staunch defender of the Watchtower he went on to write the classic apostate text Thirty Years a Watchtower Slave. He lived through an interesting period in Watchtower history in Germany and the United States, but when the Watchtower encroached on his book selling business the organisation took on a different light in his estimation. Some of his criticisms of the Watchtower were shrill and over the top, but some rang true and have stuck ever since.
Olin Moyle: was a lawyer who was at bethel during Rutherford's reign and defended JWs in court. He took objection to Rutherford's harsh rule and immoral behaviour. When he left amid stinging criticism the Watchtower retaliated by assassinating his character. Rutherford's successor Knorr addressed some of the issues Moyle raised and transformed the movement into a more businesslike enterprise.
Barbara Harrison: gave a rare female perspective on life at bethel in the middle of the 20th century and her reasons for leaving in her excellent book Visions of Glory.
Raymond Franz: was pushed out of the organisation because he was campaigning for more liberal policies and a less centralised power structure away from presidency. He was evicted, but the not before the organisation had been altered too, with GB replacing the president and body of elders replacing Congregation Servants. Franz published many details of Watchtower history that had been swept under the carpet in his mild mannered yet explosive book Crisis of Conscience. The Watchtower admitted pyramidology, celebrating birthdays and so on in Proclaimers book as information management. Franz predicted that the passage of time would force Watchtower to alter their generation teaching, which they have duly been tinkering with unsatisfactorily ever since.
Randall Watters: held a junior position at bethel during the fallout from 1975 and the Franz crisis, but his unique perspective and experiences impelled him to start Freeminds to reach out to JWs wishing to leave the movement. The Freeminds website was a pioneer on the web for JWs and ex-JWs searching for information and it enjoys an enduring legacy as other sites have shared the mantle.
Barbara Anderson: alarmed at Watchtower child protection policies or lack thereof tried to reform from within at bethel before leaving the organisation and publicising problems of abuse. Set up a website which is an excellent resource for documents and history of JWs from its beginning right up to the present.
Lloyd Evans: aka Cedars, the greatest and most important defector of all human history from the Watchtower whose significance is simply beyond evaluation or estimation.