No. 777 - Ulverstone Kingdom Hall

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Situated on the north west coast of Tasmania, Ulverstone is a town of many churches with 18 denominations established during its 170 year history. The Jehovah’s Witness Kingdom Hall, situated on Allambie Crescent, is one of the more recent additions to the town. 

The Jehovah's Witness first worshipped in Lakin's Hall which was located on Crescent Street, now the site of Woolworths. In about 1972 a Kingdom Hall was established at 26 Leven Street. (This is now used by The Church of Christ). The Jehovah's Witness vacated the Leven Street property after the Allambie Crescent Hall was built in 1988. In 2017 the Jehovah's Witness at Ulverstone merged with the Devonport church. In 2018 the Allambie Crescent Kingdom Hall was sold to the Life Christian Church.

The Jehovah's Witness diverges from the mainstream doctrines of Christianity in that it is a non-trinitarian tradition. Jehovah's Witnesses believe their denomination is a restoration of first-century Christianity. Some of the church's practices have led its critics to regard it as a sect. The historical persecution of members of the Jehovah’s Witness in many countries, including Australia, has no doubt contributed to the denomination maintaining a low profile in the media. For this reason the history of the Jehovah Witness in Tasmania presents a challenge to research.

The following information is derived from the Jehovah Witness official tract, The Watchtower:

“In the early 1900s a member of the International Bible Students Association, as Jehovah's Witnesses were known, was distributing Bible study publications in Tasmania. Literature was left with the postmaster at Queenstown, Tom Anderson, and he and his wife became Witnesses. Around this time, E. Brewster preached around the state. In about 1908 Bible students were active in the Westbury area, and spread to the north-east of Tasmania. The Witnesses operated radio station 7UV in Ulverstone from 1934 to spread the Bible's message. In 1945 the Witnesses purchased their first Kingdom Hall (church) in Hobart”.

The current size of the membership of the Jehovah Witness is not known. 




Comments

  1. David Melhuish20 October 2022 at 00:49

    Previous address of Ulverstone Kingdom hall was 26 Leven Street, Ulverstone. Now occupied by Church of Christ, will try & get you a photo tomorrow. Before Leven street, Services were held in Lakin's Hall, which was located where Woolworths are now. The change over from Lakin's hall to Leven street occurred around 1972.

    ReplyDelete
  2. David Melhuish20 October 2022 at 18:24

    Church now occupied by Life Christian Church. https://www.lifechristianchurch.org.au/

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. David Melhuish31 October 2022 at 16:43

      They moved into the new Kingdom Hall 22 Alambie Crescent in 1989. The Church merged with the Devonport Church in 2017 and the Kingdom Hall was sold to the Life Christian Church.

      Delete
    2. Duncan Grant5 November 2022 at 00:51

      Thanks David, I will update the article. It must have been sold in the last couple of years because it still had the JW sign up when I photographed it in late 2019.

      Delete

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