More Living Space for a Growing Family

THIS magazine, Awake!, and its companion, The Watchtower, are a family production. They are produced by what is called the Bethel family, “Bethel” meaning “House of God.” Over 11 million copies per issue of Awake! and more than 13,000,000 copies per issue of The Watchtower are printed in such family-operated factories around the world. Since in the major languages both magazines are semimonthly, that’s nearly 50 million copies printed a month, or about 2 million each working day! In addition, the Bethel family produces tens of millions of Bibles, books, and booklets each year.

The Bethel family worldwide has grown to more than 9,000 members. These include single men and women, as well as married couples. The international headquarters of Jehovah’s Witnesses, located in the Brooklyn Heights section of Brooklyn, New York, has the largest individual family, numbering nearly 2,800. That is an increase from about 600 members in 1960. So over the years, more and more living space has been needed for this growing Brooklyn family. The largest facility, the former Towers Hotel, was purchased in 1975 and was remodeled to accommodate about 800 people. But more recently three more major facilities have been added to this Bethel complex.

97 Columbia Heights One is this beautiful new 11-story building overlooking the East River, located on the site of the former Hotel Margaret. It has an unobstructed view of one of the most photographed sights of all time, the skyscrapers of Lower Manhattan and its famous financial district. More importantly, it is located next to 107 and 124 Columbia Heights, large residences that accommodate over a thousand members of the Bethel family.

Just a hundred years ago, the 150-foot-high [50 m] Hotel Margaret was completed at 97 Columbia Heights and became internationally known. In February 1980, while the Margaret was in the process of being converted into luxury apartments, it was devastated by fire and was afterward torn down. In 1986, after the developer finally received permission to go ahead with the new construction, he sold the property to the Watchtower Society, a legal agency of Jehovah’s Witnesses. As successive floors of the building were readied for occupancy during 1988, a total of 250 members of the Bethel family moved in.

A spokesman for the firm that designed the building said that an attempt was made “to keep some memory of the Margaret alive.” The way the windows are done, for example, is reminiscent of the copper metalwork on the Margaret. The spokesman added: “We tried to keep the building larger in scale toward the water and smaller in scale toward the community.” Thus, the building is stepped down to the level of buildings nearby.

Standish Hotel A second major addition to the Bethel complex is the 12-story Standish Hotel, which is a short distance down the street, at 169 Columbia Heights. Telling of the erection of this hotel, named after Miles Standish of early New England fame, The Brooklyn Daily Eagle said in 1903: “The company believes that the site it has selected, by reason of its environment and the unsurpassed view it offers of the East River and surrounding points of interest, is the ideal spot for a hotel and it intends to put up one of the finest finished and equipped houses in the country.”

The hotel was opened shortly afterward, but by the 1970’s it had greatly deteriorated. Cohi Towers Associates purchased it in the early 1980’s, and in time a complete renovation was undertaken with the intent of providing additional housing for the Bethel family. In 1986 renovation was completed, and in 1988 the Watchtower Society purchased the Standish. It accommodates 140 members of the Bethel family and about 25 of the original tenants who still live there.

The Bossert Hotel The third major addition to the Bethel complex is the 12-story Bossert Hotel on Montague Street, less than a five-minute walk from the Standish. Originally opened in 1909 with 200 rooms, it was reputed to be the finest hotel in Brooklyn. The general style of architecture was 15th-century Italian Renaissance.

In 1914 another 175 rooms were added, and two years later a rooftop restaurant was added that resembled a promenade deck of a private yacht. “Nowhere in the city was there anything to equal it for scenic delight,” reported the Brooklyn Daily Eagle in 1949. “Top figures in public life, the theater and sports world came to the Marine Roof.” Diners, as well as residents on the higher floors, enjoyed a sweeping view of New York harbor, Governor’s Island, the Statue of Liberty, the Jersey shore, and the lower end of Manhattan.

Eventually, the once gorgeous hotel was reduced to a sad condition by age and neglect. Cohi Towers Associates purchased it in 1983, and a massive rehabilitation project was begun. The Watchtower Society then purchased the Bossert in 1988. It now accommodates about 270 family members, while 40 or so of the original tenants also live there.

The restoration work entailed replacing all doors and windows and the entire plumbing, heating, and electrical systems. A new service elevator was also installed, and presently two of the three original elevators are being renovated. The ballrooms were converted into three spacious dining rooms, and the kitchen in the basement was completely gutted, rebuilt, and fitted with modern equipment. The rooms throughout the hotel were refurbished. Also, the lobby was restored in keeping with its special character, which included repairing the damaged marblelike columns by a process that has generally become a lost art.

On the outside, the entire building was cleaned, masonry was repaired, and large portions of ornamental stonework were rebuilt. Participating in the cleaning, repair, and restoration work were hundreds of volunteer workers from all over the United States. These donated their time and talents for a week or more at a time. A crew of 39 young women, Witnesses, seen here on the Bossert roof, worked for months on scaffolds, repairing the outside masonry of the hotel.

Altogether, the Brooklyn Bethel family now lives in about 20 residences in Brooklyn Heights, all within short walking distance of one another. In fact, the Towers, 124 Columbia Heights, 107 Columbia Heights, and 119 Columbia Heights, which accommodate nearly 2,000 of the family, are connected by underground tunnels. Plans are for the new 97 Columbia Heights building also to be connected to them by tunnel sometime soon. The Bossert and Standish Arms, however, are too far away from these buildings to be joined to them by tunnels under the streets.

The growth of the Bethel family reflects the growing response to the preaching of the Kingdom message by Jehovah’s Witnesses. (Matthew 24:14) The 3,592,654 sharing in this work last year was more than twice the number who shared in it in 1973. The members of the Bethel family in Brooklyn, New York, are happy for the privilege of serving the spiritual needs of these brothers and sisters of theirs worldwide. And they are indeed grateful for the increased living space that has been provided for them.

[Pictures on page 24, 25]

The Standish Hotel and its lobby

Opposite page: the Bossert Hotel and its lobby

[Pictures on page 26]

Volunteer workers who repaired the outside masonry of the Bossert Hotel