Early in the 1903 General Conference session, the proposal was made that the General Conference headquarters and the publishing house be moved from Battle Creek to suitable locations on the Atlantic Coast, possibly in the vicinity of New York City. As noted earlier, Ellen White, when asked to speak to the matter, replied:
Let the General Conference offices and the publishing work be moved from Battle Creek. I know not where the place will be, whether on the Atlantic Coast or elsewhere. But this I will say, Never lay a stone or a brick in Battle Creek to rebuild the Review office there. God has a better place for it.--The General Conference Bulletin, 1903, 85.
Before the session closed, actions were taken to move the General Conference office to the Atlantic Coast and encourage the Review and Herald stockholders to reestablish the work of publishing in the Eastern States.
To move the General Conference offices from their rented quarters in the West Building of the Review and Herald would be quite simple. To close up the business of the publishing house in Battle Creek and reestablish it elsewhere would involve legal and deeply emotional factors.
The Review and Herald constituency meeting called in Battle Creek from April 21 to 29 was not at all a tranquil one. Church leaders and the majority of the constituency favored the move from Battle Creek, but a relatively few constituent members bitterly opposed it. The Spirit of Prophecy counsels were clearly the deciding factor. The final vote was overwhelmingly in favor of moving. But that vote did not resolve legal matters. The General Conference and the publishing house had been closely twined through the years, and now in the proposed move, both were involved and both must be considered at the same time. The question was whether the move was to be to one location or two.
With the decision made to relocate the publishing house, Elder Daniells and his associates turned to the matter of just where it should be. The time was now early summer. He felt that if the move of the headquarters were to be made within a year, it should be within a few weeks. General worldwide church activities precluded other dates.
On May 15 he addressed a letter to Ellen White in which he indicated his sense of need for divine guidance. "I do not wish to add any burdens to those you are already bearing," he wrote, "but I feel that I must write to you for counsel regarding the location of the General Conference headquarters, also the location of the Review and Herald printing plant."--AGD to EGW, May 15, 1903.
He reminded her of her counsel on moving and of the action taken at the session. He pointed out that they were thinking of New York City, with offices "located outside of the city" and on a good railway line. It should be near enough to the city so that the General Conference workers could engage in missionary efforts in the city on weekends. He outlined tentative plans for searching for a site. Then he urged:
I most sincerely request that you will write me promptly, giving all the counsel you may have to guide us. We want all the light the Lord has for us, so that we shall know that we are meeting His mind, and thus taking steps that we shall not regret. We must have divine guidance. For this we shall earnestly pray until the matter is settled.-- Ibid.
This appeal for divine help was typical of his letters during the next five months. To this appeal Ellen White replied immediately:
Dear Brother Daniells,
We have received your letter in regard to the selection of a place for the Review and Herald publishing house.
I have no special light, except what you have already received, in reference to New York and the other large cities that have not been worked. Decided efforts should be made in Washington, D.C....
May the Lord help us to move understandingly and prayerfully. I am sure that He is willing that we should know, and that right early, where we should locate our publishing house. I am satisfied that our only safe course is to be ready to move just when the cloud moves.--Letter 95, 1903.
Within a short time she indicated that caution should be exercised about settling in or near New York, and said, "I am sure that the advantages of Washington, D.C., should be closely investigated."--Letter 106, 1903.
Soon another letter came to the General Conference officers, from Elder J. S. Washburn, pastor in Washington, D.C., about locating there. Ellen White in one of her letters indicated that it would be advantageous for the Review and Herald to bear the imprint of Washington, D.C. But thus far she still had no definite light (Letter 115, 1903).
Seeking a Suitable Location
The committee that was appointed in mid-June to seek a suitable location found two promising sites. One was a ninety-seven-acre tract sixty miles north of New York City at Fishkill, New York, on the Hudson River, where a retired businessman had built a forty-room hotel with many attractive features. It was for sale at $12,000.
A portion of the locating committee, including Elder Daniells, mindful of Ellen White's instruction to give careful consideration to the advantages of Washington, spent four days there and were immediately impressed that the environs of that city possessed many favorable qualities as headquarters for the church. The impression grew as the men investigated properties in the close vicinity of the nation's capital. Daniells reported to W. C. White and his mother:
One of the finest places we have found was a place called Takoma Park. It is on the main line of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad running to Chicago and St. Louis. It is also reached by an electric line. It is five or six miles from the city. It is ... a large wooded tract of land, lying on each side of the District line, part in the District and part in Maryland. It has an elevation of three hundred feet above the Potomac. It is a magnificent place. We could purchase all the land we required at a very reasonable rate.--AGD to WCW, June 21, 1903.
As committee members studied the matter, their recommendation was to give Washington first consideration, but they would not let the opportunity slip to purchase the Fishkill property.
Daniells than asked that W. C. White join them in making further inspection and participate in making the decision, if he could be spared from his mother's work. He wrote:
You know that the selection of a location for our conference and printing establishment is a matter of very grave importance. We must not make any mistakes. We want to do just right. You have been in close touch with your mother, and know better than anyone else the light that has been given her; consequently, we do most earnestly desire your presence with us.-- Ibid.
He expressed the wish that Ellen White might come also and be with them as she was when the Avondale school site was investigated in Australia, but he thought that hardly possible.
Again he reiterated the determination of the committee to "walk in the light given us in the Testimonies regarding this matter," for they did not want to make a mistake "if we can help it." They were eager for "divine guidance."
Ellen White wrote on June 26 that she had been praying for light and "light has come ... in a very decided way."-- Letter 120, 1903. She mentioned that the Fishkill property might be secured for a sanitarium and a school, but clearly indicated Washington as the place for the General Conference headquarters, the Review and Herald, and a sanitarium (Ibid.).
While waiting the arrival of W. C. White in Battle Creek, Elder Daniells wrote her on July 5:
From your communication of June 26, I understand that we are to settle on Washington for our location. We ... shall plan in such a way that the enemy will not be permitted to outgeneral us.--AGD to EGW, July 5, 1903.
Anticipated Conflicts in Battle Creek
Daniells was referring to steps being taken by various individuals and groups to block moving the Review and Herald out of Battle Creek. Three hundred people had been employed in the plant. Many owned their own homes and some had rental properties; they feared personal financial disaster. Then, too, the burgeoning cereal-food industry, pioneered by the Kelloggs but now far beyond their control, had made Battle Creek a boom town.
According to P. T. Magan in a letter written in mid-1902, Adventists in Battle Creek were "making lots of money these days. They are adding farm to farm continually, building houses and speculating generally," wrote Magan. "Our brethren there have gone wild on land and food propositions."--P. T. Magan to EGW, May 25, 1902. He reported that "the town of Battle Creek has come to be known throughout the whole Central and Eastern States as 'the Adventist mining camp.'"
It is not difficult to see why Battle Creek Adventists were not eager to see the General Conference and the Review and Herald printing plant leave the city.
But more disturbing to church leaders were the lawsuits threatened by certain disaffected members of the Review and Herald constituency, which could tie things up in legal battles for years.
"We are in a dreadful place," wrote Daniells to the Lord's messenger. "God must help us. We are helpless."--AGD to EGW, July 5, 1903.
In agonizing words he poured out his soul to her:
Sister White, the hour has struck for something to be done. We are in peril. The stability of this cause is at stake. This involves the honor of God and the welfare of thousands of innocent, faithful believers in this message. Unless I am altogether deceived, we are face to face with a crisis.
The situation admonishes me to get my bearings that I may prove true to my trust. I do most earnestly want the Lord to take me by the hand and lead me. I am afraid to go alone. I humble my heart and repudiate all that is of self, all that is carnal. I know nothing yet as I ought to know it. Christ, whose I am, is my head and my wisdom. For weeks my heart has been crying out for God, the living God.
I want to tell you that I realize as I never have in all my life the need, and the value to the church, of the Spirit of Prophecy. The working of Satan at this present time is surely with all power, and signs, and lying wonders. And it is so intense and cunning that only God can meet it successfully. We who accept the high and sacred responsibilities of this work must let God teach us, and we must listen to His voice.-- Ibid.
On W. C. White's arrival in Battle Creek, the men hastened to the East to look at the New York and Washington properties. In spite of a pledge made by the real-estate agent to hold the Fishkill property, they found it had been sold by another agent (AGD to EGW, July 23, 1903).
Washington and Takoma Park
In Washington they hurried out to Takoma Park and found "a fifty-acre block of land" about a mile from the post office. This had been developed by a Dr. Flower, who operated a medical institution in Boston and planned to open one in the Washington area. After investing $60,000 in the land and clearing it, he fell into financial trouble. It was now in the hands of a man who held a $15,000 mortgage on it; he was willing to sell for $6,000. Daniells wrote: "We paid $100 to bind the bargain." They praised God for His opening providence (Ibid.). Fifty acres of well-located wooded land seven miles from the U.S. Capitol, situated by a beautiful stream, Sligo Creek, for $120 per acre. In their initial planning the brethren saw this as most suitable for sanitarium and school purposes.
Recognizing the advantage of Seventh-day Adventist literature bearing the Washington, D.C., imprint, the brethren projected that they could also buy a tract of several acres just a mile to the south, inside the District of Columbia, for a modest investment. Daniells promised Ellen White: "We shall counsel with you freely on this point."-- Ibid.
Anticipating an immediate move, they sought and found in downtown Washington a building with sixteen rooms, just a few blocks from the Capitol, which could serve as a temporary headquarters. It seemed to be "just the place." Even some printing equipment could be installed in the basement and first-floor rooms. They would take possession August 15 or a little earlier.
Daniells went on to report to Sister White:
There was not a dissenting voice among the brethren who were engaged in this important move. The blessing of the Lord rested upon us as we made our decisions day by day.... We believe that the good hand of our God is leading us.-- Ibid.
A new printing corporation was formed while the men were in Washington. The address, 222 North Capital Street, would be shared by the new publishing concern and the General Conference office; operations would begin in Washington in three weeks' time--August 15, 1903.
Knowing Ellen White as he did, Daniells wrote: "I am expecting that before spring you will feel it your duty to come to Washington to see our situation, and counsel with us regarding the work."-- Ibid. He even proposed to put up on the new land a little cottage that she could occupy. These propositions Ellen White was not to forget.
Battle Creek Believers Respond to the Proposed Move
The members of the Battle Creek Tabernacle church had to be apprised of the decision made to move to Washington. Sabbath morning, July 25, Elder Daniells laid the whole matter before the congregation. He read from three or four of Ellen White's communications that gave instruction as to where they should go. The meeting continued in the afternoon. Elder Prescott read from other E. G. White testimonies and Elder Daniells followed, relating to the church "the providences of God that have opened before us as we have endeavored to walk in the light as given through the Spirit of Prophecy" (AGD to EGW, July 27, 1903).
The opposition that the leading men expected from many of the Battle Creek Adventists when it became known they were leaving the city did not materialize. The plain instructions and the review of God's leadings and providences made a profound impression, and tears flowed freely.
"There was a softening and subduing influence present in our midst," wrote Daniells to Sister White. He reported that he had learned that "this experience has given many of our brethren and sisters renewed confidence that the Lord is leading in this work."-- Ibid. Further, he wrote:
I do not think I have seen the Tabernacle congregation so deeply interested and so thoroughly stirred over anything since the last conference here two years ago.-- Ibid.
The Prompt Move to Washington
Packing began at once. Two freight cars were loaded with General Conference furniture and documents on Monday and Tuesday, August 3 and 4. They left Battle Creek on the fifth and were in Washington on August 10. Printing equipment from the West Building followed shortly.
The last issue of the Review and Herald printed in Battle Creek carried the date Tuesday, August 11. The next issue bore the dateline, Washington, D.C., Thursday, August 20. To many Adventists across the land, their Review coming two days late was their first knowledge that the headquarters of the church and the printing equipment had been moved.
Elder Daniells and others were convinced that God had led in the move. This is apparent from Elder Daniells' letter to Ellen White, the first to be sent from the new Washington headquarters:
Dear Sister White,
I am enclosing a copy of a letter I have just written to Brother White about our experiences this week in Washington. I know that you will be anxious to hear from us, and so I send you this copy. I cannot tell you, Sister White, what a blessing we experience as we enter upon our duties in this place. Surely the Lord's hand is in this move. I never felt such confidence in God's leadership in this work as I have since we started out from Battle Creek to find a location in the East.
I believed that He was speaking to us and that if we would obey His voice implicitly and not swerve nor follow our own notions He would give us unmistakable evidence regarding the right place; but, oh, what little conception I had of how clear and comforting that evidence would be. I cannot tell you what this experience has done for my heart; but I can say that it leads me to a new and full surrender of my life to God and His work.
I see as never before the folly of doubting and hesitating and swerving from the instruction God gives His people. We shall never know until the books unfold it how much has been lost to this cause by failing to render prompt and implicit obedience to all that God calls upon us to do. I must write you again regarding some important matters, but will not write more today. Your letters and instruction never were so precious to me as at this time. I am praying God to help me to not falter whatever may come. Please be free to counsel me as the Lord instructs.--AGD to EGW, August 14, 1903.