CP Printing Solutions, or, The Christian Press, Ltd., or, Rundschau Publishing House – Winnipeg, MB
Proper Title
CP Printing Solutions, or, The Christian Press, Ltd., or, Rundschau Publishing House series
Dates of Creation
1923–1984
Physical Description
52 cm of textual records
Administrative History
In 1923, the publication of two weekly German papers—the Mennonitische Rundschau and the Christlicher Jugendfreund—was transferred from the Mennonite Publishing House in Scottdale, Pennsylvania, to the Rundschau Publishing House in Winnipeg, Manitoba, by Herman Neufeld (1890–1959). Neufeld was a recent Mennonite immigrant from Russia, who, after several years of working as an editor at the Mennonite Publishing House in Pennsylvania, decided to purchase the newspapers and move them to Winnipeg and establish The Rundschau Publishing House.
Neufeld incorporated the Press in 1940 as The Christian Press, Ltd. In 1945, he sold his shares in the Press and it was reorganized as a firm that was owned jointly by the Canadian Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches (1/8 of the stock) and private shareholders (7/8), who were all Mennonite Brethren businessmen.
In 1951, The Christian Press moved from 672 Arlington Street into a new building at 159 Kelvin Street (Kelvin Street's name was later changed to Henderson Highway), Winnipeg, near the Mennonite Brethren Bible College. C. A. DeFehr was the president of the company. Henry F. Klassen was the managing director and editor of its two major publications, one of which was the Mennonitische Rundschau (1877–2007), widely known as one of the oldest Mennonite publications in North America.
In 1960, the Canadian Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches purchased all the shares of The Christian Press and established a management board to give it oversight. The Press was profitable and returned surpluses to the parent organization.
The main objective of The Christian Press was to publish Christian periodicals and books for German-speaking Mennonites in Canada and abroad. In the 1960s, this objective expanded to meet the need of English readers and the printing demands of the Mennonite Brethren Conference. A book sales department, known as "Christian Press Bookstore," was added to accommodate distribution. This store merged in 1971 with the Faith and Life Bookstore, which had previously been managed by the General Conference of MB Churches. The new store was renamed "Fellowship Bookcentre" after the merger and continued to supply reports to the Board of Publication until the store was sold in 1980.
Under the ownership of the Canadian Conference of MB churches, Christian Press reported to the Board of Publications until 1987, at which time it reported to the Board of Management. When the Conference was restructured in 2004, Christian Press started making its reports directly to the Executive Board. In 2005, Christian Press relocated to 1320 Taylor Avenue, Winnipeg, and was renamed CP Printing Solutions in 2012.
The Conference executive decided to discontinue in 2019 the print version of its denominational magazine, the MB Herald. The last issue was mailed to subscribers in January 2020. Without a magazine to print, the Conference also decided to liquidate the assets of CP Printing in February 2020, bringing a close to CP Printing Solutions.
Sources: various Conference Yearbooks, MB Herald.
Scope and Content
This series belongs to the Canadian Conference of Mennonite Brethren churches fonds. It contains the financial records of Rundschau Publishing House and The Christian Press, Ltd., as well as shareholder certificates, board of director minutes, and documents pertaining to the management of "Fellowship Bookcentre." Additional reports and correspondence can be found under the boards to which this institution reported to: Board of Publications (1961–1987), Board of Management (1987–2004/05), Executive Board (2004/05 – ).
Custodial History
According to the accessions records, the material that came to the archives in 1981 consisted of eight accounts receivable ledgers of Rundschau and Jugendfreund from 1923–1928. Christian press donated the material in 1981. Subsequent materials have been donated to the Centre for MB Studies at various times.
Notes
- Volume 680, 681, 695.
- Described by Conrad Stoesz October 8, 1999; updated by Kate Woltmann, 2014; updated by Jon Isaak, 2019 and 2021.
- Accession nos. 1981–31; 2021-11.
- Additional material: Board of Publications series, Board of Management series, Executive Board series.
- English and German languages.
File List
Volume 680
1. Rundschau Publishing House financial ledger. -- 1923–1924.
2. Rundschau Publishing House financial ledger. -- 1924–1925.
3. Rundschau Publishing House financial ledger. -- 1925.
4. Rundschau Publishing House financial Ledger. -- 1926.
5. Rundschau Publishing House financial ledger. -- 1926–1927.
6. Rundschau Publishing House cash book for Rundschau Jugendfreund. -- 1928–1931.
7. Rundschau Publishing House financial ledger. -- 1928.
8. Rundschau Publishing House financial ledger. -- 1928–1929.
9. Rundschau Publishing House financial ledger. -- 1929.
10. Christian Press financial ledger. -- 1961–1963.
11. Christian Press: shares and interest on shares and dividends. -- 1949, 1950, 1952, 1953, 1955, 1957–1965; predominantly 1952, 1953, 1955, 1957, 1960.
12. Christian Press: Incorporation Act of "The Christian Press, Ltd.," signed in March 1940; Bill of sale, signed April 1940; shareholders meeting minutes from December 1945; and by-law no. 6 passed in June 1964. -- 1940, 1945, 1964.
Volume 681
1. Rundschau Publishing House and Christian Press: correspondence concerning purchase, minutes of purchasing committee, financial statements, list of shareholders, official purchase documents. -- 1936, 1940, 1944–1945, 1965.
2. Christian Press: minutes of the board of directors, correspondence, financial reports, shareholder certificates. -- 1946.
3. Christian Press: minutes of board of directors, correspondence, financial reports. -- 1947–1949.
4. Christian Press: minutes of board of directors, correspondence, new building project, financial reports. -- 1950–1951.
5. Christian Press: minutes of board of directors, correspondence, financial statements. -- 1952–1953.
6. Christian Press: minutes of board of directors, correspondence (re: articles for publication), reports, financial statements, list of shareholders. -- 1954.
6a. Christian Press: Correspondence and financial statements. -- 1962–1963.
7. Christian Press: shareholder certificates and statement of purchase for last name beginning with "L." -- 1945–1961.
8.Christian Press: shareholder certificates and statement of purchase for last name beginning with "M." -- 1945–1961.
9. Christian Press: shareholder certificates and statement of purchase for last name beginning with "N." -- 1945–1961.
10. Christian Press: shareholder certificates and statement of purchase for last name beginning with "O," "P," "Q." -- 1946–1961.
11. Christian Press: shareholder certificates and statement of purchase for last name beginning with "R." -- 1946–1961.
12. Christian Press: shareholder certificates and statement of purchase for last name beginning with "V," "W." -- 1946–1961.
13. Fellowship Bookcentre minutes, reports and finances. -- 1971–1980.
14. Christian Press brochures. -- [198–].
Volume 695
1. Christian Press. Reports, meeting minutes, and correspondence. -- 1958–1960.
2. Christian Press. Reports, meeting minutes, and correspondence. -- 1961–1962.
3. Christian Press. Reports, meeting minutes, and correspondence. -- 1964–1965.
4. Christian Press. Reports, meeting minutes, and correspondence. -- 1966.
5. Christian Press. Reports, meeting minutes, and correspondence. -- 1967–1968.
6. Christian Press. Reports, meeting minutes, and correspondence. -- 1969–1970.
7. Random photos from Christian Press showing workers and print shop. -- 1971–1984.