Conventions were held openly for the first time in the Soviet Union. Tallinn, a coastal city in the now independent nation of Estonia, provided an ironic setting for some convention attenders. From the site where 447 persons were baptized, the brothers and sisters could see an old fortification that in 1950 and 1951 was used as a holding prison for some of them while they were awaiting their time to be carted off to prison camps in distant Siberia. Thus, sobering memories were momentarily awakened at this time of great rejoicing.

Conventions Held in the Soviet Union and in Estonia

Date City Attendance Baptized

July 13, 14 Tallinn, Estonia 4,808 447

July 19, 20 Usolye-Sibirskoye, Siberia 4,205 543

Aug. 2, 3 Kiev, Ukraine 14,654 1,843

Aug. 3, 4 Lvov, Ukraine 17,531 1,316

Aug. 24, 25 Odessa, Ukraine 12,115 1,943

Sept. 7, 8 Alma-Ata, Kazakhstan 6,802 602

Grand Total: 74,252 7,820

(Baptism total is an amazing 10.5 percent of peak attendance total.)

Tallinn, Estonia, now independent, was the site for the first convention ever held in the Soviet Union

The book “The Greatest Man Who Ever Lived” was released in the Russian language and in other Eastern European languages