Thomas Kane, 19th Century Famous Promoter of Tithing. He "taught millions."

The fascinating story of Thomas Kane who "probably did more to promote the tithe than any other man." [1]

In 1916 one magazine wrote “Every human being must have hobbies, and Mr. [Thomas] Kane has three: tithing, fishing and golf. It is hard to tell whether fishing or tithing has the preference. He has been the advocate of tithing for forty years or more and has sent out millions of tracts and articles urging all to follow the Scriptural injunction and give one tenth to the Lord.” [2]  

ChristianityToday wrote that the modern “Christian emphasis on tithing stemmed largely from the efforts of Chicago businessman Thomas Kane..." [3]

Born in 1837 in Adams County, Ohio, Thomas Kane would later become a very successful and wealthy businessman in Chicago. According to the 1911 Book of Chicagoans; a biographical dictionary of leading  men of the city,  Kane moved to Chicago in 1872 and in 1875 began manufacturing “school furniture under the style of Thomas Kane & Co. (later incorporated).”   His company also manufactured “electro vapor” engines  and “high grade pleasure boats, row boats, sail boats, canoes”  etc. At the time of his death in 1924 he was "rated as a millionaire." [4-7]

In his autobiography Kane explains why he started tithing. “in [the year 1870] I commenced tithing my income. The reasons were distinctly not altruistic—I confess that self-defense was a more prominent reason than duty. Like many other people, I was an emotional giver, was too much governed by impulse rather than reason. To some objects I gave more than I should, to others less. I needed a rule, a limit, and so my wife and I adopted the tenth as a convenient rule; and besides we had Bible authority for it. Neither of us regarded the tithe as a permanently binding law of the race; indeed, so far as I know, neither of us had ever heard a sermon or read a book on the subject.” [8]

Noticing that each year from 1870-1876 his profits “increased with greater ratio” this “deepened the conviction that there was a very close affiliation between tithing and temporal prosperity. I felt that if this was true in my own case as it certainly appeared to be, it might be true of others, and that if the facts could be obtained and widely published, the one paramount objection to tithing as a rule of life, might, in a large measure, be overcome.” [9]

Interestingly “up to 1876 and so far as I can recall for several years thereafter, I did not know another tither, so that I had no personal means of verifying my opinion regarding the cause and effect relations between tithing and temporal prosperity.” Having “an extensive acquaintance among ministers. I felt that if there were any tithers, they, of all men ought to know it. Hence I asked, as opportunity offered, and where opportunities did not offer, I made them, all the ministers of my acquaintance if they knew any tithers, and if so, how their temporal prosperity compared with others who did not tithe. So far as I remember none of them personally knew a tither.” So when Thomas Kane started tithing he had never  “heard a sermon or read a book on the subject” and had never known another tither and the ministers acquainted with Kane did not themselves know of any tithers. [10]

“Believing that this phase of the subject is of paramount importance especially to laymen, I determined to make all possible inquiry by correspondence, and to obtain all the facts available.” Kane wrote his first pamphlet on tithing in 1876 which included the question “"It is my personal belief that God prospers in temporal affairs those who honor Him by setting apart a definite proportion of their income to His service. I have never known an exception. Have you? Please give me any facts within your personal knowledge on this subject. Especially give the facts if you know of any exceptions." From 1877-1878 this pamphlet was “sent to probably three-fourths of all the ministers in the principal evangelical denominations in the Northern States, and to a large number in the South.” Kane received at least 200-300 positive replies. “The testimony was practically uniform that temporal prosperity follows tithing. No exceptions worthy of the name were given. I could not but feel that if these testimonials could be widely distributed, and read by laymen, the result would be not only a real awakening on the subject of tithing, but a large increase in contributions to Christian benevolences.” [11]

The results of Kane’s 1878 survey prove an important point. Although there had been a growing interest in the topic of stewardship (foonote citing Powell, Salstrand, Calkins) the practice of tithing was largely an unknown and untaught subject in 19th century USA.  Despite this, there were still many people scattered throughout the country who, whether by conviction, self-study, or desire to make giving more systematic, had been practicing tithing and did so long enough to observe some positive correlation between tithing and temporal prosperity. The feedback received was not 80/20 or 70/30 or 50/50 but almost %100 in support that tithing and prosperity are linked. (For similar findings see work of Blacksmith ) This finding lit a fire in Thomas Kane and so, at his own expense, he began publishing and circulating promotional pamphlets and booklets. “In the next ten years Mr. Kane sent out more than five million tract pamphlets on this subject”  almost always published under the pseudonym of “Layman.”  This immense amount of tithing literature is remarkable considering that the population of the USA during this time was about 50-60 million people. [12-15]

Kane then wrote a tract on the subject and sent it to at least three-fourths of all the evangelical ministers in the United States. With the tract went a circular saying: My belief is that God blesses in temporal as well as spiritual things the man who honours Him by setting apart a stated portion of his income to His service. I have never known an exception. Have you?” The initial response to Kane’s literature was mixed. From ordinary people and ministers “the increasing demand was encouraging, and many letters showed plainly that the interest in tithing was deepening and widening.” However, the two groups that proved the biggest challenge also happened to be the groups with great potential: editors of the religious press and teachers in seminaries. Although offers for Kane’s tithing literature in “evangelical church papers” were ignored by a “large majority” of editors there was a “substantial minority…[who] cheerfully published the offer.”    Kane wrote “the readers of religious newspapers were more interested in the subject of tithing than, at least, the great majority of the editors.” As for seminaries “Very early in the campaign I realized that the most profitable field for cultivation, if I could reach them, would be the students in the theological seminaries. Naturally, I first tried to reach them through their professors—the teachers of our future teachers. Every effort, however, in this direction was a flat failure.” Remarkably, within a few years this apathy towards tithing would be reversed. Things were about to change.

It is difficult to pinpoint how exactly tithing became so popular at the time that it did but around the turn of the century (estimated 1890-1915) attitudes rapidly changed.  “With few exceptions the religious press has not only ceased to be apathetic but is becoming one of the most active and influential agencies in favor of tithing.”  Kane’s pamphlets were initially free but by 1890 demand was so big Kane had to begin requesting payment for cost of printing. By 1900 no more free pamphlets to anyone, it was too expensive in cost and labor. In 1918 Kane observed that “There are now any number of agencies circulating tithing literature. Scores, yes hundreds, of books, pamphlets and addresses on tithing are being written and published. The subject is made prominent at almost every religious convention. Conferences, Associations, Presbyteries, etc., are adopting resolutions in favor of tithing. Several denominations have tithing and stewardship secretaries.”  George Brown, also an advocate of tithing, wrote “The demand for literature on the subject became so great that the Twentieth Century Tithe Covenant Association was organized at the Winona Bible Conference in 1904, with Thomas Kane as President.”  Kane also recounts that he received a much better response from seminaries when promoting the scholarship of Dr. Henry Lansdell, a British priest in the Church of England.  [16-19] 

Arguably, the most influential book from this period was Dr. Lansdell’s The Sacred Tenth. Originally published in 1906 (available to read for free on archive.org and elsewhere), this two-volume work “advocated tithing from a more scholarly basis. Lansdell's work was a landmark in tithing research because not only was it the culmination of the previous three decades of research, but it became paradigmatic for tithing arguments and discussions over the next ninety-nine years.”  Where Kane was a promoter whose pamphlets tended to emphasize the beneficial experience of tithing, Dr. Lansdell was a scholar with a wealth of tithe research going back thousands of years to the ancient empires of Assyria and Babylon. Kane ordered hundreds of copies of Lansdell’s work and sent them to seminaries and their libraries. Lansdell and Kane had previously corresponded and then met each other at 1904 Tithing Conference. “In England the one who perhaps more than any other person has done most to promote tithe paying is the Rev. Henry Landsell, D.D., chaplain of Morden College, Blackheath.” [20-21]

Around 1917 Kane formed The Layman Company, later renamed to Layman Tithing Foundation, an interdenominational non-profit whose aim was to “make stewardship literature available to all who seek to promote the Scriptural basis of giving.”  The “Board of Directors composed of individuals from various denominations.”  Kane “set aside a considerable sum to insure continuance of this work after his death.”  By 1956 the Layman Tithing Foundation was still sending out 2 million pamphlets a year.  By 1961 it was reported that the Foundation had become a one man operation because the denominations “large and small, have now taken over the crusade for tithing.”  In May 2006 “the Tithing Foundation board donated the foundation and all of its assets to the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago with the understanding that LSTC would continue to keep alive the goal of stewardship and tithing education, information and practices. Since then, LSTC has been updating the foundation’s publications and resources, and developing workshops.”  According to public records, LSTC has received at least $335,000 in grants from the Thomas Kane Trust to promote tithing. [22-26]

Thomas Kane died September 26, 1924 at the age of 87. He was buried in a family plot at Oakwoods cemetery in Chicago. In September, 2023 I (Andrew, the author of this blog) visited Kane’s burial site and unfortunately it appears that nobody has visited this site for decades. Kane’s headstone had fallen over and the headstones of his children have fallen over and sunk in the ground for so many decades that the names are covered by the ground. See pictures below.

Kane wrote “As already said I have for thirty-seven years been seeking for facts as to the results of tithing. The many millions of questions sent out and the many thousands of answers received prove beyond question that tithing pays. Pays financially. Pays spiritually. Pays in personal happiness. Pays in the comfort and happiness of other people. In short, pays in every good sense.”  Also, “the dominant note in all testimonials from tithers is the joy of giving.”  [27-28]

Quotes describing Thomas Kane:

“The writer is personally acquainted with Mr. Kane and can testify…that he who has harped on the one string "Tithing" for over forty years has not soured, but is the "sunniest, kindliest of men, with a wide range of interest."  [29]

"It generally is acknowledged that the cause of Christian stewardship in America owes more to the life and work of Thomas Kane than to that of any other one man of modern times." [30]

 “Tithing, properly considered in United States history, must be dated to a large extent in terms B.K. and A.K, “before Kane” and “after Kane.”  [31]

"Mr. Thomas Kane, who is the best-known champion of tithing among the American churches and whom certainly no one else excels in constancy and consistency of devotion to the principle as a law of God."  [32]

FAMILY
Thomas Kane married Adeline E. Bickle Kane (1836-1917) and they had six children together. Five of the children “were taken in three days by diphtheria”  but another report says “scarlet fever.”  The only surviving child was their daughter Theodosia Kane Eshbaugh (1878-1963) who married Merle Francis Eshbaugh (1881-1950). They had no children. [33-34]


NOTES:
The Tithing Foundation previously had its own website but after lack of use it expired. An archived version can be found here.

“I have never found a tither who was not happy and prosperous. Not that tithers get rich, but they always have all they need. Not that they don’t have sorrows, but they come up out of them with smiles on their faces.”  [35]

END NOTES:

[1] King, Julius. (1953) Successful Fund-Raising Sermons. Funk & Wagnalls. 268
[2] “A Tip To Men In Middle Life” The American Magazine, vol. LXXXII no. 2. August, 1916, page 37, Crowell Publishing Company, Springfield, Ohio.
[3] Blomberg, Craig L. “Ten Percent Won’t Work for Everyone.” Christianity Today, September 28, 2021.
[4] Marquis, Albert Nelson (Ed.) (1911) The Book of Chicagoans. A.N. Marquis & Company. 376
[5] Swing, David (1892) A Story of the Chicago Fire.
[6] Army Navy Journal. Vol. XXXIII No. 24. February 15, 1896. 434
[7] “Thomas Kane Dead.” The Tipton Daily Tribune. Vol. XXIX, no. 304. September 26, 1924. 1
[8] Layman. “A Tithing Autobiography.” Tithing and Prosperity. (no date) The Layman Company. Chicago. 65. Thomas Kane is here pictured as being 80 years old so this autobiography would we circa 1917-1918. This is confirmed on page 80 saying that 1913 was “five years ago.” 65
[9] Ibid.
[10] Ibid. 64-66
[11] Ibid. 66-67
[12] See Powell, Luther (1962) Money And The Church. Association Press. See especially Chapter XIII. Salstrand, George (1956) The Story of Stewardship. Baker Book House. Calkins, Harvey Reeves (1914) A Man and His Money.
[13] Blacksmith. (1888). The Path To Wealth: Or, Light From My Forge: A Discussion Of God's Money Laws, The Relation Between Giving And Getting, Cash And Christianity. Richmond, Va.: B. F. Johnson. 1-233
[14] Thompson, T.K. (Ed.) (1960) Stewardship In Contemporary Theology. Association Press. 122
[15] Salstrand 41-42. Powell 187, 214. Thompson 121-122, 139.
[16] Layman. 67-68
[17] Ibid. 80
[18] Ibid. 79
[19] Brown, George. (1911) Gems of Thought on Tithing. 84
[20] Croteau, David A., "A Biblical and Theological Analysis of Tithing: Toward a Theology of Giving in the New Covenant Era" (2005). Faculty Dissertations. 17. https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/fac_dis/17 32
[21] Sayler, James L. (1918) American Tithers. The Methodist Book Concern. 24
[22] Salstrand 83
[23] World Religious News. (1924, October 25) The Olean Evening Herald (Times Herald). 4
[24] Salstrand 83
[25] Jesus Mentioned Tithing (1961, February 1) Detroit Free Press. 7
[26] Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago. 2016-2018 Catalog. 97
[27] Layman 78. This quote is found in both the 1915 and 1918 editions of his autobiography written with the Pseudonym “Layman.”
[28] Kane, Thomas. “The Financial Side of Tithing.” Western Christian Recorder, 18 February 1915. p. 3
[29] Huebschmann, John S. (1922) Three greater successes. Central Publishing House. 52
[30] “’Layman’ Is Dead” (1925 February) The Missionary Visitor, Church of the Brethren. Vol. XXVII No. 2.  41, 53
[31] Ward, Hiley H. (1958) Creative Giving. New York: MacMillan. 60
[32] “The Tither’s Advantage.” 1909, December 22. The Ceredo Advance. p. 2
[33] “A Tip To Men In Middle Life” The American Magazine, vol. LXXXII no. 2. August, 1916, page 37, Crowell Publishing Company, Springfield, Ohio.
[34] Whallon, Edward Payson. (1934) Some Family Records. F.L. Rowe: Cincinatti. p. 25
[35] “Tithing Testimonies.” (1928, December 1) The Kansas Messenger. p. 2

OBITUARIES:

"Thomas Kane, known throughout American Protestantism as the leading promoter of the principle of tithing in church finance, died in Evanston, Ill., on September 27. Mr. Kane distributed millions of pamphlets under the non de plume of "Layman." Two years ago he set aside a considerable sum to insure continuance of this work after his death" 
Times Herald, Saturday, October 25, 1924

"Funeral services for Thomas Kane, who died last Friday at the age of 87 and whose work is known throughout the world, will be held at 1 p.m. today at the residence, 1251 Ashbury avenue, Evanston. For fifty years Mr. Kane published pamphlets in advocacy of tithing. they have been published by the millions in several languages and distributed among all denominations in America, Europe and Asia. Dr. Dan B. Brummitt, editor of the Northwestern Christian Advocate, and Dr. W.O. Carrier, pastor of the Third Presbyterian church, Chicago, will officiate at the funeral. 
Chicago Tribune, Monday, September 29, 1924, page 10, "Thomas Kane, Tithe Leader, To Be Buried Today"

"Thomas Kane, for many years president of the Winona Assembly at Winona Lake, Ind., and widely known for his work in the Presbyterian church, died yesterday at his home, 1251 Ashbury avenue, Evanston. He was 71 years old. Mr. Kane was  retired manufacturer of school supplies and formerly was the president of the American Spiral Pipe Works. He will be buried from his late home on Monday afternoon at 1 o'clock. 
Chicago Tribute, Saturday, September 27, 1924. "Thomas Kane, Long Active in Church Work, Is Dead" 

"Thomas Kane, age 87, died at 1 o'clock Friday morning at his home in Evanston, Ill. The word of his death was sent to his sister, Mrs. Aurelia Gates, who is living with her daughter, Mrs. Carl Harper, near Sharpsville. Death was very sudden and unexpected and while the message did not state the cause, it is believed heart trouble coupled with complications incident to his advanced age closed the life of this pioneer Tipton citizens.
Mr. Kane was nationally known among the church people as he was identified for years in the publishing business in Chicago and devoted most of his time to the printing of literature on tithing. He published several books and pamphlets on this subject and his literature has been used in hundreds of churches over the county.
Mr. Kane was fortunate in retaining exceptionally good health up to the very time of his death. He lived in Evanston but every day of the week, he journeyed to downtown Chicago where he maintained an office and there worked throughout the day. He was in his office Thursday.
He is survived by the widow, one daughter, Mrs. Theodocia Ashbaugh, of Chicago, and two sisters, Mrs. Aurelia Gates, of Sharpsville, and Miss Emma Kane, of Long Beach, Cal. There were seven children in the family but six of them are dead, all being. victims of scarlet fever. Two children are buried in this city and four are buried in Chicago.
The deceased was one of the early settlers of Tipton. He came here with his parents, George and Catherine (Platter) Kane from Adams county, Ohio, in 1828. His father entered land here when the Indian Reserve was opened. The family entered land where the Lake Erie shops are now - located. They lived at first in a district near two of Tipton's early day taverns and this was considered a bad environment for the children and the elder Kane moved to a cabin where the Waffler & Bates building now stands on East Jefferson street. Mr. Kane had purchased land which now comprises the Burkhardt farm at the northeast edge of this city and he arranged for a house raising on his new farm. At this time there were only thirteen buildings in Tipton.
In those days the building of a house or barn of logs was an event and was attended by all the people of the neighborhood. There was plenty to eat and also plenty to drink as in those days the jug of whisky was common in nearly every home. The elder Kane was one of the early day prohibitionists and he announced that there would be no whisky at his house raising. Instead of a large crowd for the event, only two men appeared and the work of raising the house was a strenuous affair. 
The son grew to manhood here. He taught school and also engaged in business here in the dry goods business with his father. They operated one of the very earliest of stores here.
Thomas Kane was married to Miss Addie Bickle who resided in this city. She is surviving and is in fairly good health. A brother, Platter Kane, is buried in the old cemetery, Green- lawn, which is now part of Fairview cemetery.
Mr. Kane was a very wealthy man, being rated as a millionaire. He was one of the prominent Presbyterians of the country and it is possible that he has left the Tipton church a bequest. At one time he was president of the Winona Assembly at Winona Lake.
The Tipton Daily Tribune, Friday, September 26, 1924. Page 1 "THOMAS KANE DEAD - PIONEER OF TIPTON DIED IN CHICAGO - Was An Early Day School Teacher In The Community"