Oberholtzer purchased a hand printing press in 1851 and set it up in his locksmith shop. He published "Der Religiöse Botschafter" ("the Religious Messenger") with a circulation of 400, the first successful Mennonite periodical in North America. The financial burden and the demands on his time ended the operation after three years. In 1856, with funding from 92 shareholders, the Mennonite Printing Union was organized and printing resumed with a periodical named "Das Christliche Volksblatt". Besides the periodical, books and other material were printed at this new facility. Oberholtzer's contribution as publisher and editor was to have significant influence on Mennonites in North America.