Four Organs from Luebek Germany

 

I have had these four cards for several years. I think I must have purchased them as a group. Several traits link them together. I am going to treat them as a group in this longer post. One nice thing to me is that a previous owner made notes on these cards. I am going to rely on those notes primarily for this post. My thanks are expended to my friend Ed Tompkins who connected me with Melanie Edelman who translated the text on the cards into English. Also, thanks to Barry Jordan for transcribing some English that was difficult to decipher. Also, thanks to my wife Libby for help with this entry and so many other things.

Postcards 1, images 1 and 2  
Jacobi-Kirche Grossorgel

Lübeck - Jacobs Church - Large organ Gothic brick from 1300s Jacobs church still has the older small organ. Pre-Bach sound (resonance). Even today spiritual pre-Bach music is played every Thursday evening at 8 o clock.

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Photographs 2, images 3 and 4 

Lübeck Jacobi-Kirch Kleine Orgel

Lübeck- Jacobs church - small organ Gothic brick from the 1300s Completed in 1637 in breastwork and Ruckpositiv. The sound (resonance) from pre-Bach period was maintained. Spiritual music is played regularly at 8 o clock on Thursday evenings. (pre-Bach music) The Jacobs church has 2 organs. Still also a large organ. Lübeck is a city of organs. It has some of the oldest in Europe.

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Postcards 3, images 5 and 6 

Lübeck Marienkirche Mittelsmerggmit Orgel

Zerstört Restauriert - destroyed / restored) The English text: My dear Dr. McEacherin. I am sending you all the famous organs. Sorry I never heard them played on but was very much impressed so far. I am so glad, knowing you happy in your lovely home. Are you studying the Brahms?; and what about your lectures? (Ring!) I'll be in London from Sept 16 until end of Oct, then back! Leaving for our vacation Aug. 11, address above. 

Peierls Hotel Pension Gerlitzenhaus 

Much love. Lois WP under. practice practice. 

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Postcard 4 images 7 and 8

Lübeck Mariankirche Bachorgel

Bach organ destroyed but renovated/restored Dietrich Buxtehude played on this Dance of Death organ. When Bach visited him, he was excited about its sound. Here the evening music took place.

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Great Organs

Smaller Organ

Marienkirche Mittelsmerggmit

Lübeck Marienkirche

Methodist Episcopal Church, Asa, OH, USA

Methodism in Ada, OH began in 1852. The church edifice was built on Main Street a few years later. The organ no doubt followed shortly thereafter. The pipe organ database tells use there was an instrument present from 1930 built by the Toledo Organ Company, but there are no details. There is also another instrument listed for the Ada Methodist Church maybe the one shown in my postcard. Two instruments are in the database. Additional early pictures of the church and/or organ might help us know which instrument is shown in the card. My postcard is black and while and has been postally used. The postmark seems to Nevada, OH. There are publication and copyright details on the reverse, but no descriptive information is included. The front includes some additional catalog information.

Fellin (Viljandi) EST: Jaani Kirik

 

I have had a hard time getting my information about this card straight! Fellin is the German name of the town known in Estonian as Viljandi. Johannis Kirche in German becomes Jaani kiriku in Estonian. Once I had those details clear, I have been able to make some headway. Things were further complicated by the fact that neither the church's interior structure nor the organ are -now- as they appear on the postcard. The Jaani Kiriku is a very historic building. A church was likely on the site already in the 13th century. It was destroyed by war in the late 1500's. Rebuilding took place in the early 1600's. A rebuilt tower was added in 1815. The church was closed in the 1950's and used as a warehouse. It was re-opened as a concert hall in 1989 and as a church in 1991. This site gives a wee bit of information about the organ: "The organ of St. John's Church in Viljandi has an electropneumatic structure, 26 registers and 1 transmission register, 3 manuals and a pedal." No builder is named. Too, this information probably refers to the modern instrument shown in the image below, not the instrument shown on my card. My card is sepia-toned and is used.The stamp used is a common one (Scott 43) for the era. The card was sent from Poltsamaa according to the postmark. The image side of the card includes text, "Lichtbild von J. Riet, 1913." I have not yet been able to decipher the sending address nor the message. I know there is a fairly active organ culture in Estonia. I am hopeful someday to communicate with them and try to learn more about the organ shown on my postcard.

 

Anvers, Belgium: St Paul's Church

 

A church was located in Anvers Belgium as early as 1276. Flooding from the nearby river prompted a move which was completed with a new church in 1571. A monastery (Dominican) was added about this same time. Calvinism displaced Catholicism only a few years later and massive changes were undertaken in the structure of St Paul's. The dominant religion changed again in 1585, and work resumed on the monastery between 1605 and 1616 and completed by 1662. Pieter Verbrugghen created much of the wood furnishings in the church, including the organ case in the 1650's. The instrument itself was built by Nicholas van Haeghen. The most recent work on the instrument seems to have been done 1993-1996. My card is in black and white and has been used. the stamp and cancel are on the image side of the card. This makes reading the date of the cancellation difficult: all I can make out is 191-. The stamp is a common Belgian issue from that era. It was sent to St Petersburg, Russia. There is no message on the card per se, only a name and address: L Severin, 43 Rue de la Voile, Anvers. I do not know who this may be.

Atchison (KS), USA: St Mark's Evangelical Lutheran Church

 

St Mark Lutheran Church in Atchison, Kansas was formed in 1868 with a small congregation. It never really got established and seemingly went defunct a few years later. It was reconstituted in the late 1800's. A new sanctuary was built 1908-1909. An organ was installed in at that time. No mention is made of the builder on the church's history page. The Pipe Organ Database suggests that it was George Kilgen, but there are no details. My card is in color, and is used with a common 1c Washington stamp paying postage from Atchison to Fort Scott. There is no identifying information on the back aside from a stylized "W" in a diamond-shaped enclosure as a logo. When I was on sabbatical in 2019 I went to Atchison to see if I could find out more about this church and instrument. I was not able to contact anyone by telephone beforehand, and the facility was closed when I was in town. I enjoyed my short visit to Atchison, but came away without the added information about this organ that I had hoped to gain.

Portland, Maine (USA): Kotzschmar Organ

 

The City Hall in Portland Maine was built in 1912, after a previous building burned. Shortly thereafter a local publisher donated funds to have an organ installed in a public auditorium which was part of the city hall building. Kotzschmar was the surname of a music teacher and organist highly esteemed by the  donor. The organ was built by the Austin firm. Renovation work was begun on the organ in 2012 and completed in 2014. A supporting society helps maintain the organ now and increase awareness of the unique nature of the instrument. That society also assists in procuring a "municipal organist." My card is in color and includes the caption, "9: The Herman Kotzschmar Memorial Organ, City Hall, Portland, Me." The "9" doubtless refers to the card's place in a sequence of cards. The is a number in the lower right corner, 7907, about which I know nothing. It seems to be part of the printing, not a handwriting annotation. My card is used, with a common 2c Washington stamp paying postage from Portland to Providence, RI. It was published by the Eastern News Company, Portland, ME. 

 

Easter Greetings, novelty card

My wife got this card for me at some point. It does indeed include organ pipes along with lilies and a chorister. It is a novelty card, not depicting a specific instrument, but is intended rather to "celebrate the Easter season." The overall color scheme is gold/brown. Very small lettering on the front is a copyright notice: "Copyright (c) 19xx M M Huse (?) perhaps. The adequately rendered pipes include some intricate stenciling. On the reverse it seems that it was produced by the TR Co. It is also apparent on the reverse that the front is actually embossed. On the reverse we learn that my used card was sent from Fleeton, VA to Reedville, VA in 1909. A common Franklin 1c stamp was used for postage. The card went to a Mr Taliafero in Reedville, Taliafero being a rather prominent surname in Virginia. The two towns are located in Northumberland County, a region of the state I never explored while living in Richmond. Both towns are located on the Chesapeake Bay probably less than 20 miles from each other. "Bernard" seems to be penned in the LL of the reverse but absent anything to clarify we can only suppose this refers to the sender.

Ocean Grove, NY (USA): Methodist Auditorium

The Methodist Church elected in 1869 to establish a permanent camp meeting in Ocean Grove, NJ. The Great Auditorium was built on the site in 1894 and is now a venue for both religious and secular events. It can seat about 7000 persons. The organ was built by Robert Hope-Jones and dedicated in 1908, having been funded in part by none other than Samuel Clemens (Mark Twain), who was a friend of Hope-Jones. On-going work since 1974 under the leadership of Gordon Turk, organist and artist in residence has brought the instrument to more than 200 ranks and 12000 pipes with a five manual and pedal console. The facade as it appears on my card and that currently shown on the Auditorium website are the same.

The most recent update on the instrument at the OHS database has it at 184 ranks in 2008 after work by John Shaw. The auditorium site says an antiphonal division of 15-ranks was installed 2007-2008. That may make the difference in counts.

My color card has been used. It is dated 5 July 1958 and bears a common Jefferson two-cent stamp from that era. The card was sent to California. It was produced by Tichnor Brothers of Boston and printed by Star Stationary in Newark, NJ. Text on the card calls the instrument the "largest in the world." It certainly ranks among the several that claim that title.

Chautauqua, NY (USA): Chautauqua Institute

The Chautauqua Institute was founded in 1874 as an educational locale for summer-time use. It was envisioned as an extension of church school education in local churches in the experimental setting of the NY outdoors. Founded by Methodists, it ultimately is utilized by a variety of church denominations. Music was always an important part of the Chautauqua experience and in 1929 an on-site orchestra was founded.

The OHS database has an extensive list of instruments that have been at Chautauqua, the earliest being a Ryder organ from 1881. A letter to patrons states that ice and water damaged the organ console in Winter 2018. The letter mentions the "1907 Massey Memorial Organ." That would seem to delineate the Warren Church Organ instrument in the OHS database of 1907. The Moeller company replaced the console for the 94-rank instrument in 1928 and did a thorough remaking of the instrument in 1972. The most recent substantive work seems to have been done by the Fischer company of Pennsylvania in 1992.

My sepia-toned card has been postally used. The recipient was in Kingston, NY. The postmark is dated 14 August 1919. It was published by the Institute, and was sent using a common Washington type A140. Based on the perforations (11x11), it seems this is from the 1917-1919 printing,  Scott 498

 

Wellesley, MA (USA): Dana Hall

I have been able to find no information about the organ shown on this card. The caption states this is the "living room" at Dana Hall in Wellesley Mass. Dana Hall is a girls' preparatory school. C.B. Dana was a philanthropist of some renown who donated to schools of various stripes. (One of the main buildings at Guilford College, Greensboro, NC, where I graduated, includes a Dana Auditorium.) I was able to find a letter from a key figure of Dana Hall which listed various improvements at the school, including an organ that cost $7000. But I have not been able to find any more details about the instrument itself. No doubt the room has undergone changes over the years, and it's possible the organ is no longer there.

My black-and-white card is used, and was sent to Brooklyn, NY in early 1907. Postage was paid by a common 2c Washington stamp type A129 type II, Scott 319. Various shades of red determine the final version of the stamp at hand; I have not bothered to determine if mine is "carmine rose" or "scarlet."

Chalons-sur-Marne (FR) St Stepen's

 

My card has been used. It looks like it may have been postmarked in 1906 based on the postmark and the message on the reverse. It is black and white, but has no identification of the publisher. Postage was paid by what appears to be Scott 113, a common "Liberty, Equality, Fraternity" stamp from 1900-1929. The 5c stamp is light green-blue. This site gives a good description of the church and the organ along with the specification. There were instruments in the facility prior, but the current history begins in when Salmon built a postif instrument for the west gallery. He added other divisions over the next 20 years. In 1839 John Abbey of Versailles was selected to build a new instrument but by 1849 it was still not complete and Abbey went out of business. In 1896-1898 Abbey's sons undertook completion of the instrument. It is this instrument that was damaged during World War 2, and repaired, altered in 1957 by Roethinger, and variously worked on over the next several years. The most recent work was completed in 2006. Much of the 1898 instrument remains.  

Franklin (PA), USA: First Baptist Church

I feel certain that I got this pair of cards together, though I don't remember specifically. They were both sent to a Mr Dedrick of Brodhead, WI in 1906. Interestingly the space of note-writing is on the front of the card, rather than on the reverse with the address information. These two cards are both black and white and have been postally used, with a common Franklin 1c stamp for postage. One card features the exterior of the facility, the other the interior with the chancel and organ facade. The church's website (a blog really) doesn't offer any information about the music program nor the organ, let alone any history of the instrument. The interior image reveals rather remarkable murals on the ceiling of the sanctuary which must have been stunning to see in person, in color. The two cards were published by CL Griffin.

I clicked through to the church's Facebook page and found a contemporary image of the interior. It seems the organ in the postcard is still in place at the church (as are the murals!).

West Point, NY, USA: Cadet Chapel

The present card represents that odd co-mingling of religious and military that is somewhat unique to the US. The Cadet Chapel at the West Point Military Academy in New York is a non-denominational facility for use by all faiths represented in the student body and faculty of the academy. The present building was completed in 1910, replacing a structure from 1836. The chapel boasts of the largest pipe organ in a chapel in the world, with 23,511 pipes. My card does not have a  copyright date but copy on the reverse gives the number of pipes as 18,200 and calls the instrument the 3rd largest organ in the world, and the largest located in a church. The card is by Pendor in NY and is used. It was sent to me by a fellow-collector. Postage was paid with a USMA stamp issued in 2002. My friend lived in NY at that time. The organ was  build by Moeller in 1911 and then expanded over the years. This is an interesting article on an event in the life of the instrument.

Salt Lake City, UT, USA: Mormon Tabernacle

One of the most famous church structures in the US incorporates an equally famous pipe organ. I have several postcards showing the instrument at various stages in its history. Today Temple Mount has several buildings housing the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Also there are several organs scattered among those buildings. This remains the most visually recognizable, though it is not the largest.

The card at top shows the tabernacle organ in its most famous configuration. The used, color card is dated 1959. The card just above is dated '06, and was mailed from SLC to Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Both cards use common postage stamps for their respective eras.

Marked differences are apparent between the two cards. including the size of the organ. The tabernacle's choir site (the ensemble is world-renown in its own right) includes details about the organ, and its evolution.

Oklahoma City, OK, USA: St Luke's United Methodist

While St Luke's was established in 1889, the strikingly modern current edifice was constructed between 1955 and 1957. The church's history timeline tells us that the organ was an Aeolian-Skinner instrument with about 5500 pipes. The OHS database confirms this information and provides a bit more detail.

My used postcard is in color. It includes a common stamp for the era, 1962. I have not been able to find details about the scrim-looking material hanging in front of the organ.

Buckingham, UK: Hughenden Church

My postcard of the organ in St Michael and All Angels parish in Buckingham, shows a memorial tablet, a rather remarkable headpiece, and a sliver of the organ, in black and white. My card is used, with a fairly common stamp. The writer has dated it 1933, from London to Richmond, VA. The tablet, we are told, is from Queen Victoria in memory of the Earl of Beaconsfield.

The first organ in the church was built in 1864, a one-manual instrument. It was rebuilt and expanded in 1882. The most recent work was in 1979. The church's website includes helpful information, including before and after recordings of the instrument's 1979 work. The specification shows a fairly well-developed two-manual instrument. Included in the pdf is an image of the 1883 proposal for the restored instrument: fascinating. The first church on the site was from the 12th century. The facility underwent major restoration in the late-1800s. The church is closely related to Hughenden Manor, the home of Benjamin Disraeli; he is buried at the church.

Vinton, Iowa, USA: Presbyterian Church

Vinton, Iowa is in the eastern part of the state, about halfway between Des Moines and Davenport. It seems the Presbyterian Church there has used three facilities during its existence. The present building at one time had a dome which was removed in the middle of the last century. Copper from the dome was reputedly used "for the war effort."

There was apparently some cleaning done to the organ in 2015. There is a fairly decent photo essay of the project at the church's website. However no details are given about who undertook the work, nor any specifics about the instrument. I have not been able to find any information about it anywhere. The picture below is dated Easter 2017. The facade looks very much as it does on my card.

My card is used, black and white. The card is postmarked 1924. It shows the pulpit area with a raised chancel or choir area behind. The organ is within that raised area. One can discern the dome which was later removed as a roof feature.

St John's, Church Hill, Richmond, VA USA

St John's Episcopal Church in Richmond, VA is famous for being the site of Patrick Henry's "give me liberty or give me death" speech. The parish capitalizes on this with regulated entrance to the facility, tours, and re-enactments of the speech inside the building. The church is also an active congregation with its own website. My postcard is one of several from the same era created by the church as part of the marketing of the Patrick Henry tie-in. They are all fairly common.

This color postcard at the top is used, with a note on the front with the date January 10, 1907. The church website states "the Adam Stein organ was installed in 1905 and restored in 1983." That would make the card contemporaneous with the new instrument. John DeMayo's more accurate site detailing Episcopal Churches in the region gives the years 1903 and 1985, with the latter work being done by the Virginia firm, Lewis and Hitchcock. His page also gives the specification. The card just above is not dated so I will not hazard a guess as to its time frame. Subtle differences between the wo cards (light fixture, stone tablet, transept door) distinguish the two and suggest different time frames. This second card is unused.

Elm Park United Methodist, Scranton, PA, USA

 

Ground was broken for the present edifice for Elm Park Methodist Church in 1893. At that time a large Farrand and Votey organ was installed in the chancel area of the sanctuary. It included four manual divisions plus pedals, and had 68 stops and more than 2200 pipes. It served the congregation in that configuration for about 60 years when renovation work was done.  In 1995 the Reuter firm of Lawrence, Kansas removed the old instrument, conserved some pipework and constructed a new instrument, their opus 2179. The new instrument uses electronics to provide the lowest notes of two 32' stops in the pedals. The Reuter site does not give specifics, but we can learn the instrument has 3 manuals and 53 ranks.

My card is color showing a large swath of the sanctuary, including space that could have been closed off by a moving wall at the back of the room. The image clearly shows the organ and window at the front of the room. It seems that the new Reuter instrument kept the facade look of the Farrand and Votey instrument, minus the stenciling on the facade pipes. My card is used with the stamp removed, but the postmark indicating the year it was sent was 1910.