St. Thomas Battle Creek
1929 E. M. Skinner Opus 788
Water Damaged Echo Organ Restored
Console Rewired to be mobile
During a rather intense thunderstorm, the lovely, high spire of St. Thomas was struck by lightning. The spire's heavy timber framing caught fire. The fire department not only tried to put it out, but also to knock it down with their water pressure. It did not. But of course, the church building was filled with smoke and the narthex and tower were filled with water. The sweet little Echo division which was paid for by Mr. Kellogg, had water pour in through its light fixture. We proceeded to empty out the chamber and open up the chests to let them dry. 4 months later, we proceeded to releather the chests and clean every component of the organ. The fund-raising efforts for the church were so successful, that they decided to re-design the chancel and to make the console movable. We replaced the cable and added a flexible windline for the console and mounted it on a new wheeled platform.
The two rank Echo Division of St. Thomas
Flute 8', Vox Humana 8' and Chimes
Releathered Pouchboards and Pitman Rails for the Vox Humana
(Note the water stains on the pitman rail.)
Releathered Primary with the primary valve stems starting to be screwed in.
Mounting the console on the new platform. Note the little console reservior in the lower left corner.
The lovely console on its new platform. It has its original action, only new wire running to the organ.