Updated through online information from Bruce Bradley: I was Minister of Music (song leader) at Cornelia in the 1990s and I played this instrument. At that time there were several things to note about it. (1) Except for the Open Diapason, all keyboard ranks, both great and swell, were "under expression", located in the swell box. A few facade pipes at either side were dummies, not speaking pipes. (2) Several of the ranks had pipes made, not of pipe metal, but of lead. The weight had crushed the feet (which were made of pipe metal) of many of the pipes, so those ranks needed serious repair. (3) Wind was supplied by a blower located under the platform. The on/off switch was a rotary switch located under the right end of the keyboard. The switch on the left end controlled some decorative lights located on either side of the case. (4) On the right side of the case there was a slot that appeared to have been for a lever handle previously used to hand pump the organ. In the current location of the organ, there was not room for someone to conveniently work the bellows. Because that handle had been removed and wind was then provided by the electric blower, and because the organ had been cut into the choir loft risers behind the pulpit platform, we wondered if the Presbyterian congregation originally in that building had purchased the instrument from its original owners and moved it into the current position at some time later than both the building and the organ were originally built. I never saw any records to say either way. (5) We had had Bradford Organ in Evanston, Illinois do an evaluation of the instrument and provide a list of proposed repairs to restore its functionality, if not its full appearance. Unfortunately, we never had the money to carry out any of the proposed repairs. Maybe some of them have been accomplished since.

Updated through on-line information from Bruce Bradley. -- I am the former Minister of Music at Cornelia Avenue Baptist Church (through 1998). When I was there, the instrument had been damaged by neglect and even by vandalism, and only about half worked. When I visited last summer, some repairs had been achieved, including at least enough to allow the pedals to function again (only 1 bourdon stop/rank on the instrument, stopped wooden pipes). There was also some work done on some of the other ranks besides the pedal rank. At least one rank has pipe-metal feet, but sheet lead pipes, and they'd crushed the feet of the pipes over they years, simply from the weight. I don't know if that was one of the ranks that was worked on or not. Those pipes would have to be almost entirely rebuilt. In summary, the organ was more playable than it had been in many years. As cited in the article in the OHS magazine of some years ago, the pedal board is flat, an unusual design, and (theoretically) designed to allow the pedal board to be disconnected -- IF the person knows how!

Status Note: There 1984

Refurbished 1984 by Berghaus Organ Co. and Chicago OHS.