The organ was built by Wangerian-Weickhardt in 1914 and incorporates a small portion of the original 1855 organ. This immense instrument contains four manual and 3,253 pipes ranging in length from 16 feet to a quarter-inch. The soaring design of the sanctuary provided ideal acoustical conditions for the organ. Pierre Cochereau, E. Power Biggs, Virgil Fox, and Karl Richter, among others, have appeared in recitals at the

FORT STREET ORGAN

 

Fort Street’s unique organ has drawn regional, national and international attention to the church.

The organ has grown and evolved since its 1876 beginning, becoming a rich and capable instrument that allows true artists to express their deep talent.

Among those who have performed in concert on the Fort Street Organ are Thomas M. Kuras, James Abbingdon, James Hamman, David Higgs, Huw Lewis, Peter Hurford, Steve Schlesing, Ray Ferguson, Richard I. Purvis, Virgil Fox, David Palmer, Pierre Cochereau, E. Power Biggs, Hector Olivera, David Wagner, Marilyn Mason, Ray & Beth Chenault and Karl Richter.

In 1915 the Wangerin-Weickhardt Co., Milwaukee, Wisconsin built and installed a Four-Manual and Pedal Organ in Fort Street Presbyterian Church, Detroit, Michigan, incorporating 50 % of the pipe work from the 1876 J.H. & C.S. Odell opus #155 which was located in the rear gallery of the church.

The new organ had 46 ranks, 2940 pipes, cathedral chimes, harp and 50 stops.

The 1915 façade remains the same today, and all but two of the façade pipes are speaking pipes. Much of the present voicing, particularly in the principal choruses, is by the Charles W. McMannus Co., Kansas City, KS, which did the following in a 1955 renovation:

SWELL ORGAN

A new 2 foot Fifteenth and a new three rank Plein Jeu. He also moved the choir 8 foot Diapason inside the Swell in place of the Swell Diapason.

PEDAL ORGAN

The old Swell 8 foot Diapason was provided with a new wind chest and made playable in the pedal at 8 foot and 4 foot

CHOIR ORGAN

Installed the old 4 foot Fugara and added the wind chests and pipes for the 2/3 foot Nazard through Cymbel and also installed a new Swell engine.

GREAT ORGAN

Installed mechanism to make it possible to play the 16-foot Great Diapason also in the pedal.

The new pipe work installed by McMannus was from J. Stinkens in the Netherlands.

The Fort Street organ underwent major renovation and additions in the early 1990’s to repair the damages of time, which had made some of the stops unplayable, and to add some features including a 32-foot bass, which is installed transversely high behind the façade pipes.

Elder Robert Garvin, a mainstay of the organ renovation project, provided much of this information in a 2005 letter to Mr. Carl Zimmerman, nephew of Charles McMannus.

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