History of the Estey Pipe Organ Opus 1429

Organ Console. Photo by Eileen G Fitzsimons, from The Bee
Organ Console. Photo by Eileen G Fitzsimons, from The Bee

In 1916 the Estey Pipe Organ Opus 1429 was installed in the Portland home of Dr. John J. Sellwood.  According to an article written by Eileen G. Fitzsimons and published in 2013 in The Bee (Pamplin Media Group in Portland), Dr. Sellwood was a highly respected doctor specializing in surgery and maternity cases, and a workaholic.  He was also an accomplished musician, and would entertain the neighborhood by playing both classical and sacred music on his organ by opening the large double doors between his parlor and the street.

Dr. Sellwood sold his house after his wife’s death in 1938, and at some point the organ was sold to the Guenther Organ Company, who installed and maintained organs throughout the Pacific Northwest, and who may have been the original installers of this organ.  Roman Guenther knew that the new Trinity Lutheran Church in Astoria was looking for an organ.  He shipped the pipe organ down-river to Astoria and installed it in the church.  The organ was first played in this church on Christmas day, 1938.

organ pipes in NE pipe room
NE organ pipe room

An interesting discussion of the organ and the adjustments necessary to adapt it from its original use in a residence to the more open spaces of a church can be found in Eileen G. Fitzsimons’ 2013 article in The Bee.  This article is also the source of the above information.

In 1974 Trinity Lutheran combined with another Lutheran Church in Astoria, forming Peace Lutheran Church, and sold the building to the Clatsop Community College to be used as a performing arts center, classrooms, and offices.  For the next approximately 35 years the organ was seldom used.

In the early 2010s, at the invitation of Astoria residents and musicians Denise Reed and Constance Waisanen,  Jason Neumann-Grable, a Hillsboro resident who repairs organs, was contracted to assess the repair needs and bring the organ back to performance-ready status.  In 2012 the first performance in 38 years was held as the first step in raising the funds needed.  The following year over $10,000 was raised to partially repair the organ.

view from the auditorium
view from the auditorium

In 2013 Newmann-Grable estimated that replacing the organ would cost about $250,000;  he indicated that in 1939 it was valued at $40,000.  The money raised was used to repair parts of the organ.  From the Daily Astorian in September 2013:

    • The organ, which [Newmann-Grable] said has a pitch range of 32 to 8,000 hertz, is powered by a blower in the bottom level of the PAC. The blower produces air, sending it to the wind chests below more than 1,000 pipes crowding two of the PAC’s upper chambers above the main stage. A series of wires connects the chambers with the console, where the organ is played.
    • “They’re pretty easy to play,” he said sarcastically. “You just have to divide your brain into three pieces.”

In 2019 the organ was evaluated by Lanny Hochhalter, a member of the American Institute of Organbuilders.  His assessment was that there remains a great deal of repair and replacement needed to fully restore the organ and all of its “voices”.    He states:

    • The organ was originally operated via tubular-pneumatic action. In the Sellwood residence the console was very close to the pipes and lead pneumatic tubes from the keyboards transmitted air to the mechanisms which in turn actuated the pipes. When the organ was moved to Astoria by Roman Guenther, the lead tubes were replaced with electric mechanisms, but the console pneumatics remained.

There is a great deal of work needed to bring the organ back to full functioning.

organ pipes closeup
Some of the organ pipes are metal, some are wood.

But it is still operational, and the music it can make is very beautiful.  Come to the Performing Arts Center for the next organ recital, and hear Dr. Sellwood’s wonderful over 100-year-old Estey Opus 1429 Pipe Organ!

For upcoming events featuring the organ, go to this page: partnersforthepac.org/PAC Partner/estey-organ/ or look at the event listing on the home page.

Click on any of the photos to see a larger version.  Look at the printing at the base of the closeup here!

To help with the restoration of the organ, please contact the Partners at info@PartnersForThePAC.org

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