Restoration of World's Largest Pipe Organ

I live about a half-hour from Atlantic City so I am no stranger to the boardwalk, the ocean, the beach, the casinos, and Boardwalk Convention Hall. The official name that is being used now is Boardwalk Hall Arena as there is another convention center in Atlantic City but it is not on the boardwalk. A few years back I was aware of an early effort to restore the world's largest pipe organ at Convention Hall on the Boardwalk. So this July my friend and I had a chance for an extended tour and musical presentation of the Midmer-Losh Organ by the sea. This tour gave us a chance to go deep into the interior caverns where the pipes and the electrical wiring is held. We also visited an old prop room back stage where the staff holes up when they do their restoration work.

   

Organ music has always been one of my favorites but learning about how the pipe organ works is overwhelming.   I think one would need a college course to get a handle on all the terms, and the electrical and mechanical basics that bring the organ to life.   A new charitable designation to fund the project allows a staff to work on the restoration. The Casino Reinvestment Development Authority or CRDA will double your contribution to the restoration efforts.   In my opinion, this is the best thing that the group ever did for Atlantic City. The pipes were being fitted with new strong kangaroo leather. Bent pipes were being straightened and pipes were being adjusted for pitch.  I was the one that asked about the old Wanamaker's organ in Philadelphia's Macy's Department store.  I found out that the organ there in Macy's is listed as the largest working organ in the world but after these restorations, the Atlantic City organ will have a few more features that will beat out the organ in Philadelphia. How about that?..... I am bookended between two of the greatest pipe organs in the whole world!  The Hall holds about 150 tons of equipment for the organ. There are about 33,000 pipes with one diapason pipe that is 64 feet long.  A hurricane back in 1944 was the beginning of the decline of the organ.  There were building renovations that totally ignored the functioning of the organ and some of the pipes are sealed off in inaccessible areas that make the restoration even more difficult.

 

Here is Scott D. Banks the outreach tour guide showing us the portable console organ near the entrance of the hall: 

Vintage photos:

  

Vintage electrical wiring that was cloth bound and dipped in wax:

Beautiful ceiling window in Boardwalk Hall:

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