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The Organs – Introduction
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The instruments that are the main feature of this website have one thing in common; they were all designed by Emerson Lewis Richards (1884-1963). Richards was a native of Atlantic City and State Senator for Atlantic County. Although politics was his profession, pipe organs were his passion and pre-occupation. He described himself as an "Organ Architect" and, over the years, had some 80 articles published in organ journals, mainly The American Organist. As a result of his design ideas and the practical demonstrations thereof, his influence extended far beyond Atlantic City, and he has been described as "the Commander-in-Chief of the American Revolution in Organ Building".
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Four organs were designed by Richards for venues in Atlantic City: two for the Convention Hall; one for the High School; one for the Lodge of Elks (the last two are not dealt with on this site). All of these instruments, except the one for the Hall's Ballroom, were built by Midmer-Losh of Merrick, Long Island, New York. This was not one of the 'top' names in organ building but the stringent contracts that Richards drew-up ensured the firm's work for him was of the highest standard. Frankly, the Midmer-Losh name would probably have been long-forgotten were it not for the fact that the firm built the world's largest pipe organ.
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Richards' original design for that instrument, the Convention Hall's Main Auditorium organ, specified some 43,000 pipes but the scheme was too expensive. So, Richards scaled it down to just over 29,000 pipes. However, during construction, a number of the discarded stops were reinstated and some new ones were added, bringing the total to the present figure of 33,000-plus. For more information about this organ, click here.
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The High School scheme also underwent a number of changes. Its contract was signed at the end of 1922 and the instrument – with 73 ranks and almost 5,000 pipes – was completed the following year. Even at this stage, it was the largest organ ever built in a U.S. public school. However, it subsequently underwent three further stages of enlargement which resulted in a scheme of 121 ranks and over 8,000 pipes! With hindsight, it can be seen that the High School organ served as a test bed for some of Richards' design ideas which were later specified for the Convention Hall organ. The High School instrument is now in private ownership. For more information about this organ, click here. |
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Located above the Boardwalk Hall's main entrance and set at a right-angle to the Main Auditorium is the Ballroom. Measuring 181-feet long, 128-feet wide, and 75-feet high, it has a stage at the front (on the left, when viewed from the Boardwalk) and a balcony at the rear. The organ designed by Emerson Richards and built by W. W. Kimball (opus 7073) was completed at a cost of $47,550 in April, 1931. It is entirely enclosed in two chambers simply known as Left and Right, being at each side of the stage. The horseshoe console, with Accompaniment, Orchestral, Solo, and Bombard manuals (bottom to top), is located half way along a balcony on the inner side of the room. For more information about this organ, click here. |
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The Midmer-Losh and Kimball organs are in the care of Boardwalk Hall's Organ Curator, Carl Loeser. Work on them is overseen by the Historic Organ Restoration Committee (HORC), chaired by Curt Mangel. Both Loeser and Mangel have a wealth of experience, including extensive work on the giant Wanamaker organ in Philadelphia. ACCHOS and the HORC are both involved in fund-raising efforts. In 2008, the HORC appointed Stephen Smith as lifetime Honorary Curator of the Organs, in recognition of his work on their behalf.
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ATLANTIC CITY CONVENTION HALL ORGAN SOCIETY, INC.
1009 BAY RIDGE AVENUE PMB 108, ANNAPOLIS, MD 21403, U.S.A.
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© 2011 ACCHOS, Inc. Please read Copyright Notice
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