[Pink Flamingo]

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1909 Aeolian Company piece sold by Hegewisch (IN) woman to Florida collector

The antiques broker told Linda Moll she would never be able to sell her father's pipe organ.

Custom-built in 1909 by the Aeolian Company of New York for Chicago hardware magnate Richard T. Crane's Millionaires Row mansion on South Michigan Avenue, the organ -- with its dual consoles, hand-carved cabinetry and more than 1,200 pipes -- weighed in at better than two tons.

But last month, the one-of-a-kind musical instrument departed for restoration and a new home in Jacksonville, Fla.

"I think my dad originally planned to add a larger banquet hall to the restaurant and install it there," Moll said.

Her parents, George and Wanda Moll, operated neighborhood favorite Moll's Restaurant until their retirement in 1983.

Crane died in 1931, and George Moll purchased the organ from the Crane estate just prior to the Michigan Avenue mansion's demolition in 1957. But the daunting task of reassembly eluded him through the end of his life.

Then Bill White, a Florida boatwright and restoration enthusiast, saw the "for sale" notice on the Internet.

"This was not a stock musical instrument," White said. "It was built specifically for the Crane concert hall. I had to have it."

Easier said than done.

Parts to the organ filled much of the restaurant's garage and second floor, and the keyboard consoles were sealed inside the restaurant's walls.

Trucker Donald Cobb -- with a team of movers -- filled a 45-foot trailer with organ pieces in November -- and ran out of room. He came back after Christmas to finish the job.

"I hope this is the last I ever see of this thing," Cobb said.

White, on the other hand, said he was excited about getting his new find home to Florida.

"It's all here: the chimes, the player piano, even the original bench," he said.

And though White expects it will be at least a year until he can unpack the pipe organ and get to work -- "I've got two antique Jaguars to restore first," he said -- the Aeolian is his "new baby."

http://nwitimes.com/articles/2005/01/10/news/illiana/935a5f4f50cd6cf986256f85000a6e4d.txt

This story just made me smile. I love knowing there are still people who are willing to restore wonderful old items.

[SmartAZ]

There are a lot of old things here and there, and when you see one it's like a dream. I drove down from Tahoe to San Francisco and stopped at a gas station along the way. Next door was ... something, I don't even remember what it looked like. But inside was a display of early juke boxes. Not record players, but coin operated robot musical instruments. One that especially impressed me was a violin with rubber wheels to bow the strings and steel fingers to stop the notes. It had not been restored, but seemed to be complete. And I can't even remember where I was except for what I have recorded here.

Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Vista, CA used to have (maybe still does) a gallery of operating antique music boxes. The biggest had a steel disc 3' wide with several tunes punched in it. They all took nickels.

[Chills]

Interesting...would love to see the organ and the old musical gadgets...

Never get tired of those things.

I use to work years back part time as a security guard.... at a ship yard that had its own foundary etc... spent most of my shift just going through the templates.... for the molds they cast... stuff went back to the mid to late 19th century... and was still there...really neat stuff...

[FireDance]

Poor antique dealer. He just doesn't realize there's an whole "other world" out there when it comes to music and instruments.

I know someone here in town that would have loved to have had that organ. His wife would have killed him, but I'm sure that would have just been a nuisance kind of thing.

There's a guitar teacher I know that can't stay off of Ebay. He repairs instruments and gets some of the most interesting things into his shop because of this hobby. Most of the things he has are instruments from the far east. One of the flute teachers was "icked out" when he told her about some instrument a Geisha girl would have used. "Wouldn't it be neat if it could talk" he said. She didn't actually think so - haha. One day I would like to corner him and ask him to tell me about his collection. Usually though he's very busy giving lessons to pay for all these things. I would dearly LOVE to see what he has in his house! I'm sure that what I've seen are only smatterings. :sigh: I love antiques!