The theater pipe organ being installed in the Strand Theatre was built by the Louisville Pipe Organ Company.   This instrument, endowed by the Shelby County Historical Society, is a very rare instrument.   Louisville Pipe Organ Company (LPO) built very few organs.   Many instruments were installed in Northern Kentucky and South-Central Indiana.

The Strand project will require as much original LPO equipment to maintain its historical accuracy.   In keeping with this goal, any remaining LPO organs or pieces have been located and acquired for the project.

The most recent acquisition was from Mr. Tim Pietrosky.   He had the LPO that was installed at the old Trinity Lutheran Church located on the near east-side of Indianapolis.   When the church relocated to farther east, the organ was sold and removed.   The organ was a 9 rank LPO.   The original location of the organ is still unknown.   It could have been built for the church, or moved to the church from a theatre.    These are details that will take research to find the answer.

The Strand has the Opus List (build list) of LPO for theatre organs only, we do not have a copy of the complete Opus List.   Mr. Jeff Weiller of Chicago is assisting the Strand in located the complete list.

On Sunday July 11, 2010, the Strand Organ crew traveled to Indianapolis to move the remaining pieces of the Trinity Lutheran Organ.   Strand Volunteers Steve Frazee, Don Clapp, Jim Hawkins, Bob Schlick, Elizabeth Finkel and David Finkel loaded, transported and palletized the items for storage in Shelbyville.

This instrument has 9 ranks:

• Tibia
• Diapason
• Vox Humana
• Cello
• Celeste
• Oboe Horn
• Tuba
• Flute
• Dulciana

All the chest work is complete.   The organ had three tremulants (and three regulators).    The organ components and pipework will be completely inventoried in the weeks to come by Kurt Schakel.   Once the inventory is complete we will be able to try to locate any missing items.    The organ did not have a console, relay, shades or original blower.

On a side note, the LPO console from this instrument was removed when it was installed in the church.   A replacement Reisner console was put on the organ.   When the organ was removed from the church, the console was installed on the Sanborn organ at the Central United Methodist Church, now known as the Old Centrum.    Strand friends, Indiana Landmarks, have recently acquired this building, and the Sanborn is being refurbished by Goulding & Wood, Inc. of Indianapolis, Indiana.

Below are pictures of yet another LPO being moved to Shelbyville: