The account of the Yarmouth organ referred to earlier (l) I have traced to the Church of England Magazine March l875 where the Revd. J.J.Westbrecht wrote,
"In l8l2 Mr George England (a grandson of Mr Jordan) repaired and enlarged the organ".
It was of course George Pike England who did the work and we saw that it was rather difficult to find how he could have been grandson to Jordan. It is I suppose just possible that George could have been grandson to the older Jordan but in default of further information we must assume another case of crossed wires.
The mystery man Glyn and Parker I have suggested (2) might really have been the Gwyn who did work at St Nicholas, Liverpool 1743 and Holy Trinity, Coventry in 1747. Going through the Sperling notebooks recently I saw that Leek was given as Parker and Gwynne 1770; (3) that his name was Thomas we find from repairs at Leeds Parish Church about 1743. This would link him with the second Richard Parker, if in fact there were two. (4)
Yet another Richard was working at Annapolis, Maryland, c.1760. (5)
I have a note that the business of Bridge's apprentice Thomas Parker of Grays Inn Lane, often confused with the Salford Richard Parker (were they related), and his son Joseph, was taken over by the Russells. Has anyone dates and de- tails? The Parkers were functioning at least till 1787 (Barnsley); (6) the Russells were at 28 Theobalds Road until at least l824, (7) but by l830 Hugh if noted as 2 Terrace, Grays Inn Lane - is that significant? By 1838, 2 Grays In] Terrace was ascribed to Timothy.
On the authority of J.W.Billinghurst, C.W.Pearce tells us (8) that the organ at St. Bartholomew the Great
"in 1865, when extensive restorations took place in the church" was re-moved to Russell's factory, where it was lost.' The church being closed for about six years, Russell d-ieci during thiis perriod,. and by advertence the organ was sold as part of his effects"
From this it has been assumed that Timothy Russell died between 1865 and l8?0, and that the organ was the old Bridge one.
E.A.Webb, however (9) tells us that
"The organ gallery ... was rebuilt on the site of the pulpitum in l624 and the gallery was also continued across the south transept ... In l864 the gallery was removed and the then organ (a second-hand one by Russell, recon- structed by R.H. South of Grays Inn Road) was sent to South for safe custody during the restoration of the church; but before the church was reopened South died intestate and the organ was sold as part of his effects".
What had happened to the Bridge organ?
Timothy's last organ was built in 1858 for St. Philip Arlington Square (any information welcome) and I have no tuning or repair dates for him after that. Two years later the firm of R. & H.SoJth comes into notice at 5 North Place, Grays Inn Road, (10) making organs (it) for St Michael Bassishaw 1860 and West Hackney 1866, and amongst their tuning and maintenance looking after St Mary Woolnoth 1864-6. (12) It would seem likely that Timothy died 1859 and the Souths took over, but so far no direct evidence is to hand.
Enquiries include Joachin Bey field working in Ireland 1730-32; A.Noble 1708 (possibly not an organ builder) whose pencil Graffito occurs inside a Cam- bridge organ; John Dresser of Birmingham Fl. l883» winner of medals at a Lichfield industrial exhibition; John Payment Rust Fl. 1850; and information about 'Large Snetzler chamber organ, mixtures, trumpet etc, Chinese Chippendale case* advertised for sale in Musical Times December 1967.
Dresser of Walsall - Wisemore House (13) - Made the organ at Alderley, Glos.; he moved to Perry Barr at some point, for in l882 he removed thence to Albert Road, Aston. (l4) He wrote a series of articles in The English Mechanic in l8?5 (a periodical which included much 'organical matter', to borrow a phrase from J.W.Warman) and according to the notes of J.T.Lightwood (present whereabouts unknown) and F.W.Haycraft (Organ Club Library) he exported a number of small organs of 3 to 6 stops to Australia. He has sometimes been confused with W. Drechsler who, at first with his partner Specht - both 'From ED.SCHULZE' - functioned in Askew Crescent, Shepherd's Bush (15) and is said to have 'Finished' the Anneessens organ at the Italian Church Hatton Garden.
Rust of Chelmsford built the organ at Croft, Herefordshire, 1856 and with his son Walter enlarged it 1858. They built organs at St Nicholas Chislehurst (rebuilt by Lewis and sold c.1900) and Ipswich Rope Walk Chapel; in 1865 added extra barrels to the Bevington at Bamston; and at the International Exhibition! In l862 Rust & Co. received a medal for improvements 'in the framing of pianos'*
Stop Press - Green and Savage, Smithfield, fl l878?
(1) Reporter III 1
(2) Musical Times August 1970
(3) Sperling II 265
(4) Sayer Renn 6l
(5) Ochse History of the Organ in the United States 35
(6) Buckingham's Diary Organ LVIII 125 Organ IX 1l4
(7) Pigot's Directory
(8) OLCC 18
(9) The Records of St Bartholomew the Great Vol 2 (1921) 49
(10) M.Standard 8 September l862 32.
(11) Pearce OLCC 215, NEO 100
(12) Vestry Minutes l84l-67
(13) Musical Times 1876
(14) Musical Opinion June l882
(15) Musical Opinion May, September, l886.
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