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1878 Sagar Organ

February 17, 2003
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In March 2000 two of my organ-builder friends independently sent me notice of the availability of a small English pipe organ, suggesting that it might be suitable for use in the chapel of Central Presbyterian Church. At the time, the organ was located in a private home near Grants Pass, Oregon. I contacted my friend there, Forrest Radley, an organ buff in the process of restoring an historic theatre organ at his home. Forrest kindly visited the organ in question and reported back. Over a period of many months Forrest continued to serve as a valuable link in this project.

 

Although the organ was of English origin, there was no nameplate to indicate the builder. Thanks to e-mail, I contacted organ historians in London. They kindly put me in touch with David Wood, organ builder, of Huddersfield, who assisted with the research and advised me of characteristics to look for in the instrument.

On April 8th my long-time friend Paul Swadener and I drove to Grants Pass and, with Forrest, went to inspect the organ, take pictures, and look for builder clues. This was our first meeting with the gracious owners, Carol and Gerald Betts. On the lead weights of the organ reservoir we found a reverse letter "S". David Wood soon verified the builder as Moses Sagar of Leeds. An inventory list confirmed that he had indeed built an organ for the Anglican Church of Thorp Arch. We still did not know the date of the organ, but we did realize it to be an historic instrument worthy of preservation.

Further investigation revealed that in 1952, after 70 plus years of service, the Thorp Arch Church prepared for a larger organ by selling the Sagar to the nearby East Keswick Methodist Church. Donor gifts there enabled renovation of the organ in 1967. The tubular action was partially converted to electro-pneumatic. At some point the F scale pedalboard was replaced with one of C scale, and five low Bourdon pipes were added at the back of the casework.

The Betts resided in England in 1986 where Gerald served as an engineer with Lockheed. One day he responded to an ad selling the Sagar organ in favor of a larger gallery organ for East Keswick. A hobbyist, Gerald took on the task of installing modern electrical contacts to replace what time and worms had destroyed of the earlier action. From 1988 to 2001 the Sagar kept residence with the Betts in their Grants Pass home.

Meanwhile the wheels turned slowly as the idea of acquiring the organ was presented at Central Presbyterian Church. Committees and the Session eventually approved the estimated cost of renovation and installation. Final incentive was the generous act of the Betts to donate the organ on condition that it would be renovated and used.

On February 13th, 2001, an enthusiastic crew of volunteers loaded the organ in a U-Haul truck for the drive to the shop of Hochhalter, Inc. near Salem, Oregon. This required careful packing of pipes and parts in trays. After an overnight stop in Eugene, the Sagar began a new life under the skilled hands of Lanny and Judy Hochhalter, who devoted more than 716 hours of meticulous work on the project. They also uncovered the Sagar Opus #355, which solved another mystery.

Every effort was made to retain the design integrity of the organ. The original slider chests and stop action remain. The original heavy lead Gedact pipes were stopped with corks 125 years ago. Only one had to be replaced. Instead of modern grill cloth, wood panels were fabricated behind the display pipes as the original design indicated. The mechanically operated swell shades were re-installed as originally built. All of the pipes were cleaned, which improved their quality of sound, but voicing was left unchanged. It was decided to leave the organ at its natural pitch of A442. One of the display pipes of the Open Diapason had to be restored to its original length and some dents were carefully removed. The entire façade was beautifully regilded. The original stencil design was probably removed long ago. Couplers for the Great and Swell to Pedal were restored after being discontinued in a previous renovation. Great amounts of old candle wax were removed from the inside of the organ--evidence of servicing the organ long before the time of electricity. The organ case of golden oak was cleaned and brought back to life with three coats of quality shellac. Happily the old beveled ivory keys have been retained. On the right side of the case can be seen worn slots where handles and gauges once provided for the organ pumper. In other places one can see indication of carved doodles likely left by some bored altar boy. The organ assuredly reflects 125 years of character and service.

With no nameplate on the organ, we again reached David Wood about finding a surviving Sagar organ from which we could get a picture. In the next village, Newton Kyme, a Sagar nameplate was photographed. Our engraver was able to replicate the lettering precisely and a legal ivory nameplate is now in place.

The date of the organ, still a missing fact, finally came to light in a letter from the church warden of Thorp Arch. A small historical brochure about the church noted that the organ had been installed in 1878.

Our next curiosity was attempting to ascertain how many of the more than 60 organs on the Sagar inventory yet remain. By modern times, many of the Sagar organs had been replaced or absorbed into larger instruments. At present, we know that original Sagar organs still exist at nearby Newton Kyme and Darley Methodist Church. Interestingly, builder Peter Wood & Son is concurrently restoring the Darley church organ. Our Sagar, with its original casework, hand-hewn bench, slider chests and pipework, is number three. Most certainly it is the only Sagar organ in America. Currently it is the oldest pipe organ in the Eugene area. In our building also lives the largest church organ in Eugene, a 49-rank Reuter of 1968.

Careful preparation of the chapel platform was required. Work was led by Leland Halberg, who had earlier refurbished the main chancel. An old railing was removed. Heavy plywood was securely anchored with wood screws. A layer of dark parquet flooring complements the wood of the organ and greatly improves the acoustics of the room. Old draperies were removed from the large window area along the south wall. A new wooden cross hangs above the historic communion table. The Rev. John Ewing crafted the cross from the old railing.

On May 23, 2001, our same eager volunteers trucked the organ from the shop in Salem to the chapel at Central. It had been carefully packed in small pieces to clear the narrow doorways of the chapel. Plywood over the pews enabled parts to be easily accessible. Assembly of the organ began immediately and continued over the next week. Blessing of the organ occurred at both services on Pentecost, June 3rd.

The organ is centered architecturally within the chapel arches. This allows it to speak clearly and evenly throughout the room. Doors on either side of the case open for easy accessibility during tuning and maintenance. It is esthetically pleasing to the eye and ear. The tonality is clean and clear, yet warm and mellow. In actual practice, various registrations support the singing of 75-100 in worship. Specifications of the organ include 6 ranks of pipes on slider chests, 2 manuals of 49 notes in F compass, 25-note radial pedalboard in C compass.

Great

                  8'             Diapason

                  8'             Gedact

                  4'             Principal

                                    Swell to Great

Swell

                  8'             Gamba

                  4'             Flute

                                    Octave Coupler

Pedal

                  16'          Bourdon

Couplers

                                    Swell to Pedal

                                    Great to Pedal

Tremulant with variable adjustment

Swell enclosed, mechanical foot control

Total original pipes 270, original pitch A442

 

Thorp Arch Church

Located on the River Wharf by a stone bridge separating it from Boston Spa is All Saints Anglican Church with its 15th-century Norman tower. In Yorkshire, near Wetherby, but situated between Leeds and York, the church actually dates prior to 670 AD. In 1871 the village numbered 368 souls. Three buildings have housed the church through the centuries, including its present Gothic design. The graveyard is adjacent. Inside the furnishings are by the noted woodcarver, Robert Thompson, who "signed" his work in 32 places with the emblem of a little mouse. The altar scene of the Last Supper was carved in Oberammergau, Germany. Moses Sagar built the organ in 1878. The tower bells were recast in 1937.

Moses Sagar

There exists little published information on Moses Sagar. He was one of many organ builders in Leeds during the Victorian era. He established his firm in 1861 and was on the cutting edge of technology introduced in Northern England by the noted builder Edmund Schulze. It was a time of transition from building traditional tracker action and Barker levers to the then new tubular pneumatic action. Sagar, for instance, retained slider chests and mechanical stop linkage. His work shows skilled craftsmanship and the ingenious ability to make the very best use of space. The slider chests are small and compact. No doubt some of this was influenced by limited space and budget constraints. However, quality materials and fine woods are evident. Cork stoppers were introduced in England in about 1870 and Sagar used them in this 1878 instrument. Most of the wooden pipes are thought to be of quality German pine.

For a time Sagar was in partnership with John Piper Radcliffe. By 1881 each man had sons who joined their fathers in separate firms. Sagar and sons Frederick, John, and Matthew continued the business until 1902. The Yorkshire Musician of October 1888 features Moses Sagar with many testimonials to his fine workmanship and custom services.

Additional information, pictures, and sound samples of the Sagar organ may be found on the computer website:

http://www.HochhalterOrgans.com

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