The story of The Organ of Louth Town Hall is another tale worth retelling since it illustrates what a group of people with enthusiasm and tenacity was able to do when it was prepared to add dedication and hard work to these qualities.

Louth Town Hall

This photograph was provided by the NLTOPS

In 1970, the North Lincolnshire Theatre Organ Preservation Society (NLTOPS) was formed by a group of enthusiasts,  In 1972, the Organ of the Queens Hall Grimsby was to be removed from the cinema with plans to sell it as scrap.   The Organ was, to say the least, in a sorry state, since it had suffered markedly during the East Coast floods of the 1950s with both the Console and Pedal Board being totally destroyed.

A replacement Console belonging to a Compton Kinestra Organ (3-manuals, 10-ranks)  that had been installed at the Savoy Cinema Leyton in December 1928, was purchased.  The original Organ of the Queens Hall Grimsby had originally had an Illuminated Rainbow Style Console Case together with an Illuminated Seat.  The Surround had also been destroyed during the flooding although the Seat survived.  A replacement Surround once present with the Organ of the Ritz Cinema Huddersfield was found.   The Organ of the Ritz had been built by The Wurlitzer Organ Company and its Illuminated Console Case was the only one built with an Illuminated Seat.

Fortunately the contents of the Organ Chamber containing the original five ranks, percussions, traps, tremulants, regulators, relays and blower survived the deluge of 1953 and were removed and installed in the Town Hall.

The Members of The NLTOPS worked on Sundays and Monday evenings on the installation of the Organ in the Town Hall and after a year of dedicated hard work, the restored and renovated Organ was ready to be opened to the public.  This took place at a Dance in October 1975.  Since then the Organ has been played at a number of concerts each year featuring many of the top organists.

Interior of the The Louth Town Hall

These photographs were taken by Alex Smith and appear with permission

Since 1975, five additional ranks from various Organs around the country have been added to the Organ bringing the total number to 10 at present.  In addition, in 2005 the Console was replaced by the one from the Organ (3-manuals, 5-ranks and installed in September 1936 with an ABC Style Console Case) of the Ritz Barrow-in-Furness, which had been removed from the cinema in 1965 and put into storage.

The Organ of the Louth Town Hall

This photograph was provided by The NLTOPS

The Organ of the Louth Town Hall has now been playing and entertaining audiences for longer at the Town Hall  than it did in its original cinema building.  Let us hope that this situation will continue for many, many more years.

The Organ of the Louth Town Hall

These photographs were taken by Alex Smith and appear with permission

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS