Several Lewis pipe organs, with some recent exceptions (2006) have survived in various churches in and around Glasgow. Broomhill Trinity Congregational Church (now closed and undergoing redevelopment) had a 3-manual instrument, rebuilt by Lewis's Glasgow representative, Richard Smith. This organ has been removed by a firm from Birmingham, with the pipe work destined for China. The 2-manual Lewis organ at Queen's Park Parish Church (fomerly Strathbungo Queen's Park) was lost early in 2006, with its pipework having been removed by an architectural salvage company from down South. The remainder of the organ was scrapped. One of our younger GSO members, involved in organ-building, managed to salvage the ivory stop heads. Another 3-manual Lewis, originally from a house in Rhu, is in regular use at Jordanhill Parish Church. Although it has 3 manuals, the manual nearest the player is not a choir organ but an auxiliary keyboard used for coupling the Swell and the Great. Several 2-manual organs still survive, and these can be found at Eastwood Parish Church, St. Patrick's Catholic Church (rebuilt by Willis in 1939 and removed by Michael Macdonald, 2008), Hillhead Baptist Church (rebuilt by Andrew Watt), Shettleston Old Parish Church (rebuilt by Henry Hilsdon) and Stamperland Parish Church. The Stamperland instrument was transferred from a church in Dennistoun in 1964, by James Mackenzie. The Lewis organ at Kenmure Parish Church, Bishopbriggs, is out of use, its pedal board having been removed to make room for an Allan electronic organ.
The Lewis Organ at Community Central Hall One Lewis organ, which had been overlooked for several years, is the 3-manual instrument in the Reid Hall of Community Central Hall, Maryhill Road. This is a fine and impressive-looking instrument, in a Victorian pipe-rack design, with tracker action for the manuals, and charge pneumatic action for the draw stops, toe pistons and pedal organ. It was originally built in 1889 for Free St John's Church (later known as St. John's United Free Church), in George Street, and when the church closed in 1923, the organ was transferred and rebuilt by Henry Hilsdon at the new Methodist Central Hall, Maryhill.
On my first visit to try out the organ, in April 1996, nothing was available on the Great Organ, nor on the Pedal Organ. On the Swell Organ, the Clarionet was not sounding, while the Horn and Swell Super Octave were intermittent. On the Choir Organ, the only stop not speaking was the Dulciana, and some notes were missing from the Piccolo Harmonique. I then decided to consult someone with experience and knowledge of this organ, and was pointed in the direction of Gordon S. Frier, whose encyclopaedic knowledge gave some insight into the organ's history.
During 1969 the organ was professionally cleaned and overhauled by Glasgow organ builder, James MacKenzie. When the building ceased to be owned by the Methodist Church, it was taken over by Strathclyde Regional Council and converted into the Community Central Hall. Several years later, unsupervised youths gained access to the interior of the organ, with the result that the 2-rank Mixture on the Great, and the pneumatic tubing for the pedalboard had been taken. Several pipes(at least 18) were removed from the sound boards, and badly damaged. Before the theft and vandalism occurred, James Mackenzie would visit the organ periodically, to keep an eye on it. On discovering the loss and damage, he felt it was a waste of time to continue providing this free service. Not long after that, a fund raising initiative was launched, to help finance repairs and replacement pipes. However, interest in the scheme dwindled, and any money raised was ploughed into paying the annual insurance for the organ.
Later on, in the summer of 1996, the hall keeper showed me round the interior of the organ. I noticed a section of cylindrical ducting hanging down at an angle, severed at one end. It appeared that previously a temporary repair had become unstuck, if you pardon the pun. I unwound a yard of this tape, re-attached the pipe and made a fresh seal. This makeshift repair succeeded in bringing the Great Organ back into service for the time being. Everything was working, except that there was no Mixture. The Lieblich Gedact was missing its tenor C, and several notes were missing from the 2' Super Octave. I discovered that by coupling the Great to the Pedal, I could use the pedal board. As I was very much a beginner on the organ, although I had received piano lessons about 19 years previously, I took advantage of the fact that the organ could be used for practice. There was much evidence that the organ had been built to a high standard. I felt motivated to campaign for its restoration. After a preliminary meeting with Community Central Hall Project Administrator, Derek Iggo and Fabric Convenor, Mary Primrose, I volunteered to try and raise some interest in a restoration project. Various organisations were contacted, such as the BBC, the RSNO, the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, and the University of Glasgow, whose organ students might have benefitted from having access to such a fine organ.
