Please donate to the Wor. Stanley Locke Pipe Organ Fund to help restore and maintain our historic pipe organ.
Since the opening of the Arlington Masonic Temple in 1925, our Masonic Brethren have been moved by the music from our historic pipe organ, a rare Kimball, Smallman and Frazee model, and the Brothers who have played it. Our pipe organ has been evaluated by a number of specialists, and it’s in remarkably good condition for its age, but does need some maintenance to restore it to its original beauty. This is a summary of the recommended repairs:
- Some of the metal mitered pipes are broken and need to be repaired. The other mitered pipes should be supported so they don’t break.
- The main air ducts are made of cardboard and have broken. Replace them with PVC pipe.
- Rebuild or replace the tremolo unit, which is not currently functional.
- Replace both manual nuts
- Full tuning
The Arlington Masonic Temple Association has launched a fundraiser to pay for these repairs. The estimate for all of the above work is about $11,000. Any money raised beyond the repair cost will be held in an organ maintenance fund. Our long-term Organist Emeritus, the late Wor. Stanley Locke, bequeathed the Temple Association with the beginnings of a fund to help keep our pipe organ in good repair. With this fundraiser, we hope to add to the Stanley Locke Pipe Organ Fund so we can bring the organ back to its original condition and maintain it for our future Brethren.
All donors to this fundraiser will be recognized on a plaque to be installed near the organ.
- $1 – $99 “Perfect Ashlar” Donor
- $100 – 499 “Square & Compasses” Friend
- $500 – 999 “Trestle Board” Supporter
- $1000 – 2499 “Sprig of Acacia” Patron
- $2500 – and above “Grand Master Hiram Abiff” Benefactor
Please consider joining Wor. Locke in his dedication to preserving our beautiful pipe organ by making a donation to the Stanley Lock Pipe Organ Fund.
or with a check payable to “Arlington Masonic Temple Association”, with a note that it is for the Stanley Locke Pipe Organ Fund, given to Bro. Jon Hindmarsh or Bro. Ted Wilson.
What our organ needs to bring it back to its full glory:
Our building’s organ had a thorough diagnoses recently by RIchard Pelland of Pelland Organ Company and his assistant Eric, a professional church organist, seen in the video above. There are problems and most of them seem to stem from the 1924-25 installation of this 1914 organ that was originally built for a different building. Several pipes are broken and it would be less expensive to replace than to repair. The reason these pipes are broken is because they were mitered, and leaning at right angles. There is room to replace with new straight pipes that go all the way up. Dick took all the measurements. New zinc can replace the cardboard air tubes. The cardboard is finally failing after 100 yrs and Jon has crawled up twice now to repair with duck tape, once mid-ritual.
Pelland’s recommendations are:
- Enlarge the panel in the kitchen and add a tuning bench to allow access to all the pipes.
- Replace the broken Dulciana pipes 1-12 in laquered zinc per scale
- Replace the broken Aeoline pipes 1-12 in laquered zinc per scale
- Replace the tremolo box
- Replace cardboard wind lines with galvanized pipes
- Replace manual key nuts on both.
- Full tuning
- The cost of these repairs would be in the range of $15,000-=20,000.