No one, in the long history of organ building, can have been the subject of more criticism, or more praise, than Robert Hope-Jones. The controversy which started more than eighty years ago, continues to this day, at times to a fanatical degree, for there are people who almost kneel in prayer at the mere mention of his name! But some of you may ask “Who was Robert Hope-Jones?” The brief answer is that he was the inspiration for what some people would consider to be America’s finest product - the Mighty Wurlitzer. But one might add, with justifiable pride, that he was an Englishman, from the County of Cheshire, the very county where one of the very best examples of the Wurlitzer Theatre Organ is now installed. Hope-Jones was born on 9th February, 1859, in a village called Hooton Grange, which is on the Wirral, almost half-way along the Birkenhead to Chester road.
An appointment as chief electrician with the Lancashire and Cheshire Telephone Company allowed Hope-Jones’ inventive genius to come to light, and it was as a result of his experience with low voltage electrical circuits that he began to consider their application to the church organ.
It was this work that produced a continuous flow of Patents,
typical of these was the patent for the well know Diaphone, originally numbered
21,414 in 1894, this leading to a further patent number 21,558 in 1895 of
improvements, to be followed in 1897 by patent number 21,389 for a foghorn for
use in lighthouses and still used today.
In 1903 an incident occurred which resulted in Hope-Jones and his wife quickly packing their bags and boarding a ship for America, where news of his revolutionary methods of organ building had already reached the ears of several American firms.
Eventually, Robert Hope-Jones sold his patents, name and goodwill, to a manufacturing company named Wurlitzer, in North Tonawanda. In its many years of existence, this company had produced all manner of musical instruments, including automatic organs of the orchestrion and band type, and they saw the Hope-Jones organ as something to further their production line, and thus was created the Wurlitzer Theatre Organ.
The Lancastrian Theatre Organ Trust, have created an Hope-Jones Display at the rear of the chambers in Stockport Town Hall, the photographs below show the first two show cases containing Hope-Jones artifacts.
Also the Trust has created the Worlds First Hope-Jones Museum on Alexandra Road Peel Green Eccles, This is situated just off the M60 Manchester Ring road at Junction11. See:- "The New Theatre Organ Heritage Centre" link on the index page of this web site.
Left, the typical Hope-Jones console of the organ in Hanover Square London, Installed 1896.
Employee's of Bensons Organ Builders, Manchester. After 1890 Bensons moved to
City Road Old Trafford, a move of only a few hundred yards. Up to 1890 George
Bensons Organ Builders shared a factory with Henry Royce - of Rolls Royce fame
- in Blake Street, Hulme in Manchester. Henry Royce was an electrical engineer
at the time and manufactured many electrical organ control parts for
Hope-Jones.
The photograph (right) was taken sometime early in 1890 so its not certain
if the picture was taken outside the factory in Cooke Street or at the new
premises in City Road Old Trafford.
(Can't see a smile anywhere).
The person kneeling at bottom right is Albert Lloyd who applied for a job to Hope-Jones organ company and worked for Hope-Jones both in Uk and in the USA.
Many organ builders did work under contract from Robert Hope-Jones and the following letter is typical of the interest taken by many organ builders:-
City Road ,
Manchester, March 7th 1891
Mr Robt. Hope-Jones
Dear Sir, Before we, in company with several very critical friends, recently inspected your system of Electrical Pneumatic Action, as applied to the organ in St. John's Church, Birkenhead, we felt some doubt as to its efficiency, from the fact that all previous attempts to use Electricity by others had signally failed, i.e., judged from a practical standpoint. However, after fully testing your specimen all our doubts were scattered. Its simplicity is its charm, and everything, we were informed, had worked with precision ever since you had introduced it into the above organ, now extending over a period of three years. The stop arrangement reflects great credit upon your inventive genius, and we hesitate not to say that your clever system will ere long be more generally adopted, as it deserves to be. For space saving and awkward positions it will be invaluable, and whenever possible we shall introduce it.
Wishing you every success, Your truly etc.
If anyone has smallish Hope-Jones items they wish to donate to the Hope-Jones
Museum please email
Don Hyde,Chairman, The Lancastrian Theatre
Organ Trust.
Go
back to top of page
