William C. S. Seeley
1869 ca.

From The Victoria Daily Times (December 1, 1923): "This instrument has a history which is probably unparalleled in Christendom. Built in Europe, it was, after a four months' voyage around the Horn, installed in the Anglican Church on Blanchard Street hill [Christ Church]. After several years' use there, it was, one day in October, 1869, rescued from the fire, by two priests who were among the first to notice the flames issuing from that house of worship. Breaking open the doors and rushing forward to save whatever they could, their attention was drawn to the still undamaged organ. They tore it apart and carried the pieces to a safe distance. A certain Mr. Seeley, favourably known in Victoria, was by trade an organ builder, though he then ran the Australian Hotel, near the place now occupied by the Empress Hotel. He bought the parts just as they lay piled, a few days after the fire. Some parts were lost and other ruined, but, in course of time, missing parts were received from England, and, to the surprise of everybody, Mr. Seeley had the wrecked organ in what he complacently stated was 'better condition than before the fire.' He kept it in the main room of the hotel, near the bar, where it became a great attraction for the many marines and noisy pleasure seekers. Everybody was welcome to play on it."

From The Victoria Daily Times (September 17, 1940): "The story began with Mr. Renworth's grandfather, W. C. S. Seeley, choirmaster and organist at Durham Cathedral [sic?], England, who, 94 years ago, sailed from England, and by way of Cape Horn, arrived in a Victoria of log cabins and palisades in 1848. It was his intention to follow his trade as an organ builder in this pioneer settlement. However, in those times, Victoria was only an outpost in the western wilds, and pipe organs not being in demand, he accepted the managership of the Marine Hospital, which had just been erected. A year after his arrival, the Hudson's Bay Company made Victoria its headquarters, and soon, with added news of gold in the Cariboo, the town mushroomed into a small city. With additional size and population, came additional culture, so in the early sixties Mr. Seeley left his job, and built the Australian Hotel on the corner of Humboldt and Government Streets. From then, until his death in 1888, he installed every organ in every church in Victoria, including the instrument in the old Christ Church Cathedral, which burned to the ground in 1869. The only salvages from the fire were parts of the organ given to Mr. Seeley, when a local philanthropist donated another to the church. From the remains, Mr. Renworth's grandfather built in his home an entirely new instrument, sending from England for the missing parts, but constructing the pipes, himself, from California redwood."