Pipe Organ Database

The first building for Concordia Lutheran Church was dedicated June 1850, and an organ soon followed. This building was razed and the present building dedicated February 1871, with the original organ moved to it. A new organ was installed in 1891 at a cost of $2,225.00. Examination of the present organ indicates that it was probably not new in 1891, but is largely from a much earlier instrument. Possibly it was a rebuild of the original organ. Certainly it was by the same builder. -- 1965 OHS Handbook

Updated through online information from Judy foreman.

Updated through on-line information from Russell Nance. -- I did some work on this tracker action in the 1970s. I fixed a few air leaks and put some new leather on the SW to GT couplers. I visited the organ in 1999 and discovered that the roof directly above the organ leaked and damaged the keydesk and chest. At present (2008) the organ is unplayable. The congregation has not used the main sanctuary since the 1970s and has no money for organ restoration. In my opinion the organ should be sold and removed form the building. I was told by a previous organist that the organ was built in 1871 for the then Trinity Lutheran Church (later to become Prince of Peace Lutheran). The organ was probably rebuilt in 1891. A few of the original drawbars have the word "Manual" instead of "Great."

Updated through online information from John Brombaugh. -- I worked on the Koehnken & Grimm organ at Prince of Peace Lutheran / Concordia Lutheran in Cincinnati in 1963 while still an employee at the Baldwin Piano Company, in the summer I was completing my MS in EE at Cornell and my first kid, our son was born in Cincinnati. I attended this church and knew the organist. The organ had trouble in its original Great Trumpet, which the organist said had not worked for about 40 years and it would be good if I could fix it. I cleaned up the shallots and tongues (removed the shallot leather, a terrible mistake on my part thinking it shouldn't be there!) and the Trumpet worked again. The organist seemed to have old church records showing that the organ was installed around 1860, with only one manual (Great) and Pedal. As you wrote in the present description, it was updated ca. 1891 by Grimm to its present state. It was working OK the last time I saw before moving my shop to Oregon in 1977. I don't have concrete verification for this information, but imagine it is pretty accurate because it fits well with the age of the church building and Koehnken's history.

Bldg was Concordia Lutheran. Uses older parts. Possibly rebuild of earlier Koehnken & Grimm from previous bldg.