MOVING DAY for the wonderful Wurlitzer Style 30A PianOrchestra with a great known history from it's very first day 119 years ago!
It was disassembled by the Mills Novelty staff of experts, carefully packed for its journey across the USA, and reassembled in a prominent collection. From start to finish, Mills Novelty helped to be sure this treasure received the best care possible. Tune up and adjustments along with the normal cleaning and assembly brought the 30A back to peak performance! It now entertains hundreds of visitors with its large musical library of melodies from the past and present.
Sometime before 1910 this Mandolin PianOrchestra was acquired for about $3000 by the Curtin Hotel in Auburn, New York. After a number of years of service in Auburn, it was purchased by Mr. Fred Volkman and moved to the Volkman hotel in nearby Skaneateles Junction, N.Y. In the 1950's Mr. Larry Givens of Wexford, Penn. rediscovered the 30A in a long-abandoned ballroom in the same hotel building. It was subsequently acquired by Mr. Terry Hathaway of Santa Fe Springs, California, and a painstaking restoration resulted in ragtime tunes and other melodies of a long-gone age to delight still another generation.
Mr. Hathaway sold it to Mr. Al Neilson of Berkley, California in the early 1970's. Later it became part of the Michael Ames collection in Solana Beach, California until its sale this year. There are only three examples of this big Wurlitzer known to still survive today. We at Mills Novelty are proud to have help with two of the three!
The beautiful original fumed oak cabinet, with its beveled glass, decals, original leaded glass panels, amazing multi-roll changer system, drums, etc., make it a very exceptional example of fine craftsmanship from over 100 years ago!
A period original catalog listed the 30A as: 30 piccolo pipes, 19 violas, 30 violoncellos, bass and snare drums, 13 note metal chimes, 30 violins, 37 flutes, 30 note wood xylophone, kettle drum, cymbal, triangle, castanets and tambourine! The large multi roll changer can play for hours without repeats of the same song.
Only interior lights to enhance the appearance have been added.
Moving requires complete disassembly of the interior parts.
It also helps to have "equipment" as this monster weights in at over 3000 lbs!
Careful pipework crating, and labeling insures everything is replaced correctly at the other end!
We hope you will be sure to see and hear this GREAT WURLITZER along with Mr. Wurlitzer's personal Wurlitzer Theatre pipe organ when you visit the Stahl Collection in Chesterfield, Michigan. Its worth the trip! Thank you Mr. Stahl, and museum staff for allowing Mills Novelty to help with your very special projects.