Rhinestone Barton Under Water

Since the consoles of both the Paramount’s Wurlitzer and TCR (Iowa Theatre) Rhinestone Barton were damaged beyond repair in the flood of June 2008, CRATOS and CRBI (Cedar Rapids Barton, Inc) have engaged in joint efforts focused on the preservation and restoration of both consoles. Subsequent inspections of both installations have revealed varying levels of damage caused by the post-flood conditions of the buildings. With the Paramount restoration plans extending out several years the focus has been on bringing one of the two original installation theatre organs back through a careful restoration. The Rhinestone Barton has started its journey towards a full restoration, with some technological updates which will help ensure it continues to provide entertainment for generations to come.

CRBI has focused on the Rhinestone Barton restoration and funding plans, and after many months of meetings, inspections, proposals and interaction with state and federal agencies has been awarded the funding to fully repair and restore the organ. The Cedar Rapids Gazette published an update in the Sunday, Nov. 29, 2009. The article can be found here.

Paul Montague, president of CRBI, has provided additional details of the plan to restore the organ:

• The console of the Rhinestone Barton has been assessed and determined to be a complete loss, as it was submerged in grey water to the third manual.
• Residual moisture damage to the solo chamber was extensive, rusting all ferrous metal, hardening leather, and delaminating chest components.
• Cedar Rapids Barton, Inc., the non-profit corporation that owns the instrument, has worked with the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the State of Iowa, and Federal and State historians to develop a plan and secure funding for complete restoration of the instrument.
• Ken Crome of the Crome Organ Company in Reno, Nevada, has begun the construction of a replica console.
  • The console will be fitted with a Uniflex combination action.
  • On its return to Iowa, the printed fabric and rhinestone banding will be applied to the console restoring it to its original 1928 appearance. Ajram Importers of Cedar Rapids have located fabric that matches the original black covering.
  • The original pattern of glass glitter has been preserved, and will be applied to the fabric by Monroe Screen Printers.
    
• The contract for restoration of the contents of the solo chamber has been awarded to Weiler and Associates of Chicago.
  • Removal is to begin in January of 2010.
  • All components will be restored to their original condition.
• The Barton lift is being replaced by Theatre Cedar Rapids with a new scissors lift that will extend from the floor of the pit to stage level, greatly increasing the visibility of the console when it is raised to concert position.
• The total cost of the restoration project, funded by the FEMA, the NEH, and the State of Iowa is $240,000.
• All work is expected to be completed by spring of 2011.

The re-opening date for the theatre is not yet finalized.

More updates will be provided as details are released.

Fortunately this time the water was clean, but still damaging to an already flooded and closed building.  The City of Cedar Rapids has not yet made any decision on restoration of the theatre and the Mighty Wurlitzer theatre organ.  The building remains closed and under minimal maintenance for the winter until a decision can be made regarding the future of this priceless landmark building.

The Paramount’s Balaban 1A Wurlitzer console, severely damaged by the June 2008 flooding, has been in temporary storage since June 18th, 2008.  Getting the remaining console pieces into a climate controlled environment was key in preserving the remaining portions for future restoration work.

The Iowa (TCR) Rhinestone Barton was moved to a warehouse section of The History Center several weeks ago, awaiting the completion of preparations on the organ restoration room.  With the major preparations completed it was time to move both consoles into the same room for the first time ever.

RCRV and The History Center have worked steadily to convert the former 1940s car dealership building into the new headquarters for the console restorations of both instruments.  With original tin ceilings still largerly intact, a full showroom front on 2nd Avenue and 6th Street SE, air conditioning, and plenty of space, CRATOS and CRBI (Cedar Rapids Barton Incorporated) have a new, temporary home from which to launch the next chapter in the lives of both organs.

CRATOS and CRBI are grateful to The History Center, RCRV, and Mike Wilson for their efforts in securing and converting the new, temporary home for the organ consoles.  The next chapter in the fate of these incredible, unique instruments is about to begin!

The Barton console was damaged by the floodwaters, but the impact to the organ was not as visible and dramatic as the Paramount’s Wurlitzer.  The Barton console, hit with 4 feet of floodwater, remained standing on the 4-post Barton lift unlike it’s sister at the Paramount which was toppled over and tossed around, subjected to 8.5 feet of water and weakened significantly by the experience.

On Tuesday, July 15, 2008, CRATOS, CRBI, Theatre Cedar Rapids and Coonrod Crane Service staged a full blown rescue effort for the damaged console.   The console needed to come out in order for theatre repairs to continue.  With the stage already partially dismantled, the console was reinforced and secured in preparation for the removal.  Coonrod maneuvered a long-reaching crane through the stage door and lifted the organ into the air.  The volunteers onsite guided the console across the stage to a waiting platform.

With the console safely out of the theatre, it was lifted into the bed of a pickup truck and carefully taken to it’s new temporary home at The History Center.  CRATOS and CRBI are extremely thankful for the hard work of the volunteers and Coonrod.  Special thanks to  Jim White and The History Center for generously providing a space where evaluation and restoration activities can be undertaken, and to Mike Wilson and the Rockwell Retirees group for their encouragement and dedication to seeing the Barton console moved to it’s new home.

The recovery effort was made possible through a generous grant from the National Endowment of the Humanties (NEH).

With the permission of the City of Cedar Rapids, the Wurlitzer console’s remaining parts will be relocated to The History Center to join the Barton.  There the two will stay while fundraising, evaluation, restoration and recovery efforts are undertaken.

Photos of the Barton console recovery and other related items can be found in the CRATOS photo gallery.

CRATOS has been the official caretaker of the Paramount Theatre’s Mighty Wurlitzer organ since 1969. The City of Cedar Rapids, which owns both the Paramount and the Wurlitzer – a matching set since 1928, and now one of just 36 original installations still in existance – has consistently entrusted CRATOS with the task of ensuring the organ remains an inseperable part of the theatre and the community.

CRATOS is working with the City of Cedar Rapids on the next steps in the process of saving this magnificent piece of musical and cultural history. CRATOS is a non-profit organization which exists solely on membership fees and chartiable contributions from the public. Now, more than ever, CRATOS needs your help to ensure the organization can continue caring for the Mighty Wurlitzer theatre organ.

CRATOS is also working with Cedar Rapids Barton Inc (CRBI), which owns and maintains the incredible “Rhinestone Barton” organ at Theatre Cedar Rapids.  This unique example of 1927 Barton-Wangerin theatre organs experienced severe damage to its console during the flooding in Cedar Rapids and is currently awaiting removal from the theatre for a more thorough damage assessment.

How you can help:

Charitiable contributions made to CRATOS, a 501(c)3 non profit organization, will be applied to the CRATOS general fund, which supports the efforts to preserve and maintain both the Paramount Wurlitzer and the Rhinestone Barton.  Your generosity is greatly appreciated. Please help CRATOS in our efforts to save these cultural treasures of Cedar Rapids.  We look forward to the day when the theatres and the organs are once again heard and enjoyed by the public.

Donate Now

Online donations are available through a secure PayPal service.  Click on the “Donate” button on the right to complete your online donation.

You may also send a check to CRATOS via US Postal service at the following address:

The Cedar Rapids Area Theatre Organ Society
PO Box 611
Cedar Rapids, IA 52406-0611
US ]]> http://www.cr-atos.org/?feed=rss2&p=34 0 http://www.cr-atos.org/?p=22 http://www.cr-atos.org/?p=22#comments Sat, 21 Jun 2008 03:57:10 +0000 nmarple http://www.cr-atos.com/?p=22 In the midst of all of the activity over the past many days, we have been fortunate to have a significant amount of media interest in the story of the Paramount, and our Mighty Wurlitzer.

Local, state and national news organizations were onsite to spread the word of the danger the organ was in due to the flooding, and the efforts to pull the console from the theatre at the last minute as the stage became increasingly unstable.

Here are some of the many reports submitted:

June 17: CNN iReport by CRATOS

June 18: The Gazette (Cedar Rapids) and KCRG (Cedar Rapids) send reporters, photographers, and video crews onsite to document the incredible efforts underway by CRATOS, Paramount theatre management, Coonrod and Altorfer to save the console.

June 18: CNN follow-up on iReport with a live on-scene interview (wait for it).

June 19: The Gazette’s Adam Bell’s report for the print edition of the paper, with some positive updates to the story.

These reports, and the follow-up reports that will document and publicize the activities CRATOS, Paramount management, and the City of Cedar Rapids now undertakes in saving or reconstructing the console, and the efforts still needed in the pipe chambers, will help keep this magnificent organ and theatre in the spotlight.

Please send any links to other related reports you’ve found to: cratos.info@gmail.com

If you have stories of the Paramount, the Wurlitzer, and the former Iowa Theatre and the Rhinestone Barton, please send them along and we’ll publish them in a special section on our site.

Opening on Saturday, September 1st, 1928, the Capitol Theatre was part of the Publix/Balaban & Katz chain of theatres. The Capitol opened with great fluorish, heralded by fireworks and airplanes which dropped prizes in the vicinity of the theatre.

The Rudolph Wurlitzer Company of North Tonawanda, New York, was the quintessential and by far the largest manufacturer of theatre pipe organs.  “Wurlitzer” became both a household word and a generic term for theatre organs.

The Capitol’s Wurlitzer was shipped from the facrory on July 16, 1928. It was the first in a series of “special” Wurlitzers designed specifically for the Balaban & Katz theatre chain. It is listed as style “Balaban 1A”.

After a few years, Paramount bought out the Balaban & Katz chain, and the theatre became the Paramount.

The console is the most visible part of the organ. The 3/12 (three keyboard, twelve rank) organ houses over 900 pipes in two chambers, the “Main” on the left, and the “Solo” on the right, that produce a wonderous sound.

It’s ready for you– This Palace of Splendor with its acre of seats. The rare paintings are hung, the sculptures are in place, the deep carpet is waiting for the tread of thousands who will come to marvel at the countless wonders!…The Cedar Rapids Evening Gazette and Republican, 1928.

We are deeply saddened to report that the console did not survive the flood intact.  Altorfer and Coonrod Crane Service volunteers rushed to the aid of the CRATOS team to help pull the console free from the edge of the stage and organ lift.  The strain of movement, water, time, and exposure to extreme conditions was simply too much.  Our beautiful Balaban 1A console, a fixture of the Paramount Theatre since 1928 made it into the sunlight for the first time in 80 years, holding together until the very end.

CRATOS members onsite worked to salvage any major components from the console.  The keydesk, top, stoprail, all stop tabs, pedal board, and bench were all retrieved along with several pieces of ornate woodwork and the original Wurlitzer faceplates.  The remaining portions of the console are in temporary storage while decisions can be made and funding secured to rebuild or replace the console.

Following the efforts to save the console, the CRATOS members onsite entered the upper levels of the Paramount to inspect the Main pipe chamber.  We were very encouraged to see that no water had entered this chamber – which we have to assume for the time being is the same as in the Solo chamber which is not easily accessible at this time.  The temperature was a cool 70 degress, and much lower humidity than expected.  The water line is approximately 1 ft under the floor of the chamber.

Despite the damage to the console, the condition of the pipe chambers is very encouraging, and gives us renewed hope that the organ will once again play in its original home.  I will take time, talent, and the generosity of the community to bring this priceless instrument back to life.
Updated photos are in our gallery.