St John's Anglican Church, Albany: exterior
[Photograph by Trevor Bunning (14 April 2012)]
St John's Anglican Church, Albany: exterior
[Photograph by Trevor Bunning (14 April 2012)]
Historical and Technical Documentation by Patrick Elms and Colin van der Lecq
© OHTA 2012 (last updated May 2012)
St John's Anglican Church in Albany holds the honour of being the first church consecrated in Western Australia, in a ceremony conducted by Bishop Short of Adelaide on 25 October 1848. Initially built by townsfolk and completed in 1844, the church's square tower was added in 1851 by soldiers stationed there.1 When complete, the church could seat the entire population of the town – 170 people. The choir and sanctuary were added in the mid-20th century. The building of the rectory behind the church was begun in 1850 and features walls of "cob", a traditional mixture of clay, marl, chalk, gravel and straw 45 cm thick. The second floor, of brick, was added in 1875.
St John's Anglican Church, Albany: organ
[Photograph by Trevor Bunning (14 April 2012)]
The organ was built in 1891 by Hill & Son, London, the firm's job number 2072. An electric blower was added c.1941 by Frederick Hufner. The hand pumping mechanism and feeders were removed at some point and the bellows converted to single-rise operation.
The organ was restored in 1976 by Paul Hufner without alteration, except that the flat and straight pedal board was replaced with a new concave and radiating one. A new blower was installed by F.J. Larner and Co in 1990. The bellows were re-leathered and returned to double rise operation by Patrick Elms & Co in 1998.2
St John's Anglican Church, Albany: console
[Photograph by Trevor Bunning (14 April 2012)]
| MANUAL Open Diapason Gedeckt Dulciana Principal Suabe Flute Fifteenth PEDAL Pulldowns |
8FT 8FT 8FT 4FT 4FT 2FT |
Compass: 56/30
Mechanical key and stop action
Spotted metal pipework above 4ft3
A comprehensive list of hand pumpers dating back to 1891 is recorded (in their own hand) on the back panels and framework of the organ.
St John's Anglican Church, Albany: interior looking to altar – organ to the right
[Photograph by Trevor Bunning (14 April 2012)]
St John's Anglican Church, Alban : left-hand stop jamb
[Photograph by Trevor Bunning (14 April 2012)]
St John's Anglican Church, Albany: right-hand stop jamb
[Photograph by Trevor Bunning (14 April 2012)]
St John's Anglican Church, Albany: Hill & Son nameplate
[Photograph by Trevor Bunning (14 April 2012)]
1 Robert Elms conversation with Mr D.F. Bird, 23 Beauchamp Street, Albany, whose family was one of the pioneers and who is an authority on the history of Albany. Conversation held on Tuesday 21 February 2012
2 Website: http://www.oswa.org.au/WAOrgans/AlbanyStJohn.html accessed 26 February 2012
3 Specification noted by Patrick Elms