Schuelke Organ Company

The Schuelke Organ Company was a Milwaukee, Wisconsin-based pipe organ builder. Schuelke Organs operated in the later 19th and early 20th centuries.

William Schuelke (born April 13, 1849 in Konitz, West Prussia as Wilhelm Schülke; died 1902) was a Prussian immigrant who came to the United States in 1866.[1] Schuelke's contributions to organ building included inventing the electric motor powered bellows crank, for which he received a patent. This was a major improvement over existing hand-cranked bellows.

The Schuelke Organ Company ceased operations in the early 20th century. Today, few of the organs his company produced exist intact.

A yearly free organ recital is held at Saint Francis of Assisi Catholic Church, Milwaukee on the first Sunday of November to showcase its 1885 Schuelke pipe organ.

Locations with a Schuelke organ

References

  1. ^ Schuelke, William. In: Douglas Earl Bush, Richard Kassel: The Organ: An Encyclopedia. Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, New York/NY 2006, ISBN 978-0-415-94174-7, p. 499 ff. (Google Books)
  • "Schuelke organs in the Organ Historical Society Database".
  • "Recording and program of an event on the New Vienna organ".
  • "Schuelke Organ at St. Mary's, Remsen Iowa, rebuilt by Dobson Organ Co".