Our Band Organ's History
Fairground organs, or band organs, comprise some of the most colourful automatic musical instruments ever made. These instruments, loudly-voiced so they could be heard above the surrounding din, provided music for Carousels, carnivals, circuses, amusement parks, skating rinks, and similar attractions. The North Tonawanda band organs were sold primarily for use in skating rinks, which accounted for about 90% of the company's band organ business.

This particular model was made in two versions, identical in appearance: the Style 87, which used a pinned culinder as the music recording medium; and the Style 187, which used an endless paper roll. Most surviving North Tonawanda band organs have been coverted to paper rolls with either the Artizan or the Wurlitzer roll mechanisms. This was converted in 1929, probably at the Wurlitzer factory, to the Wurlitzer style 150 duplex roll system. The duplex system has two roll mechanisms, so arranged that when one reaches the end of its roll it automatically switches to the other roll player and rewinds the first roll. In this way the machine is capable of continous play.

The location of this organ from its manufactured by the Herschell Spillman Company in 1911 until 1945 is unknown. It was located at the Silver Beach Amusement Park in St. Joseph, Michigan from 1945 to 1972. Then it was owned by Gerry O'Reagan of Staten Island, New York, who sold it to Alan M. Gibson of Houston, Texas in 1983. It was acquired by Fritz Gellerman of DeLand, Florida in 1994. In the spring of 2001, Fritz Gellerman sold the band organ to Ben F. Donaldson II of St. Joseph, Michigan. In July 2001, Ben and his family donated the band organ to the Silver Beach Carousel Society, Inc.

Click Here To Have An Inside Look of the Band Organ

Band Organ Details

Make:               North Tonawanda Musical Instrument Works
                          North Tonawanda, New York

Model:              Military Band Organ No. 187
                          Serial Number 877

Year:                 1911

Pipes:               3 Trombones, 3 Open Basses, 3 Stopped Basses
                          3 Stopped Octave Basses, 15 Trumpets
                          18 Stopped and 9 Open Pipes in Accompaniment
                          16 Stopped and 16 Open Pipes in Melody
                          16 Violin Pipes, 16 Brass Clarionettes

Percussion:     Bass Drum
                           Cymbal
                           Snare Drum
                           Glokenspiel (added in 1996)

Owner:             Silver Beach Carousel Society, Inc.
                           P.O. Box 497
                           St. Joseph, MI 49085-0407
                           (269) 985-0090

Band Organ Facade Restoration Spring 2007
(Carousel Works, Mansfield, Ohio)



After Paint Stripping, The Original Shadowed Letters Appeared
for Manufacturer Herschell Spillman in North Tonawanda
(Carousel Works, Mansfield, Ohio)

Listen to band organ music
Click here for band organ music