Coddington All Saints

Organ

The small pipe organ is in a deal case. The pipes and case are undecorated – the keyboard lid has two iron strap clasps. The organ was initially hand pumped – older villagers still recall being paid 6d as a child for pumping the organ during a service.

The rear of the organ case in the vestry rooms has a large amount of (charmingly innocent) graffiti made by former choir boys in the middle of the 20th century.

The 1865 plans show the position of the organ to have changed from that initially envisaged. The newspaper report of the church’s re-opening gives details of the music at the services, referring to the new organist Mr Dalgleish and the new organ, recently built for the church by Messrs Bevington. For the occasion, Mr Dalgleish of Newark had drilled the choir to “chaunt the psalms” for the first time.

An invoice exists for £257 5s from Bevington & Sons for an organ or works upon an organ. We don’t know how this relates to the instrument used in 1865.

The current organ has an inscription ‘Laus Deo’. It was the gift of James Thorpe, as recorded on the brass plate nearby (some of the font is hard to decipher):

This organ was presented to All Saints Coddington by James Thorpe Esq, High Sherrif of Nottinghamshire. 1872.
As a thank offering for the recovery of HRH the Prince of Wales from grievous sickness

(In 1872, after being at death’s door for several days Albert Edward, Prince of Wales recovered from typhoid, almost 10 years after the disease had claimed the life of his father Albert.)