Lewis & Co

Lewis and Company was an important firm of organ builders founded by Thomas Christopher Lewis (1833-1915), one of the leading organ builders of late 19th Century Britain.^[1]

Lewis Organ in St Paul's Melbourne

Lewis Organ in Glasgow's Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum

Born in London in 1833, the son of Thomas Archdeacon Lewis (1780-1862), a secretary to Charles Blomfield, Bishop of London. Although trained as an architect, Lewis founded a firm of organ builders with John Tunstall and John Whitacker in about 1860. In 1866, the firm moved into premises in Shepherds Lane (now Ferndale Road), Brixton. Under Lewis's direction, the firm built instruments ranging from small chamber organs to major cathedral and concert organs. Lewis was strongly inspired by the organs built in Germany by Edmund Schulze and in France by Aristide Cavaillé-Coll. He was renowned for instruments that had a bright, vibrant tone.^[2] Lewis left the firm before 1900, but it continued to maintain the standards set by its founder. In 1919, there was a merger with Henry Willis & Sons who moved into the Brixton works and traded as Henry Willis and Son and Lewis and Company Ltd until 1925 when the Lewis name was dropped. T. C. Lewis continued to build organs for some time after leaving the firm that he had founded.^[3]

Pre 1886 Lewis & Co had a well respected foreman working for them, who worked on many of the lewis organs,called George Henry Adams (1843 - 1932). George had previously worked for around 20yrs with j w walker. A man called Thynne was dismissed (most likely) from Lewis's in 1881 and when he and Michell set up their short-lived company they managed to pinch a good number of Lewis staff including his foreman George Adams. George in 1886 established Adams & Marshall and by 1888 he was head of his own company Adams & Son who also work out of Brixton. one of Adams & son surviving organ can be found in east Farleigh church Kent which has a preservation order on it. [advertising pamphlet which is located in Kent archives and a copy held by direct descendent gives details of him having worked with lewis] http://www.npor.org.uk/NPORView.html?DBOB

Notable Lewis organs

• Old St. Paul's, Wellington, New Zealand, 1877^[4]
• Ripon Cathedral, 1878^[5]
• Newcastle Cathedral, 1880
• St John the Evangelist, Upper Norwood, London 1882^[6]
• St Paul's Cathedral, Melbourne, Australia 1891^[7]
• Southwark Cathedral, London 1897^[8]
• Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, Glasgow 1901^[9]
• Church House (Presbyterian Church in Ireland), Belfast 1906^[10]
• Westminster Cathedral, London, "Apse organ" 1910^[11]
• All Saints Church, Maidstone, "Main Organ"^[12]
• St. George's, Cullercoats

References

1. "T C Lewis". Ohta.org.au. 1915-01-07. Retrieved 2013-11-19.
2. "Southwark Cathedral". Organrecitals.com. Retrieved 2013-11-19.
3. The Organ: An Encyclopedia, Douglas E Bush & Richard Kassel, Routledge 2006 page 302
4. Archived 19 October 2009 at the Wayback Machine.
6. "The Lewis Organ". Myweb.tiscali.co.uk. Retrieved 19 November 2013.
7. "St Paul's Cathedral, Melbourne". Ohta.org.au. Retrieved 2013-11-19.
8. "Music and Choirs - Worship - Southwark Cathedral". Cathedral.southwark.anglican.org. Retrieved 2013-11-19.
9. "Glasgow Museums" (PDF). Glasgow Museums. 2009-11-17. Retrieved 2013-11-19.
10. Archived 28 July 2009 at the Wayback Machine.
11. "Westminster Cathedral". Organrecitals.com. Retrieved 2013-11-19.
12. "Organ". Maidstoneallsaints.freeserve.co.uk. Retrieved 2013-11-19.