John Roberts (1829-1877), Frankford Organ Builder

presentation by Gail Rodgers McCormick and Paul Marchesano

A native of Salford, England, John Roberts arrived in Philadelphia with his parents and siblings in 1848. Apprenticed in the organ trade in England, Roberts was soon offering his services repairing and building pipe organs in his shop on Frankford Avenue and Orthodox Street. He built organs in Cambridgeport, Massachusetts, for a few years in the late 1850s, then returned to Frankford, setting up his residence and workshop at Orthodox and Penn Streets. Roberts and members of his family were among the early residents of the Orthodox Street block that was developing in the 1860s and has been home to the Historical Society of Frankford for over a century. Roberts’ organs graced many churches in the Philadelphia area, as well as in Chicago, Wilmington, and Pittsburgh. The Pittsburgh organ (1874), one of only two Roberts organs known to be extant, was the first of many financed by philanthropist Andrew Carnegie. Although little-known now, John Roberts was at the forefront of organ building in Philadelphia during an early period of growth in the industry. 

Gail Rodgers McCormick, historian, archivist, and author, will discuss Roberts’ background and his life in Frankford. McCormick’s new two-volume history Charity, Change, and Community: Frankford’s Swedenborgians, 1817-1971, features John Roberts and his family, who were longtime members of the New Jerusalem Society of Frankford. 

Paul Marchesano, a professional pipe organ restorer, historian, and chairman/editor of the Organ Historical Society’s Pipe Organ database, will discuss the basics of organ construction and John Roberts’ role among other organ builders in Philadelphia and the United States. Paul recently advised the University of Pennsylvania on restoring its Curtis Sesquicentennial Exhibition Organ (Austin, 1926). He is president of Fans of the Curtis Sesquicentennial Exposition Organ, which plans to hold a centennial Symphonic Organ Symposium in 2026.

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Doors open at 6:30pm for in person attendance, live streaming begins at 7:30pm, click the Facebook link to the right. Refreshments served after the program.