Colonel E. A. Deeds Residence and Yacht

New York, N.Y.

Organ Specifications:
► II/9 Skinner Organ Company, Op. 786 (1929) – Yacht
► II/11 Skinner Organ Company, Op. 675 (1927) – Residence
             
Col. Edward A. Deeds  
Col. E. A. Deeds
  
Industrialist Edward Andrew Deeds was born on March 12, 1874 in Granville, Ohio. After earning an electrical engineering degree from Cornell, Deeds returned to Dayton, OH, where in 1899 he supervised the electrification of the National Cash Register Company (NCR). Deeds left NCR to build the Shredded Wheat factory, known as the Palace of Light, for Henry Perky at Niagara Falls. In 1903 he returned to NCR as chief of development and construction, and hired Charles F. Kettering, another Ohio inventor and engineer, to apply electrical motors to the company’s products. Within a few years Kettering’s machines revolutionized the cash register business and NCR. Deeds provided space in one of his barns for Kettering to work on an electric starter for automobiles. After the Cadillac Company ordered 5,000 ignition sets, Deeds and Kettering formed the Dayton Engineering Laboratories company, more familiarly known as Delco. Deeds founded the Dayton-Wright Airplane Company with Orville Wright, H. E. Talbott, and Charles F. Kettering. Deeds became Chairman of the Niles-Bement-Pond Co., which purchased Pratt & Whitney. In 1917, he joined the United States Army with the rank of Colonel and was appointed Chief of Aircraft Production in Washington D.C., as the country began a massive buildup for the Great War (World War I). In this post, Deeds assisted the U.S. Post Office's desire to begin airmail service between Washington, D.C. and New York City by suggesting that military pilots fly the planes as a way to gain experience. As part of the war effort, the Delco plant in Moraine, Ohio was expanded to manufacture the DeHavilland DH.4 bomber, the only American-built airplane to see action in World War I. Col. Deeds died at Moraine Farm, his estate near Dayton, OH, on July 1, 1960.
             
  Col. E. A. Deeds' Yacht "Lotosland"
 
Col. E. A. Deeds' Yacht, Lotosland
Yacht Organ

Skinner Organ Company
Boston, Mass. – Opus 786 (1929)
Electro-pneumatic key and stop action
2 manuals, 18 stops, 9 ranks, 549 pipes




This two-manual duplexed organ was installed in the music room of Col. Deeds' yacht, "Cox & Stevens Design #349", which was christened Lotosland. The organ was built with a flat pedalboard and had nine ranks of pipes. After the yacht was purchased in 1940 by the United States Navy, the organ was moved to the residence of Ivan F. Baker in Staten Island, N.Y. Later, the organ was acquired by Paul-Martin Maki and moved to his residence in Jersey City, N.J. Sadly, the organ was destroyed by fire.

Built in 1929, at a cost of one million dollars, and stretching more than 200 feet, the Lotosland was opulent. Most of the wood used was either teak or black walnut, and the fireplaces were made of Carrara marble. All of the staterooms were air-conditioned, and each had its own full-size bathtub and shower. It was the first private vessel to be outfitted with a seaplane—a five-passenger Sikorsky—and a crew of more than thirty people was required for full operation. In October 1940, the United States Navy purchased the Lotosland from Deeds for $140,000. It was then converted into a patrol boat, and commissioned as the USS SIREN. The Navy placed her out of service in October 1945, and the yacht was sold in May 1946. It is reported that the yacht has since burned.
               
Manual I – 61 notes, enclosed
8
   Diapason
61
4
   Flute Triangulaire
61
8
   Rohrflöte
61
8
   Flugel Horn
61
8
   Salicional
61
8
   Vox Humana
61
8
   Voix Celeste
61
     Tremolo  
8
   Flute Celeste II
110
        

     

     
Manual II – 61 notes (duplexed from Manual I)
8
   Diapason
Man.I
2
   Flute Triangulaire
Man.I
8
   Rohrflöte
Man.I
8
   Flugel Horn
Man.I
8
   Salicional
Man.I
8
   Vox Humana
Man.I
8
   Voix Celeste
Man.I
     Tremolo  
8
   Flute Celeste II
Man.I
        

     

     
Pedal – 32 notes
16
   Bourdon [ext.]
12
8
   Rohrflöte
Man.I
             
Residence Organ

Skinner Organ Company
Boston, Mass. – Opus 675 (1927)
Electro-pneumatic key and stop action
Player attachment
2 manuals, 27 stops, 11 ranks, 666 pipes


In 1927, Col. Deeds purchased a two-manual organ from the Skinner Organ Co. for his New York City residence. The organ had 11 ranks in two enclosed divisions, and could be operated by an automatic player attachment. At some point, the organ was sold to Wesley Steele, of Washington, D.C., and was later owned by Marshall Stone; the organ is being stored in Pennsylvania.
               
Manual I – 61 notes, enclosed
8
   Diapason
61
2
   Piccolo
Man. II
8
   Flute Celeste II
110
8
   Cello
Man. II
8
   Voix Celeste II
122
8
   French Horn
Man. II
    Harp
—
8
   Clarinet
Man. II
   
Celesta
61 bars
8
  
Trumpet
preparation
16
   Bourdon
Man. II
8
   Vox Humana
Man. II
8
   Chimney Flute
Man. II
8
   Oboe
Man. II
4
   Flute
Man. II
     Chimes
Man. II
2 2/3
   Nazard
Man. II
     Tremolo  

     

     
Manual II – 61 notes, enclosed
8
   Diapason
Man. I
2
   Piccolo [ext.]
—
8
   Flute Celeste II
Man. I
8
   Cello
61
8
   Voix Celeste II
Man. I
8
   French Horn
61
    Harp
Man. I
8
   Clarinet
61
    Celesta
Man. I
8
  
Trumpet
preparation
16
   Bourdon
97
8
   Vox Humana
61
8
   Chimney Flute [ext.]
—
8
   Oboe
61
4
   Flute [ext.]
—
    
Chimes
20 tubes
2 2/3
   Nazard [ext.]
—
     Tremolo  

     

     
Pedal – 32 notes
16
   Bourdon
32
8
   Still Gedeckt
Man. II
16
   Echo Lieblich
Man. II
        
             
Sources:
     Aeolian-Skinner Archives: http://home.cfl.rr.com/aeolianskinner/
     Kinzey, Allen, and Sand Lawn, comps. E.M. Skinner/Aeolian-Skinner Opus List. New Rev. Ed. Richmond: The Organ Historical Society, 1997.
     The Montgomery County Historical Society: http://www.daytonhistory.org/archive_highlights.htm

Illustrations:
      The Montgomery County Historical Society. Col. Deeds portrait.
      NavService Online Patrol Yacht Photo Archive. Photo of "Lotusland"