Robert Hoe III Residence
11 East 36th Street
New York, N.Y. 10016


Robert Hoe III (1839-1909) was an American businessman and producer of printing press equipment. In 1886, after the deaths of his father and his uncle, Robert Hoe III assumed control of R. Coe & Co., printing press manufacturers of New York and London. In the years following, he became better known for book collecting than for manufacturing. He was one of the organizers and first president of the Grolier Club, the well-known New York organization for the promotion of bookmaking as an art. He was an extensive collector of rare books and manuscripts as well as silver, miniatures, and other art objects, his collections at the time of his death being valued at several million dollars. The catalogues of his library were unique and valuable from both a typographical and bibliographical standpoint. He edited Maberly's Print Collector (1880). After his death in 1909, his son, Robert Hoe IV gained control of the printing company but resigned by 1924. In that year the company was incorporated and a board of directors was announced.
           
J.H. & C.S. Odell & Company
New York City – Opus 88 (1869)
Mechanical action
2 manuals, 13 stops, 13 ranks


The following specification of "Mr. Hoe's Parlor Organ" was recorded by Samuel P. Warren (1841-1915), noted concert organist in New York City and Brooklyn, whose collection of papers is in the Library of Congress.
               
Great Organ (Manual I) – 61 notes
8
   Open Diapason
61
4
  Principal
61
8
   Keraulophon *
44
2 2/3
  Twelfth
61
8
   Dulce *
44
2
   Fifteenth
61
8
   Clarionet Flute
61
    
* 1-17 grooved from Clarionet Flute
       
 
     
Swell Organ (Manual II) – 61 keys?, 44 notes [f2-c61], enclosed
8
   Open Diapason
44
4
  Violina
44
8
   Dulciana
44
2
   Piccolo
44
8
   Viol di Gamba
44
        
       
 
     
Pedal Organ – 25 notes
16
   Bourdon
25
        
               
Couplers
    Swell to Great   Bellows Signal
    Great to Pedal    
           
Sources:
     Samuel P. Warren Collection, Library of Congress. Specifications of J.H. & C.S. Odell organ, Op. 88 (1869). Courtesy James Lewis.
     J.H. & C.S. Odell Organ web site: www.odellorgans.com
     Odell Organs Opus List, compiled by Sand Lawn. Courtesy David Scribner.
     "Robert Hoe, 3D, Dies in London," The New York Times (Sept. 23, 1909):11.