What ever happened to the original Robert Morton installed in the Senate Theater?

The theater’s own original organ before the Mighty Wurlitzer

What ever happened to the original Robert Morton installed in the Senate Theater?We all know that our Theater was built in 1926. Some may not know that Our beloved opus 1954 Wurlitzer was not the first to fill the place with Theater organ music. The Theater originally had a Theater organ installed when it was built. It was manufactured by the Robert Morton Company out of California. It was a 2/7model with 2 keyboards. It was played there by such organists as Marguerite Werner among others. Here’s an article written by Dick Osgood back in the 50’s. “Had a sentimental twinge one morning last week as I watched Wyxis’s pipe organ (the name WXYZ gave to the organ) hauled piece by piece into a moving van. It’s going into the Our lady of Fatima Church in Oak Park—a gift from the station. Melvin Morehouse, technical director of WXYZ TV, has made an avocation of organs. He phoned James G. Riddell, President of WXYZ Inc. and said, “What are you going to do the pipe organ when the radio station moves to the new building at Joy and Greenfield roads?”. Riddell said he hadn’t decided, Why? “I’d like it for my church said Morehouse. “In that case,” said Riddell, “you can have it”. The instrument was built originally for the Senate Theater on Michigan avenue. WXYZ purchased it, and radio listeners throughout Michigan heard it played by Marguerite Werner, Jack Franz, and Lou Betterly. Morehouse hopes to have the organ installed in the church by Easter—the organ that started in show business, went into radio, and finally “got religion”. Nice progression for a beautiful instrument. Unfortunately, the organ was destroyed by fire the next year when the all wood church burned down. It did play for that one Easter Sunday though. The console migh thave looked something like this photo you see above. (Thanks to Scott Smith and Zachary Wojtan for the history).