History

For over 100 years – spanning four generations – the Kangasala Organ Factory was one of the municipality’s most influential industrial establishments. In 1844, the organ factory began its operations in Kangasala after the Senate granted organ-building rights to Anders Thulé (1813-1872), born in Västermanland Kila in Sweden.

The first organ bearing Anders Thulé’s name was built in 1844 for the Tammisaari Church; the next one, built in 1845, was the first organ for the Kangasala stone church.

In 1886 his son Bror Axel Thulé (1847-1911) enlarged the organ workshop, turning it into a factory. The wooden factory building burned to the ground in 1905 but by the end of the year a new brick building has been erected at the same location. Based on what he had learned from his father in the workshop, B.A. Thulé kept a close watch on the sector’s development internationally and was responsible for several inventions and improvements relating to organ construction. During his term (1872-1911) almost 200 organs were built; one of the most significant of these was the 33-register organ, at that time the largest in Finland, made in 1885 for the Alexander Church in Tampere.

In 1911, the organ factory was passed on to the next generation of organ builders, B.A. Thulé’s son Martti Tulenheimo. During his time the factory was enlarged to its present size and a harmonium department was also established.

Most of the harmoniums in Finland’s schools were built in Kangasala. During Martti Tulenheimo’s term of leadership one of Finland’s largest organs was built for the Lapua Church, and the factory received international recognition.

Martti Tulenheimo’s son, engineer Pertti Tulenheimo (1923-1983) continued the business at a time when the factory was the largest of its kind in the Nordic countries and employed as many as 100 persons; Finlandia Hall’s concert organ was one of the organs built during period Pertti Tulenheimo’s term. Before the final cessation of production in 1983, the Kangasala Organ Factory had manufactured over 1,000 organs.

For decades the factory was the largest industrial employer in Kangasala and its management participated actively in the municipality’s civic life. The organ factory also functioned as a kind of “college” in the sector for several independent entrepreneurs. When the organ factory was renovated during the 1990s as a hotel, special attention was paid to its age and traditions.