On 13 May 1977, a public meeting was held in the Chapter House of St. Paul's Anglican Cathedral, Melbourne, and OHTA was formed. At the time, the organisation was conceived as a means for extending the work of the National Trust of Australia. In 1978, OHTA was incorporated under the Victorian Companies Act 1961, directed by a Council made up of representatives from each State of Australia,[15] and offering membership to all members of the general public.[16]
Legal status
OHTA is registered with the Australian Government as a Registered Charity recognizing its status as a not-for-profit cultural organization, category: Advancing culture.[17]
^See http://www.ohta.org.au/organs/organs/Exhibition.html. According to this website, the organ, with 4 manuals, 70 speaking stops and 4,726 pipes, was shown as No. 20 in the list of the world's largest organs at that time.
^For a history and description of the instrument, Queensland's oldest pipe organ, see http://www.saintmarys.org.au/organ.htm. In this case, several attempts, the last being in 2007, have been made to raise sufficient funds for the organ's restoration or alteration, without success. This church is currently using an Allen digital organ which was purchased in 2008 - see http://www.saintmarys.org.au/music.htm.
Detailed information about the Organ Historical Trust of Australia is available in its own website [1].
An archive of documents and other material covering the period from the founding of the Organ Historical Trust of Australia in 1977 is held at The University of Melbourne [2].
Additional written and photographic material is held within the State Library of New South Wales - see An archive of documents and other material covering the period from the founding of the Organ Historical Trust of Australia in 1977 is held at The University of Melbourne [3].