A little more than a year ago, an auction was held at [Durrell
Armstrong's] Player Piano Company in Wichita, Kansas, an event which
a number of MMD subscribers attended.

This past week, I was in Wichita and decided to stop by the former
business and see how things have changed.  The answer is, "Not much."
The familiar old Player Piano Company sign is still on the building
but the front windows have been covered up with plywood.  The old
limestone accents are still crumbling and there is a broken window or
two on the upper floors.  Renovation has not yet taken place.

However, there is one change: There is now a plaque on the building
designating it as an historic site.  A similar sign is on the building
housing the Great Plains Transportation Museum (train museum) next
door.

I took many pictures of the building while I was there, sweltering in
the 100 degree heat, sometimes having to stand on Douglas Avenue to
get a good shot while watching for traffic.  I even ran across Douglas
in order to get a shot of the entire front of the building, and also
walked around to the back and took pictures of the loading dock area.

Next, I drove a couple of blocks north to where Player Piano Parts Inc.
is located.  Some of you may remember reading my report in 090901 MMD
of my visit to the place a year ago.  This visit was a little bit
different.

I took a couple of pictures of the exterior of the building and then
went in the front door to photograph the vestibule.  I didn't plan
on ringing the buzzer or talking to anyone.  Almost immediately after
I snapped the photo, a voice came on, "May I help you?"

Apparently taking a photo there is an attention-getter.  I introduced
myself and explained why I was there.  The voice responded, "Someone
will be down shortly."

It was 100 degrees outside but the vestibule was even hotter.  Soon the
door opened and young woman appeared.  The woman's name was Natalie and
some of you may have talked with her when ordering supplies.  She was
pleasant and we had a very nice chat.  The temperature kept increasing
in the vestibule all the time we were talking.  Sweat was literally
running down my face.  She also said that the building where we were
talking was the business office and that the warehouse with all the
supplies was located elsewhere.

Natalie told me that the warehouse was located at the former Big Bob
building further north.  That was my next stop.  Eight stories high
and nothing to indicate that it houses wonderful supplies used by
piano restorers all over the world.  A grain elevator is attached to
the building but I couldn't tell if the elevator is currently in use.
I took several more pictures and, since this was my last stop in
Wichita, I then headed for home.

Revisiting Player Piano Company and Player Piano Parts Inc. was a good
experience this time, even with the August heat.

Photos of Player Piano Company today can be found at:

    http://www.mmdigest.com/Exchange/wichita.htm 

Cheers,
Joyce Brite, Manhattan, Kansas (who survived the microburst on
  Friday that uprooted trees, downed power lines, and left us
  without electricity).
Player Piano and Mechanical Music Exchange
http://www.mmdigest.com/Exchange

 [ Player Piano Parts, Inc.
 [ 702 E. Second Street
 [ Wichita, KS 67202
 [ tel.: 1-316-263-3241
 [ http://www.player-piano-parts.com/ 
 [ http://www.playerpianocompany.com/catalog/full_catalog.pdf 
 [ -- Robbie