Graham (Elma) Theatre - 2/6 Wurlitzer, Style D "Special"
Elma, Washington
113 N 4th Street
Organ installation timeframe: 1927 - 1943
 
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Bill Bunch at the Graham Theatre Wurlitzer, 1935. Bill Bunch collection.
 
The Graham Theatre opened in 1927 and had a 2/6 Style D "Special" Wurlitzer (opus #1720). The Special designation was due to the fact that organ was divided into two chambers, with three ranks on each side of the proscenium.
 
Owner Walter Graham's first theatre was the 1914 Lyric Theatre in Shelton, WA.
 

The Daily Olympian November 17, 1927
 
According to Bill Bunch, organists who played at the Graham Theatre during the silent era were: Hans Schmidt (opening organist in 1927), Carol Bortle, Dave Coleman and Ray De Clemens.
 

View of the Graham Theatre stage with Wurlitzer console in orchestra pit, c.1928. Photo courtesy Chehalis Valley Historical Society.
 
In 1930, theatre owner Walter Graham installed equipment for sound films:
 

The Daily Olympian February 10, 1930
 
Bill Bunch was organist at the Graham Theatre starting in 1931 when we was 14 years old. He was the only person in Elma who played it. He also made a replacement music rack for the console shown in the photo below.
 

Console, late 1930s. Bill Bunch collection.
 
According to the Judd Walton opus lists, the organ was moved in 1933 to the First Christian Church in Vancouver WA, but this disagrees with other evidence including the wall graffiti shown below as well as the Bill Bunch photo dated 1935 above. Current status of the instument is unknown.
 

Markings in the organ chambers. Installed November 1927, Removed 1943. Carl Dodrill photo 2003
 

Elma Theatre auditorium, 1990s
 

Elma Theatre, c.2000
 
In the early- to mid-1960s, the theatre was renamed Elma Theatre.
 
Unfortunately, due to heavy snowfall in February of 2019, the theatre's roof collasped leaving the interior exposed to the elements for several years. In 2025, the City of Elma decided to demolish the structure.
 

View of the collapsed roof with left organ chamber visible, 2019
 

Elma Theatre, c.2025
 

Demolition in progress, 2026. Photo courtesy The Daily World.