With the backing of Mayor Donald Fraser and support from other city promotors including StarTribune Columnist Barbara Flanagan, the Minneapolis Organ Trust Fund was established to kickstart preservation efforts and save the Kimball from destruction. In 1986, plans were developed for a new convention center on the site of the Minneapolis Auditorium. Yet the Kimball was never forgotten and from the 1950s to the 1980s, it was used an estimated 10 or 12 times per year. A Twin Cities Musicians Union rule requiring the employment of 15 musicians whenever the organ was played, combined with the economic depression and new innovations in organ technology, meant that the organ was rarely played after its grand opening in 1928. While the idea for the Kimball was strong, it lacked sufficient funding and support from the start, which caused problems throughout the organ's lifetime. One of the unique features of the Kimball is the two consoles, a concert console and a theatre console, which in its early days rose dramatically out of the basement on elevators (a feature which was removed in the 1960s during the Auditorium remodel). It is one of the largest pipe organs in the midwest, weighing over 30 tons, with handcrafted pipes that vary in size from 1/2 inch to over 30 feet. The 'Mighty Kimball' or 'Voice of Minneapolis' as it was christened in 1928, is one of only three of its particular size ever manufactured by the Kimball Company. Kimball Company of Chicago, who built the organ at an approximate cost of $125,000. Hailed as one of the finest pipe organs of its kind, it still remains as a tribute to the fine craftsmanship of the W.

The 10,000 pipe Kimball organ has been part of the heritage of the City of Minneapolis since it was first installed in the Municipal Auditorium in 1928.

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