Labor Temple - New York City
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Labor Temple
(Presbyterian)

242 East 14th Street
New York, N.Y. 10003


Organ Specifications:
242 East 14th Street (1924-1957)
► III/26 Austin Organ Company, Op. 1743 (1930)
225 Second Avenue (1910-1924)
► III/37 A. B. Felgemaker, Op. 700 (1899)


Fourteenth Street Presbyterian Church - New York City  
Labor Temple (1910-1924)  
Labor Temple was founded in 1910 by the Rev. Charles L. Stelze of the Presbyterian Home Mission Board. The first Labor Temple occupied the former Fourteenth Street Presbyterian Church, located at 225 Second Avenue near Union Square, and built in 1851. Under Stelze's leadership, Labor Temple would be "entirely unsectarian, where every man, if he have a message, may give it expression, and if it be good it will receive attention." On its opening day, Labor Temple was attended by five hundred members of labor unions, Socialist, Anarchists, and persons who took interest in labor matters and sociologists.

In 1924, developers built a new Labor Temple that fronted 14th Street on the site of the former church. Emory Roth designed the six-story building that included a chapel, an auditorium, and a gymnasium for the temple, and additional commercial space was provided and controlled by the developers. The Labor Temple disbanded in 1957, after which the building was used by the Presbyterian Church of the Crossroads and, later, Congregation Tifereth Israel.
           
Austin Organ Company
Hartford, Conn. – Opus 1743 (1930)
Electro-pneumatic action
3 manuals, 30 stops, 26 ranks


The following specifications were recorded in a notebook by Charles Scharpeger, an employee of the Louis F. Mohr Co., a longtime organ service concern. Scharpeger visited the Labor Temple on May 12, 1935. Pipecounts given below are suggested, based on Austin organs of that period.
               
Great Organ (Manual II) – 61 notes (partially enclosed with Choir?)
8
   First Open Diapason
61
8
  Gemshorn
61
8
  Second Open Diapason
61
4
   Principal
61
8
  Gross Flute
61
8
   Tuba Harmonique
61
               
Swell Organ (Manual III) – 61 notes, enclosed
16
  Gemshorn
73
2 2/3
  Nazard
61
8
  Open Diapason
73
2
   Flautino
61
8
  Gedeckt
73
1 3/5
  Tierce
61
8
  Salicional
73
8
   Cor d'Amour
73
8
   Voix Celeste [TC]
61
8
   Vox Humana
73
8
   Aeoline
73
     Tremolo  
4
   Flauto Traverso
73
       
               
Choir Organ (Manual I) – 61 notes, enclosed
8
   Violin Diapason
73
4
   Flute Harmonique
73
8
   Melodia
73
8
   Clarinet
73
8
   Dulciana
73
     Tremolo  
8
   Unda Maris [TC]
61
     Chimes  
               
Pedal Organ – 32 notes
16
   Open Diapason
44
8
   Octave
—
16
  Bourdon
44
8
  Flute
—
16
   Gemshorn
SW
8
   Tuba Harmonique
GT
               
Couplers
    Great to Pedal 8', 4'   Swell to Choir 16', 8', 4'
    Swell to Pedal 8', 4'   Great to Great 16', 4', Unison Off
    Choir to Pedal 8', 4'   Swell to Swell 16', 4', Unison Off
    Swell to Great 16', 8', 4'   Choir to Choir 16', 4', Unison Off
    Choir to Great 16', 8', 4'    
           
Organ in the original Fourteenth Street Presbyterian Church:

A. B. Felgemaker
Buffalo, N.Y. – Opus 700 (1899)
Mechanical action
3 manuals, 36 stops, 37 ranks


Original specifications in the archives of the Tellers Organ Company (successor to A.B. Felgemaker) indicate that this three-manual Felgemaker organ was shipped on November 21, 1899, and was setup by Henry Tellers and Scultetus. The organ weighed 10,500 pounds, the iron was an additional 800 pounds, and the frieght cost was $49.09. In 1930, the organ was moved to Crawford Memorial Methodist in the Bronx, where it was rebuilt and electrified by Clark & Fenton.
               
Great Organ (Manual II) – 61 notes
16
   Double Open Diapason
61
4
   Octave
61
8
   Open Diapason
61
2 2/3
  Octave Quinte
61
8
   Viola da Gamba
61
2
   Super Octave
61
8
   Doppel Floete
61
     Mixture 3 ranks
183
4
   Flute d'Amour
61
8
   Trumpet
61
               
Swell Organ (Manual III) – 61 notes, enclosed
16
   Bourdon (2 draws)
61
4
   Flute Harmonique
61
8
   Open Diapason
61
4
   Violina
61
8
   Salicional
61
2
   Flautino
61
8
   Vox Celeste
61
     Dolce Cornet 3 ranks
183
8
   Aeolina
61
8
   Oboe and Bassoon
61
8
   Stopped Diapason
61
8
   Vox Humana [in box]
61
               
Choir Organ (Manual I) – 61 notes
8
   Geigen Principal
61
4
   Concert Flute
61
8
   Melodia
61
2
   Harmonic Piccolo
61
8
   Dulciana
61
8
   Clarinet
61
8
   Quintidon [sic]
61
        
               
Pedal Organ – 30 notes
16
   Open Diapason
30
16
   Bourdon
30
16
   Violone
30
8
   Violoncello
30
               
Couplers and Mechanical Accessories
    Great to Pedal       Swell to Great super octaves  
    Swell to Pedal       Swell to Great sub-octaves  
    Choir to Pedal       Choir to Great sub-octaves  
    Swell to Great       Tremolo  
    Choir to Great       Bellows Signal  
    Swell to Choir       Wind Indicator  
               
Pedal Movements
    Forte Great with appropriate Pedal stops
    Mezzo Great with appropriate Pedal stops
    Piano Great with appropriate Pedal stops
    Forte Swell with appropriate Pedal stops
    Mezzo Swell with appropriate Pedal stops
    Piano Swell with appropriate Pedal stops
    Balanced Swell Pedal
    Great to Pedal Reversible Coupler
    Balanced Crescendo & Full Organ Pedal
    Electric motor
               
    Extended console          
           
Sources:
     Dunlap, David W. From Abyssinian to Zion: A Guide to Manhattan's Houses of Worship. New York: Columbia University Press, 2004.
     Scharpeger, Charles. Specifications of Austin Organ, Op. 1743 (1930). Courtesy Larry Trupiano.
     Tellers, Aaron (Tellers Organ Co., Erie, Penn.) Specifications of A.B. Felgemaker Organ, Op. 700 (1899).

Illustrations:
     "14th Street and Union Square: A Preservation Plan," New York: Columbia University. Fourteenth Street Presbyterian Church exterior (c.1915) and Labor Temple exterior (c.1950).