Church of St. Margaret - Middle Village (Queens), N.Y.
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Church of St. Margaret
(Roman Catholic)

66-05 79th Place near Juniper Road
Middle Village (Queens), N.Y. 11379
http://StMargaretMV.org

Organ Specifications:
Present building (since 1935):
► II/16 W.W. Kimball Co. (1937)
Second building (1907-1935)
• II/ Midmer-Losh Organ Company (1922)
First building (1860-1907)
• unknown


1860 building of St. Margaret's Catholic Church - Middle Village (Queens), N.Y. (photo: Juniper Berry)  
Original Church (1860-1907)  
1907 building of St. Margaret's Catholic Church - Middle Village (Queens), N.Y. (photo: Juniper Berry)  
Second Church (1907-1935)  
St. Margaret’s Parish was established by Bishop John Loughlin in 1860 to serve the growing number of German Catholics who had settled in the Newtown area of Queens and started farming. The Bishop requested that the Rev. Ignatius Theodore Goetz of St. Mary's Church, Winfield organize a Catholic congregation and attend to it as a mission. Father Goetz purchased property on 79th Place near Juniper Valley Road, and broke ground for a small frame church on March 18, 1860. The completed church, dedicated on June 20, 1860, was named in honor of St. Margaret, protector of farmers' animals against epidemics, and the harvests against hailstones and lightning.

As the church grew, parishioners realized the need for a school and built a small frame building to accomodate 20 students. This school was replaced in 1899 with a larger three-story frame schoolhouse built at a cost of $3,000.

Under the leadership of the Rev. Francis O. Siegelack, the second church building was erected on the same site as the first. Designed in the Gothic style, the frame building was dedicated on December 1, 1907. This building remains standing today and is used as a social hall.

By the early 1930s the school had more than 480 pupils and plans were made for a larger and more modern facility. Despite the financial constraints of the Great Depression, ground was broken on March 17, 1935 for the present building. The four-story brick structure is a "combination" building with the church on the ground floor and the school occupying the three upper floors. Bishop Thomas E. Molloy dedicated the completed building on November 24, 1935.
         
W.W. Kimball Co.
Chicago, Ill. (1937)
Electro-pneumatic action
2 manuals, 27 stops, 16 ranks


The organ in the present church was built in 1937 by the W.W. Kimball Company of Chicago. Kimball installed the organ in a chamber at the rear of the church and provided a detached two-manual drawknob console. When originally installed the organ was completely enclosed but the swell shades have since been removed. Sometime in the 1970s the organ was rebuilt by the Schantz Organ Company of Orrville, Ohio. As of 2012, the organ is playable and used regularly but is in need of restoration.
               
Great Organ (Manual I) – 61 notes, enclosed (shutters removed)
16
   Gemshorn [unit]
85
  Rauschquinte II ranks
122
8
   Open Diapason
73
  Tremolo
8
   Harmonic Flute [unit]
85
  Great Sub
8
   Gemshorn
—
  Great Unison Off
4
   Octave
73
  Great Super
4
   Flute [ext.]
—
   
 
      
 
      
Swell Organ (Manual II) – 61 notes, enclosed (shutters removed)
16
   Contra Salicional [unit]
97
2
   Flageolet [Rohrflöte]
—
8
   Geigen Principal
73
8
   Trumpet
73
8
   Gedeckt
73
8
   Oboe
73
8
   Salicional
73
  Tremolo
8
   Voix Celeste
73
  Swell Sub
4
   Salicet [ext. of 16']
—
  Swell Unison Off
4
   Rohrflöte [unit]
73
  Swell Super
2 2/3
  Rohr Nasat [ext.]
—
   
               
Pedal Organ – 32 notes, enclosed
16
   Open Diapason (metal) [unit]
44
8
   Open Flute
GT
16
   Bourdon
32
8
   Salicional
SW
16
   Gemshorn
GT
8
   Stille Gedeckt
SW
16
   Contra Salicional
SW
8
   Trumpet
SW
8
   Octave [ext.]
—
   
           
Couplers
    Great to Pedal 8', 4'     Swell to Great 16', 8', 4'
    Swell to Pedal 8', 4'      
               
Adjustable Combinations
   
Swell Organ Pistons 1-2-3-4-5-6 (thumb) Ped. Combs. to Swell On & Off
Great Organ Pistons 1-2-3-4-5-6 (thumb) Ped. Combs. to Great On & Off
Pedal Organ Pistons 1-2-3-4 (toe)  
Entire Organ Pistons 1-2-3-4-5-6 (thumb)  
  General Cancel (thumb)  
  Set (thumb)  
               
Reversibles
    Great to Pedal 8' (thumb & toe)   Sforzando (thumb & toe)
    Great to Pedal 4' (thumb & toe)    
    Swell to Pedal 8' (thumb & toe)   Chimes Sustain (toe hitchdown)
    Swell to Pedal 4' (thumb & toe)   Chimes Soft (toe hitchdown)
               
Expression
    Balanced Pedal – Swell      
    Balanced Pedal – Great      
    Balanced Pedal – Crescendo      
         
Organ in the second church building:

Midmer-Losh Organ Company
Merrick, N.Y. (1922)
Electro-pneumatic action
2 manuals


In the 1907 church building was an organ built in 1922 by the Midmer-Losh Organ Company of Merrick, Long Island. Specifications of this organ have not yet been located.
           
Sources:
     Ciancimino, Matt R. "A Short History of St. Margaret's Parish," Juniper Berry magazine (Dec. 2003).
     Forgotten New York web site: http://forgotten-ny.com/2005/04/middlemarch-middle-village-queens/
     Glück, Sebastian. Specification of W.W. Kimball organ (1937).
     St. Margaret's Church web site: http://StMargaretMV.org

Illustrations:
     Forgotten New York web site. Exterior.
     John J. Lannig Collection. 1860 and 1907 church buildings.