Schermerhorn Street German Evangelical Lutheran Church - Brooklyn, NY
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Schermerhorn Street Evangelical Lutheran Church

61 Schermerhorn Street near Court Street
Brooklyn, N.Y. 11201



Organ Specifications:
Second building (1889-1969)
► III/36 Frank Roosevelt, Op. 408 (1888)
First building (1845-1888)
• unknown builder (1863)





On October 17, 1841, the German Evangelical United Church of Brooklyn was organized by a small group of Germans who were longing to hear the word preached in their native tongue. At the time there were not many Germans living in Brooklyn, and the new congregation did not seem to prosper, due in part to lack of a suitable place of worship. A committee was formed to raise money for a church, and, upon the arrival, in October, 1844, of the Rev. Dr. Fr. Theodore Wintselman, regular services were resumed. In the following year a church was built on Schermerhorn Street, and the congregation was reorganized as the Deutsche Evangelische Kirche (German Evangelical Church). By 1863, there was a much larger German population, and it became necessary to enlarge the church and purchase an organ. These improvements cost about $15,000, and the newly fitted and furnished church was dedicated in January 1864.

As the German population in Brooklyn increased the church also grew and prospered, and a larger building was needed. Despite reservations about remaining so far downtown, the congregation decided to build a new church at the same location. The old church was torn down in July, 1888, and the cornerstone for a new church was laid on Thanksgiving Day, 1888. In the interim, the congregation held services in the Polytechnic Institute until the basement of the new church was ready in September, 1889. Designed in the Romanesque style, the new church was built of red brick trimmed with terra cotta, measured 55 feet wide by 95 feet in length, and had a square tower 110 feet high. Stained glass windows from Munich adorned the sanctuary, and about 900 could be accomodated in pews on the main floor and in three galleries. The total cost for the new church was about $82,000. Beginning on Sunday, January 19, 1890, a three-day celebration began with opening services in German, an English service on Tuesday, and concluding with a German service on Wednesday. Over the years, the German Evangelical Church was the mother church for more than 15 additional churches in Brooklyn.

By the 1960s, downtown Brooklyn had been in a long decline and the church closed in 1969. After being vacant for several years, the church was acquired for possible expansion by St. Constantine and Helen Cathedral, a Greek Orthodox congregation located across Schermerhorn Street. In 2006, the once-proud Lutheran church was demolished and has been replaced by a luxury apartment building.
                
  Frank Roosevelt Organ, Op. 408 (1888) at Schermerhorn Street German Evangelical Lutheran Church - Brooklyn, N.Y. (photo: Thomas Murray)
Frank Roosevelt
New York City – Opus 408 (1888)
Tracker-pneumatic action
3 manuals, 31 stops, 36 ranks


For their second building, the German Evangelical Church selected Frank Roosevelt of New York City to build the new organ. The three-manual organ, which was powered by a hydraulic engine, had 34 stops and cost $10,000. Hugo Troetschel, a native of Weimar, Germany, and a student of Franz Liszt, played the dedicatory recital in 1890. Mr. Troetschel served as organist for 52 years, presenting a total of 250 free bi-weekly recitals at the church by the time he died in 1939 at the age of 81.

After the church was closed in 1969, the Roosevelt organ remained in the vacant building only to suffer from vandalism. Prior to demolition of the church, the organ was purchased by Sebastian Glück and removed to storage.
               
Great Organ (Manual II) – 58 notes, partially enclosed with Choir
16
   Double Open Diapason
58
2 2/3
   Octave Quint *
58
8
   Open Diapason
58
2
   Super Octave *
58
8
   Viola di Gamba
58
     Mixture, 3 & 4 ranks *
196
8
   Doppel Flöte
58
8
   Trumpet *
58
4
   Octave *
58
     Chimes [added 20th cent.]  
4
  
Hohl Flöte *
preparation
   
* enclosed with Choir
 
      
 
      
Swell Organ (Manual III) – 58 notes, enclosed
16
   Bourdon [split knob]
58
4
   Flute Harmonique
58
8
   Open Diapason
58
     Cornet, 3 ranks
174
8
   Stopped Diapason
58
8
   Cornopean
58
8
   Salicional
58
8
   Oboe
58
8
   Vox Celeste [TC]
46
8
   Vox Humana
58
4
   Gemshorn
58
     Tremulant  
               
Choir Organ (Manual I) – 58 notes, enclosed
8
   Geigen Principal
58
4
   Flute d'Amour
58
8
   Concert Flute
58
2
   Piccolo
58
8
   Quintadena
58
8
   Clarinet
58
8
   Dolce
58
     Tremulant  
 
      
 
      
Pedal Organ – 30 notes
16
   Open Diapason
30
10 2/3
  
Quint
preparation
16
   Bourdon
30
8
   Violoncello
30
16
  
Violone
preparation
16
   Trombone
30
               
Couplers
    Great to Pedal   Swell to Great
    Swell to Pedal   Swell to Great Octaves
    Choir to Pedal   Choir to Great
        Swell to Choir
               
Composition Pedals & Accessories (from left to right)
1.
   Engine [hydraulic]  
6.
   Great to Pedal Reversible
2.
   Swell 1  
7.
   Great 1  
3.
   Swell 2  
8.
   Great 2  
4.
   Great & Choir expression  
9.
   Choir 1  
5.
   Swell expression  
10.
   Choir 2  
               
Frank Roosevelt organ, Op. 408 (1888) in Schermerhorn Street Evang. Lutheran Church - Brooklyn, NY (photo: Larry Trupiano)   Frank Roosevelt organ, Op. 408 (1888) in Schermerhorn Street Evang. Lutheran Church - Brooklyn, NY (photo: Larry Trupiano)
               
Sources:
     "An Organ Concert: In Aid of the Music Committee of the German Evangelical Church," Brooklyn Daily Eagle (Nov. 14, 1894).
     Brooklyn Public Library web site: http://www.brooklynpubliclibrary.org.
     "Church Will Honor Veteran Organist: Hugo Troetschel Will Celebrate Fortieth Year With German Evangelical Tonight," The New York Times (Mar. 4, 1928).
     "Farewell to the Old Church," The New York Times (July 30, 1888).
     "Its New Home: German Evangelical Church Dedicated," Brooklyn Daily Eagle (Jan. 20, 1890).
     Nelson, George. Organs in the United States and Canada Database. Seattle, Wash.
     Ochse, Orpha. The History of the Organ in the United States. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1975.
     "The Oldest German Church. Their New Church in Schermerhorn Street to be Dedicated To-Day," Brooklyn Daily Eagle (Jan. 19, 1890).
     "On the Old Site: The Cornerstone of a New Local Church to be Laid," Brooklyn Daily Eagle (Oct. 15, 1888).
     "To Dedicate a New Church," Brooklyn Daily Eagle (Dec. 14, 1889).
     Troetschel, Hugo (Obituary), The New York Times (Sept. 4, 1939).
     Trupiano, Larry. Specifications of Frank Roosevelt organ, Op. 408 (1888).

Illustrations:
     Brooklyn Daily Eagle, Brooklyn Public Library, Brooklyn Collection. Exterior.
     Murray, Thomas. Frank Roosevelt organ, Op. 408 (1888).
     Trupiano, Larry. Case and console of Frank Roosevelt organ, Op. 408 (1888).