Crawford Memorial United Methodist Church

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Crawford Memorial United Methodist Church

3751 White Plains Road at East 218th Street
The Bronx, N.Y. 10467

Organ Specifications:
Present building (since 1929)
► III/37 A.B. Felgemaker, Op. 700 (1899); rebuilt 1930
Second building (1894-burned 1926)
► II/22 George Jardine & Son (1896) – burned 1926
First building (1864-1893)
• unknown

The Crawford Memorial United Methodist Church dates back to 1852 when a Methodist society was organized in the village of Olinville, an area on the east bank of the Bronx River. At that time, the society consisted of opulent landowners, developers, businessmen, legislators, judges, architects, bankers, and insurance brokers. An early church was built in 1864 and served the congregation for the next thirty years. In later years, the Olinville neighborhood became part of the larger area known as Williamsbridge.


Williamsbridge M.E. Church (1896)

In 1893 plans were made for the erection of a large and handsome new edifice for the society then known as Williamsbridge Methodist Episcopal Church. Designed by Weary & Kramer, architects of Akron, Ohio, and New York, the Romanesque edifice was built on the "Akron" plan which allowed the 650-seat auditorium of the church and the Sunday-school hall to be united into one large auditorium seating a total of 1300 people. The interior was modestly decorated with a plaster ceiling painted in neutral tints. The basement was finished to include a lecture room and rooms for the social gatherings of the church. Estimated cost of the new building was $50,000. In October 1926 the church was destroyed by fire, but was completely rebuilt in 1928 and dedicated on January 27, 1929 by Bishop Ernest Gladstone Richardson of the Philadelphia area. At some point, the church took the name of Crawford Memorial Methodist Episcopal Church.

As the demographics of the Bronx changed, the congregation has evolved to include its new residents, most of whom are new immigrants from various countries and the Caribbean Islands.

A. B. Felgemaker Buffalo, N.Y. – Opus 700 (1899) Originally mechanical action; electrified by Clark & Fenton (1930) 3 manuals, 36 stops, 37 ranks This three-manual-and-pedal organ was originally built by A.B. Felgemaker in 1899 and installed in the Fourteenth Street Presbyterian Church in Manhattan. In 1930, the organ was moved to Crawford Memorial Methodist in the Bronx, where it was rebuilt and electrified by Clark & Fenton. The status of this organ as of 2009 is unknown.

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		* changed to Unda Maris

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

George Jardine & Son New York City (1896) Electro-pneumatic action 2 manuals, 20 stops, 22 ranks The first organ in the present building (then known as the Olin or Williamsbridge Methodist Episcopal Church) was built in 1896 by George Jardine & Son of New York City. The following specifications were recorded (Aug. 30, 1916) by an employee of Louis F. Mohr & Co., an organ service concern in the area. Mohr noted that the organ had electric action and burned in October 1926.

Great Organ (Manual I) – 61 notes
16	Double Open Diapason	61	4	Principal	61
8	Open Diapason	61	4	Flute Harmonic	61
8	Doppel Flute	61	2 2/3	Nazard	61
8	Clarabella	61	2	Piccolo	61
8	Gamba	61

Swell Organ (Manual II) – 61 notes, enclosed
16	Open Diapason	61	4	Violin[o]	61
8	Clariana	61	2	Flageolet	61
8	Stopped Diapason	61		Cornet 3 ranks	183
8	Violin	61	8	Trumpet (TC)	48
8	Aeoline	61	8	Tromba [bass]	12

Pedal Organ – 30 notes
16	Open Diapason	30
16	Bourdon	30

Couplers and Mechanical Accessories
	Great to Pedal			Tremolo
	Swell to Pedal
	Swell to Great			Orgoblo
	Pedal to Pedal Octave

Sources:
     "Bishop Dedicates Church," The New York Times, January 28, 1929.
     "Bronx Church Burns Mortgage," The New York Times, January 18, 1947.
     "Bronx Church Faces Sale," The New York Times, April 12, 1935.
     "For Williamsbridge Methodists," The New York Times, September 25, 1893.
     Jenkins, Stephen. The Story of the Bronx from the Purchase Made by the Dutch from the Indians in 1639 to the Present Day. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1912
     Kidder, Frank Eugene. Churches and Chapels. New York: William T. Comstock, 1906.
     Kramer, George W. The What How and Why of Church Building. New York: Geo. W. Kramer, 1897.
     Mohr, Louis F. & Co. Specifications (Aug. 30, 1916) of George Jardine & Son organ. Courtesy Larry Trupiano.
     Tellers, Aaron (Tellers Organ Co., Erie, Penn.). Specifications of A. B. Felgemaker organ, Op. 700 (1899).

Illustrations:
     Kramer, George W. The What How and Why of Church Building. New York: Geo. W. Kramer, 1897. Exterior.

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