Episcopal Church of the Holy Trinity

Holy Trinity Episcopal Church (Inwood) - New York City

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Church of the Holy Trinity (Inwood)
(Episcopal)

20 Cumming Street
New York, N.Y. 10034
http://www.holytrinityinwood.org

Organ Specifications:
20 Cumming Street at Seaman Avenue (since 1935)
► II/7 Austin Organ Company, Op. 1591 (1928)
230 Lenox Avenue at 122nd Street (1888-1935)
► III/43 Hillgreen, Lane & Company , Op. 724 (1923) – burned 1925
► III/36 Hook & Hastings, Op. 1392 (1888)
Fifth Avenue at 125th Street (1870-burned 1888)
► II/22 J.H. & C.S. Odell, Op. 179 (1880)
► III/31 Levi Stuart (1870)

Holy Trinity Protestant Episcopal Church of Harlem was founded in 1868, shortly after the close of the American Civil War. The first church, located on the corner of Fifth Avenue and 125th Street, was designed by John W. Welch and built from 1869-70. A great fire in 1888 destroyed the building, and the land was sold to Temple Israel.


	Lenox Avenue & 122nd Street

A new church, on the southwest corner of Lenox Avenue and 122nd Street, was designed by William A. Potter and completed in 1888. Built on a 100-by-150-foot site, Potter's imposing Romanesque Revial church complex included a rectory and extensive parish house. The exterior was faced with rough red granite trimmed with sandstone, and over the entrance is a massive square tower topped by a pyramidal roof. The interior provided seating for 1,000, and featured transept galleries supported by iron columns and a vaulted ceiling. In 1925, a devastating fire gutted the church interior and destroyed an organ installed in 1923. At the time, Harlem was in a population flux as a growing black American population moved to the area. In response, many white residents sold their magnificent brownstones and relocated elsewhere. The vestry of Holy Trinity Church, in keeping with prevailing thoughts at the time, decided to take the opportunity afforded by the fire to sell the church and relocate.


Proposed Church and Rectory by John Russell Pope, architect



	Present Church interior

In 1927, after much discussion, Holy Trinity agreed to merge with a small but dynamic mission church in Inwood, called Holy Redeemer, at Seaman Avenue and Isham. The simple wood frame church of Holy Redeemer stood where the tennis courts of Inwood Hill Park now stand. Financially there was a merger, but most parishioners came from the Holy Redeemer Parish. With the generous proceeds from the sale of the old Harlem church location, new land was purchased on the corner of Cumming Street and Seaman Avenue. There, the church planned to erect a tall Gothic Moderne church with towering flèche, but then the stock market crashed and the Depression began. Plans were suspended, and the parish moved forward with only the lower portion of the planned sanctuary and a community house, as designed by Springsteen & Goldhammer and built in 1935. The upper sanctuary and rectory were never constructed.

Austin Organ, Op. 1591 (1928) at Holy Trinity Episcopal (Inwood) - New York City

Austin Organ Company
Hartford, Conn. – Opus 1591 (1928)
Electro-pneumatic action
2 manuals, 11 stops, 7 ranks

This two-manual Austin organ is entirely enclosed in one chamber.

Great Organ (Manual I) – 61 notes, enclosed

Open Diapason

Dulciana

Stopped Diapason

Harmonic Flute

Swell Organ (Manual II) – 61 notes, enclosed

Stopped Diapason

Harmonic Flute

Salicional

Oboe

Vox Celeste

Tremolo

Pedal Organ – 32 notes

Bourdon [ext.]

Dulciana [ext.]

Organ in previous church on Lenox Avenue and 122nd Street: Hillgreen, Lane & Company Alliance, Ohio – Opus 724 (1923) Electro-pneumatic action 3 manuals, 57 stops, 43 ranks On May 15, 1923, a contract was signed with the Hillgreen, Lane & Company of Alliance, Ohio, to repair and improve the 1888 Hook & Hastings organ. Hillgreen, Lane reused most of the old pipes, providing additional chests and pipes to extend most manual ranks to 61 or 73 notes, and the pedal ranks to 32 notes. A total of seven new ranks were added, including three in the Swell, and four in a new enclosed Auxiliary division located in the North Gallery. The rebuilt organ was converted to electro-pneumatic action, and a new electric console was installed. Total cost of the project was $8,800.00. This organ burned when a fire gutted the church interior in 1925.

Great Organ (Manual II) – 61 notes, enclosed with Choir
16	Diapason	73	2 2/3	Twelfth	58
8	Major Diapason	73	2	Fifteenth	58
8	Minor Diapason	73		Mixture IV ranks	232
8	Viola di Gamba	73	8	Trumpet	73
8	Double Flute	73	16	Tuba	AUX
8	Major Flute	AUX	8	Tuba	AUX
4	Flute Harmonique	73	4	Tuba Clarion	AUX
4	Octave	73

Swell Organ (Manual III) – 61 notes, enclosed
16	Bourdon	73	4	Minor Flute	AUX
8	Diapason	73	4	Flauto Traverso	73
8	Salicional	73	2	Flagelolet	73
8	Violin *	73		Dolce Cornet III ranks	174
8	Dolce Celeste [old Aeoline]	73	8	Cornopean	73
8	Aeoline *	73	8	Oboe	73
8	Viole d'Orchestre	AUX	8	Vox Humana *	73
8	Viole Celeste	AUX	8	Tuba	AUX
8	Major Flute	AUX	4	Tuba Clarion	AUX
8	Stopped Flute	73		Tremolo
4	Violetta	AUX		Vox Humana Tremolo
4	Violetta Celeste	AUX

Choir Organ (Manual I) – 61 notes, enclosed with Great
8	Violin Diapason	73	4	Violetta	AUX
8	Dulciana	73	4	Violetta Celeste	AUX
8	Unda Maris	58	4	Minor Flute	AUX
8	Viole d'Orchestre	AUX	4	Flute d'Amour	73
8	Viole Celeste	AUX	2	Flautino	AUX
8	Major Flute	AUX	8	Clarinet	73
8	Melodia	73		Tremolo
8	Quintadena	73

Pedal Organ – 32 notes, enclosed
32	Resultant [Diap. + Bdn.]	—	8	Flute [ext. 16' Diapason]	12
16	Diapason	32	8	Tuba	AUX
16	Major Bourdon	32	16	Trombone	32
16	Minor Bourdon	SW

Auxiliary Organ – 61 notes, enclosed [located in North Gallery]
16	Tuba *	85	8	Viole d'Orchestre *	85
8	Tuba	—	4	Violetta	—
4	Tuba Clarion	—	8	Viole Celeste *	73
8	Major Flute *	85	4	Violetta Celeste	—
4	Minor Flute	—		Tremolo
2	Flautino	—		* ranks added by Hillgreen, Lane (1923)

Couplers
	Great to Pedal 8'			Great to Swell 8'
	Swell to Pedal 8', 4'			Swell to Choir 16', 8', 4'
	Choir to Pedal 8'			Great 4', Unison Separation
	Pedal to Pedal 8'			Swell 16', 4', Unison Separation
	Swell to Great 16', 8', 4'			Choir 16', 4', Unison Separation
	Choir to Great 16', 8', 4'

Combinations
	Operated by pistons and adjustable at the keyboard.
	5 pistons under each manual, controlling all stops and couplers.
	15 pistons in all.

Pedal Movements
	Great to Pedal Reversible			Swell Expression
	Auxilliary Expression			Great & Choir Expression
	Crescendo			Sforzando

Organ in previous church at Lenox Avenue and 122nd Street: Hook & Hastings Co. Boston, Mass. – Opus 1392 (1888) Mechanical action 3 manuals, 31 stops, 36 ranks For their new church on Lenox Avenue, an organ was built in 1888 by the Hook & Hastings company of Boston. The following stoplist was documented by Gustav F. Döhring, the Eastern Representative for Hillgreen, Lane & Co., who also wrote that the organ had tracker action, "but the draw stops are pneumatic."

Great Organ (Manual II) – 58 notes
16	Open Diapason	58	4	Flute Harmonique	58
8	Open Diapason	58	2 2/3	Twelfth	58
8	Viola di Gamba	58	2	Fifteenth	58
8	Doppel Flute	58		Mixture IV ranks	232
4	Octave	58	8	Trumpet	58

Swell Organ (Manual III) – 58 notes, enclosed
16	Bourdon	58	4	Flauto Traverso	58
8	Open Diapason	58	2	Flageolet	58
8	Stopped Diapason	58		Dolce Cornet III ranks	174
8	Salicional	58	8	Cornopean	58
8	Quintadena	58	8	Oboe	58
4	Violina	58		Tremulant

Choir Organ (Manual I) – 58 notes
8	Geigen Principal	58	4	Fugara	58
8	Dulciana	58	2	Piccolo	58
8	Melodia	58	8	Clarinet	58

Pedal Organ – 27 notes
16	Open Diapason	27	8	Violoncello	27
16	Bourdon	27	16	Trombone	27

Couplers
	Swell to Great			Swell to Pedal
	Swell to Choir			Great to Pedal
	Choir to Great			Choir to Pedal

Organ in previous church at Fifth Avenue and 125th Street: J.H. & C.S. Odell & Co. New York City – Opus 179 (1880) Mechanical action 2 manuals, 20 stops, 22 ranks On June 21, 1880, Holy Trinity Church of Harlem contracted with J.H. & C.S. Odell to build a new organ for the rebuilt church building. The handwritten Agreement is unusual in that it was executed on paper measuring approximately 12 by 18 inches. Odell stated that the organ was "To have Two Manuals and a Pedal of Two Octaves and five notes." The organ would be "inclosed [sic] in a suitable case with speaking pipes in front handsomly [sic] decorated in gold and colors..." Odell indicated that the organ would be complete and ready for use on or before November 1st, 1880, for the sum of $3,750 less 2½ per cent.

Great Organ (Manual I) – 58 notes
16	Bourdon [wood]	58	4	Principal	58
8	Open Diapason	58	3	Twelfth	58
8	Gamba	58	2	Fifteenth	58
8	Melodia (Doppel Flöte) [wood]	58		Mixture, 3 ranks	174
8	Dolce	58	8	Trumpet (Harmonic treble)	58

Swell Organ (Manual III) – 58 notes, enclosed
8	Open Diapason	58	4	Fugara	58
8	Salicional	58	2	Piccolo	58
8	Stopd Diapason [wood]	58	8	Oboe	58
4	Flute Harmonic	58		Tremulant

Pedal Organ – 30 notes
16	Grand Dbl. Op. Diap. [wood]	30	8	Violoncello	30
16	Grand Bourdon [wood]	30

Couplers &c
	Patent Reversible coupler			Swell to Pedal
	Swell to Great			Bellows Signal
	Great to Pedal			Balance Swell Pedal

Patent Pneumatic Compositions
1	Full Great Organ		5	Gamba, Melodia & Dolce
2	Full to Mixture		6	Gamba & Dolce
3	Full to Principal		7	Melodia
4	All the eight-feet stops		8	Dolce

Organ in previous church at Fifth Avenue and 125th Street: Levi U. Stuart New York City (1870) Mechanical action 3 manuals, 29 stops, 31 ranks Levi U. Stuart, half-brother to organbuilder Richard Ferris, built his last three-manual organ for the original Church of the Holy Trinity, Harlem, located on Fifth Avenue at 125th Street. The church and organ were destroyed by fire in 1880.

Great Organ (Manual II) – 58 notes
16	Double Open Diapason	58	2	Fifteenth	58
8	Open Diapason	58		Sesquialtera, 3 ranks	174
8	Melodia (wood)	58	8	Trumpet	58
4	Principal	58	4	Clarion	58
3	Twelfth	58

Swell Organ (Manual III) – 58 notes, enclosed
16	Bourdon (wood)	58	8	Hautboy	58
8	Open Diapason	58	8	Cornopean	58
8	Stop Diapason (wood)	58	8	Vox Humana	58
4	Harmonic Flute	58		Vox Tremulant
2	Fifteenth	58

Choir Organ (Manual I) – 58 notes
8	Stop Diapason (wood)	58	4	Flute	58
8	Salicional	58	2	Piccolo	58
8	Dulciana	58	8	Cremona	58
4	Principal	58

Pedal Organ – 29 notes
16	Double Open Diapason	29	8	Violoncello	29
16	Gamba	29	16	Bombard	29
12	Quint	29

Couplers
	Swell and Great			Great and Pedal
	Swell and Choir			Swell and Pedal
	Choir and Great			Choir and Pedal

Mechanicals
	Vox Tremulant
	Bellows Alarm

Composition Stops
	Full
	Chorus
	Solo

Sources:
     Austin Organs Inc. website: www.austinorgans.com
     Cram, Ralph Adams. American Church Building of To-Day. New York: Architectural Book Publishing Company, Inc., 1929.
     Dolkart, Andrew S. and Gretchen S. Sorin. Touring Historic Harlem: Four Walks in Northern Manhattan. New York: New York Landmarks Conservancy, 1997.
     Dunlap, David W. From Abyssinian to Zion: A Guide to Manhattan's Houses of Worship. New York: Columbia University Press, 2004.
     Holy Trinity Episcopal Church website: www.holytrinityinwood.org/
     Ochse, Orpha. Austin Organs. Richmond: The Organ Historical Society, 2001.
     Ogasapian, John. Organ Building in New York City: 1700-1900. Braintree: The Organ Literature Foundation, 1977.
     " Spectacular Blaze Razes Holy Trinity," The New York Times, April 16, 1925.
     Stern, Robert A.M., Thomas Mellins, and David Fishman. New York 1880: Architecture and Urbanism in the Gilded Age. New York City: The Monacelli Press, 1999.
     Trupiano, Larry. Contract and specifications of J.H. & C.S. Odell organ, Op. 179 (1880).
     Trupiano, Larry. Factory Specifications of Hillgreen, Lane & Co. organ, Op. 724 (1923).
     Trupiano, Larry. Specifications of Hook & Hastings organ, Op. 1391 (1888).
     Trupiano, Larry. Specifications of Levi U. Stuart organ (1870).

Illustrations:
     Cram, Ralph Adams. American Church Building of To-Day. Drawing of proposed church by John Russell Pope, architect.
     Holy Trinity Episcopal Church: photo of church on Lenox Avenue.
     LaJolla, Diego: Photos of Austin Organ, Op. 1591 (1928); present church.

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