St. Lucy Catholic Church - New York City
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Church of St. Lucy
(Roman Catholic)

344 East 104th Street
New York, N.Y. 10029

Organ Specifications:
Upper Church (since 1915)
► II/12 J.H. & C.S. Odell (c.1901); elec. by John A. Porto (1973)
Lower Church (since 1901)
• unknown; possibly above Odell


The Parish of St. Lucy was established on November 12, 1899, to serve the Italian and English-speaking Catholics residing in the area between 97th and 110th Streets and Second Avenue and the East River. At the time there were between 5,000 and 6,000 Catholics in East Harlem, more than half of whom were Italian. Archbishop Corrigan appointed Rev. Edmund W. Cronin to organize the parish and, on January 21, 1900, the first Mass was said in a temporary chapel. Father Cronin worked quickly and ground was broken for the basement church and rectory on June 6, 1900. The rectory was ready for occupancy by Christmas, and five months later the basement church was dedicated by Archbishop Corrigan on Pentecost Sunday, May 26, 1901.

In 1914, the parish numbered between 15,000 and 16,000 Catholics, but the demographics had shifted in that most were Italian with only 500 being English-speaking. Plans were made to complete the church and build a school. As designed by Thomas J. Duff, the combination church-school building was dedicated on Novemeber 7, 1915, by Cardinal Foley and Archbishop John Bonzano, Apostolic Delegate from Rome to the U.S., and several monsignors and several priests. The school was "regarded by the Fire Department as a model in fire exit accommodations," as every classroom had three exits.

Today, the Church of St. Lucy has a mostly Hispanic congregation and is administered by the Church of St. Francis de Sales on East 96th Street.
               
J.H. & C.S. Odell
New York City (c.1901)
Electro-pneumatic action; elec. John A. Porto (1973)
2 manuals, 13 stops, 13 ranks


The organ in St. Lucy's Church was built by J.H. & C.S. Odell of New York City. This organ does not appear on the Odell Opus List, an indication that the organ may have been acquired second-hand. It is not known when the organ was installed: possibly c.1901 when the basement church was completed, or in 1915 when the upper church was opened. In 1973, John A. Porto (son of organbuilder Anthony Porto) embarked on a project to electrify the organ, allowing the case to be divided and moved to either side of the gallery window. Porto installed supply house chests and a Reisner console, but the project was never completed, leaving the organ unusable since that time. Although the console has manual compasses of 61 notes and a 32-note pedal compass, it is not known if ranks were extended or any stops duplexed. Pipecounts below are suggested, based on Odell tracker organs of the late 19th century. Closer inspection of the organ has not been possible as church authorities cannot locate the key to the gallery.
               
Great Organ (Manual I) – 58 notes
8
  Open Diapason
58
4
  Principal
58
8
  Flute
58
4
  Flute Traverso
58
8
  Dulciana
58
2
  Piccolo
58

     

     
Swell Organ (Manual II) – 58 notes, enclosed
8
  Open Diapason
58
4
   Viol
58
8
  Stopped Diapason
58
8
   Oboe
58
8
  Dulciana
58
     Tremolo  
4
   Flute
58
        

     

     
Pedal Organ – 30 notes
16
  Bourdon
30
       
               
Couplers
    Great to Pedal 8'   Great 16', 4'
    Swell to Pedal 8'   Swell 16', 4'
    Swell to Great 16', 8', 4'    
               
Pedal Movements
    Balanced Swell Pedal   Great to Pedal Reversible
    Crescendo Pedal   Sforzando Reversible
               
Sources:
     The Catholic Church in the United States of America: Undertaken to Celebrate the Golden Jubilee of His Holiness, Pope Pius X, Vol. III. New York: The Catholic Editing Company, 1914.
     Dunlap, David W. From Abyssinian to Zion: A Guide to Manhattan's Houses of Worship. New York: Columbia University Press, 2004.
     Glück, Sebastian. Specifications (Feb. 2010) of the J.H. & C.S. Odell organ as left by John Porto.
     Nelson, George. Organs in the United States and Canada Database. Seattle, Wash.
     "New St. Lucy's Dedicated," The New York Times (Nov. 8, 1915:6).
     Shelley, Thomas J. The Bicentennial History of the Archdiocese of New York 1808-2008. Strasbourg: Éditions du Signe, 2007.
     Trupiano, Larry. Electronic correspondence regarding the J.H. & C.S. Odell organ.

Illustration:
     www.EastHarlem.com. Exterior.