St. Josaphat Catholic Church - Bayside (Queens), N.Y. (credit: Zosia Zeleska-Bobrowski)
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St. Josaphat Catholic Church

34-32 210th Street
Bayside (Queens), N.Y. 11361
http://stjosaphatbayside.org/







Undated postcard of Parish Hall, St. Josaphat Catholic Church - Bayside (Queens), N.Y.  
Undated postcard of Parish Hall  
St. Josaphat Catholic Church - Bayside (Queens), N.Y. (credit: Zosia Zeleska-Bobrowski)  
Interior of present building  
The Parish of St. Josaphat (Kościół p.w. Św. Jozafata) was established in 1910 by the Diocese of Brooklyn to serve Polish Catholics living in the vacinity of Bayside, Queens. Named for St. Jozafat Kuncewicz (1580-1623) of Poland, the parish was attended by the Rev. Gervase Kubec of St. Casimir Polish Catholic Church, Brooklyn. In 1913, the Rev. Bronislaus Malinowski was appointed first pastor. Plans were drawn up in May 1913 for a parish hall that would seat 400 and cost $12,000. At the same time, a two-story brick rectory, also reported to cost $12,000, was erected.

In 1934, the cornerstone was laid for the present building, located on the corner of 35th Avenue and 210th Street. Designed in a neo-Gothic style, the façade has a square tower surmounted by a steeple on the right side. The Interior is notable for its Byzantine-style stained glass windows. Upon completition of the new church, the original parish house was converted to its intended use.

Today, services are held in both Polish and English. St. Josaphat's Church is also home to Bayside's Polish Heritage Month celebration.
               
  Estey Organ, Op. 3103 (1938) in St. Josaphat Catholic Church - Bayside (Queens), N.Y.
   
Estey Organ Company
Brattleboro, Vt. – Opus 3103 (1938)
Electro-pneumatic action
2 manuals, 28 registers, stops, 8 ranks



The organ in St. Josaphat's Church was built in 1938 by the Estey Organ Company of Brattleboro, Vt. As originally built, the organ had 26 stops controlling six unified ranks in two enclosures that flanked the gallery window. According to the Estey Pipe Organ website, Opus 3103 was built (or perhaps installed) by the United Organ Company of Oceanside [actually, Ocean City], N.J. At an unknown time, two stops (an 8' Gemshorn and an 8' Clarinet) were added to the Great division, bringing the total to eight ranks.

After more than seven decades of service, the organ had become unreliable due to deterioration of its leather and mechanical parts. In 2011, Elsener Organ Works, of Deer Park, N.Y., was selected to rebuild the organ. All of the leather components within the chests were replaced with electro-mechanical magnets, and the original electro-pneumatic relay was replaced with a new Peterson ICS-4000 solid-state switching system, allowing MIDI output and record/playback capability. Funding for this work was provided by the Estate of Stanley Francis Jobo, a longtime parishioner of the church.
               
Estey Organ, Op. 3103 (1938) in St. Josaphat Catholic Church - Bayside (Queens), N.Y.   St. Josaphat Catholic Church - Bayside (Queens), N.Y.   Estey Organ, Op. 3103 (1938) in St. Josaphat Catholic Church - Bayside (Queens), N.Y.
Swell Division enclosure       Great Division enclosure
               
Great Organ (Manual I) – 61 notes, enclosed
8
   Open Diapason
B
4
   Flute
A
8
   Gedeckt
A
4
   Dulcet
D
8
   Gemshorn
H
2 2/3
   Twelfth
B
8
   Melodia
C
2
   Fifteenth
B
8
   Dulciana
D
8
   Clarinet
G
4
   Octave
B
     Chimes  
 
      
 
      
Swell Organ (Manual II) – 61 notes, enclosed
16
   Lieblich Diapason [sic] *
A
4
   Flute d'Amour
A
8
   Open Diapason
B
2 2/3
   Nazard
A
8
   Gedeckt
A
2
   Flautino
A
8
   Salicional
D
8
   Oboe
F
8
   Dulciana
E
     Tremulant  
4
   Octave
B
    
* now labeled "Gedeckt"
               
Pedal Organ – 32 notes
16
   Bourdon
A
8
   Salicional
E
8
   Gedeckt
A
4
   Octave
B
8
   Melodia
C
4
   Flute
A
8
   Dulciana
D
        
               
Couplers
    Great to Pedal   Great 16', 4', Unison Off
    Swell to Pedal   Swell 16', 4', Unison Off
    Swell to Great 16', 8', 4'    
               
Adjustable Combinations
   
Swell Organ Pistons 1-2-3-4-5-6 (thumb)
Great Organ Pistons 1-2-3-4-5-6 (thumb)
Full Organ Pistons 1-2-3-4-5-6 (thumb & toe)
               
Reversibles
    Great to Pedal (thumb & toe)    
    Tutti (thumb & toe)    
               
Expression
    Balanced Swell Pedal    
    Balanced Great Pedal    
    Crescendo Pedal    
               
Stop Analysis
       
Pipes
A
16
   Bourdon/Gedeckt
97
B
8
   Open Diapason
85
C
8
   Melodia
61
D
8
   Dulciana
73
E
8
   Salicional
61
F
8
   Oboe [from low E]
49
G
8
   Gemshorn
61
H
8
   Clarinet
    61
     
Total
548
               
Sources:
     "Building in Queens Borough," The New York Times (May 25, 1913).
     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.
     Elsener Organ Works website: http://elsenerorganworks.com
     St. Josaphat Church website: http://stjosaphatbayside.org/
     Sharp, John K. History of the Diocese of Brooklyn, 1853-1953. The Catholic Church on Long Island. New York: Fordham University Press, 1954.

Illustrations:
     Elsener Organ Works website. Exterior; interior; Estey Organ, Op. 3103 (1938).
     St. Josaphat Church website. Original building (undated); present building exterior and interior (credit: Zosia Zeleska – Bobrowski).