Something not quite correct?Suggest an Edit
We are grateful for the generous support of our sponsors, who make it possible for us to continue our mission of preserving and promoting the rich history of pipe organs across the globe.
Something missing?Add Image
Something missing?Add StoplistorSuggest an Edit
Something missing or not quite correct?Add ConsoleorSuggest an Edit
The following is from “History of the First Presbyterian Church in Germantown (Pennsylvania)” by The Rev. J. Frederick Dripps, D.D.; October 1909; page 109.
*> The beautiful organ which occupies the present organ gallery was a gift to the Church, a memorial of Mrs. Mary H. Morris Wood, the wife of the Pastor, who died in 1891, and of her first-born son, Wistar Morris Wood, who died in 1887. The instrument is one of the finest in the city. It was built by Charles S. Haskell, the builder of the organ of the Drexel Institute, and of many other notable organs. The organ has three manuals and pedals, and the action throughout is pneumatic. A fourth manual controls the registration of the instrument, there being no draw-stops. This somewhat unusual feature adds greatly to the ease with which the performer manipulates the organ. There are forty-three speaking stops, divided as follows : —
Pedal Organ 8 stops
Choir Organ 8 stops
Great Organ 13 stops
Swell Organ 14 stops
There are seven mechanical stops and couplers, and ten combination pedals. The Choir Organ and the Swell Organ are each enclosed in a separate swell-box. This affords additional opportunity for delicate modulation of tone.*
[Note: The Rev. Charles Wood, D.D. was the pastor of the church 1885-1897 and is unrelated to the blind organist David D. Wood who dedicated the instrument in April 1892. The author, Rev. Dripps, was pastor of the church 1870-1880.]
From The Philadelphia Times, 18 April 1892:
"The celebration of Easter was observed in the First Presbyterian Church, Germantown, with more ceremony and music than ever before in the history of the congregation. The beautiful edifice, which has just been remodeled, presented a pretty appearance, and for the first time the new organ, put in at a cost of $8,000, by the pastor, Rev. Dr. Charles Wood, as a memento to his late wife, pealed forth its sweetest music, under the direction of Woodruff Jones, the organist."
Built by Charles S. Haskell, and appeared on an opus list published by the firm in The Diapason, January, 1909. Replaced in 1917 by Austin Opus 732. Unknown if any Haskell pipework retained.
Something missing or not quite correct?Add NoteorAdd WebpageorAdd Cross ReferenceorSuggest an Edit