Berkshire Organ Co., Inc.
1970

This was a totally new organ by Berkshire inside the historic 1857 Hook case, moved from the rear gallery to the front of the church by Johnson & Son in 1891 as Op. 765. The remains of the Johnson, electrified by Hall in 1928, were sold to St. John's Episcopal Church, Niantic, Conn. without the historic Hook case or old facade pipes. It is not known if the facade pipes were Hook or Johnson, but they were reused by Berkshire. Consultant E.A. Kelley convinced the church in 1980 that the antique facade pipes were too large in scale and replaced them with new zinc pipes only one scale smaller. Berkshire remade the side case extensions from Johnson so they visually disappeared into the background and allowed the Hook case to take prominence. Berkshire retained the Spencer blower installed by the Hall Organ Co. in 1928. The new slider chests were made by Richard Hamar under sub-contract to Berkshire. In 2021 as the church struggles with a dwindling congregation, the Berkshire is in need of repair and receives occasional use. The Broadway Congregational Church merged with Second Congregational in 1918 and was renamed United Congregational Church.

Updated through online information from Joshua Ziemski.

The original builder was E. & G. G. Hook (1857, Opus215).

Status Note: There 1996.

El. combination action.