Pipe Organ Database

a project of the organ historical society

Skinner Organ Co. (Opus 666, 1927)

Location:

First Congregational Church
292 Bellview Street
Benton Harbor, MI 49022 US
Sanctuary
Organ ID: 23377

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Status and Condition:

  • This instrument's location type is: Congregational Church
  • The organ is unaltered from its original state.
  • The organ's condition is unknown.
We received the most recent update for this instrument's status from Database Manager on July 14, 2018.

Technical Details:

  • Chests: Electro-pneumatic (EP)
  • 34 ranks. 2,309 pipes. 6 divisions. 4 manuals. 31 stops. 36 registers.
All:
  • Chest Type(s): Electro-pneumatic (EP) chests
  • Position: In side chambers at the front of the room. No visible pipes.
We received the most recent update for this division from Database Manager on July 14, 2018.
Main:
  • Manuals: 4
  • Divisions: 6
  • Stops: 31
  • Registers: 36
  • Position: Console in fixed position, right.
  • Manual Compass: 61
  • Pedal Compass: 32
  • Key Action: Electrical connection from key to chest.
  • Stop Action: Electric connection between stop control and chest.
  • Console Style: Traditional style with roll top.
  • Stop Controls: Drawknobs in vertical rows on angled jambs.
  • Combination Action: Adjustable combination pistons.
  • Swell Control Type: Balanced swell shoes/pedals.
  • Pedalboard Type: Concave radiating pedalboard meeting AGO Standards.
  • Has Crescendo Pedal
  • Has Tutti Reversible Thumb Pistons
  • Has Tutti Reversible Toe Pistons
  • Has Combination Action Thumb Pistons
  • Has Combination Action Toe Pistons
  • Has Coupler Reversible Thumb Pistons
  • Has Coupler Reversible Toe Pistons
We received the most recent update for this console from Database Manager on July 14, 2018.
Database Manager on January 13, 2020:

Down to 36 members, the last service for First Congregational was held in 2007; the facility was given to megachurch Trinity United Church of Christ, but their development plans were thwarted by the depression of 2008; with assistance from Trinity UCC and other congregations, Wide Awake United Church of Christ opened in the facility and is still going strong at this time.

We received the most recent update for this note from Database Manager on January 14, 2020.
Database Manager on July 14, 2018:

Congregation held its last service in 2007. According to a 2018 newspaper article, there is water leaking into the building through the bell tower. The floor of the bell tower had collapsed into a Sunday School room below it.

We received the most recent update for this note from Database Manager on January 13, 2020.
Database Manager on May 07, 2018:
We received the most recent update for this note from Database Manager on July 14, 2018.
Database Manager on May 01, 2009:

Updated through online information from John Gouwens. -- This organ replaced the Skinner Op. 547 that had been lost in a fire soon after its installation. At present (2009), the church has been bought by another congregation (Trinity UCC in Chicago), and is used also by a Seventh-day Adventist congregation. Neither group reportedly uses the organ. The organ shows predictable signs of wear, and is in somewhat shaky condition, but it is completely original. Room acoustics are quite good!

We received the most recent update for this note from Database Manager on January 13, 2020.
Database Manager on April 19, 2006:

Identified through information adapted from E. M. Skinner/Aeolian-Skinner Opus List, by Sand Lawn and Allen Kinzey (Organ Historical Society, 1997), and included here through the kind permission of Sand Lawn:
Replaced #547, which had been lost in a fire; extant; unaltered.

We received the most recent update for this note from Database Manager on April 09, 2020.
Source not recorded: Open In New Tab From Allen Kinzey via <i>The Aeolian-Skinner Archives</i>
We received the most recent update for this stoplist from Database Manager on April 09, 2020.

Instrument Images:

Church Exterior: Photograph by Chad Boorsma. Taken on 2018-07-12

Church Exterior: Photograph by Chad Boorsma. Taken on 2018-07-12