Pipe Organ Database

This imposing Venetian stone church was built in 1877, and the tower visible from all over town was constructed in 1894. In 1895, Tiffany was hired to redecorate the interior, with mosaics, windows, and stencilling-- it is singularly stunning. The Hook & Hastings was installed in 1897 at the completion of the Tiffany work, replacing an as yet unknown organ, and it would be in the Tiffany playbook to have included a decoration scheme for the facade pipes. The on-line church history mentions the complete series of imitation electronic carillons installed here, but not a word about the organ history.

Hillgreen, Lane & Co. built a new instrument in 1958 reusing most of the old pipework, but considerably reducing the number of ranks in the process, and without the original upperwork. The organ may not have been considered a success, as it was rebuilt again only 8 years later, by the Delaware company of Tonawanda, N.Y.

The first editions of the O.H.S. Extant Organ Lists of Tracker Organs, list this as an extant tracker, modified by Delaware in 1966, with no mention of Hillgreen. The Hillgreen contract doesn't mention the Hook by name, but states the following: "It is understood some of the Pipes from the present Organ are to be incorporated in the new one, the Pipes to be brought to the factory, throughly overhauled and revoiced to modern standards. A suitable panel will be furnished and installed to fill the space in the Organ Case presently occupied by the Console." The boiler-plate Hillgreen contract contains a clause stating the pitch will be A440, and is here crossed out and A435 is written in-- the standard pitch of Hook pipework from the 1890s.

While I have not seen the organ in person, it would appear from the source documentation that the O.H.S. Extant List is in error, and very little of the Hook & Hastings remains.

Identified by David Lennington based on archived newspaper articles.

Database Manager on September 15, 2018:

(Update from David Lenington, listing this newspaper article as a source of information: Steuben Advocate, October 4, 1957). Hillgreen Lane used pipes from the previous Hook & Hastings.

Database Manager on November 24, 2017:

Updated by David Lenington, listing this website as a source of information: https://www.newspapers.com/image/276901654/?terms=bath%2Bpresbyterians%2Borgan%2B%2Blane

1958 newspaper article lists Hillgreen Lane Organ Co. for this organ.