Click on images to enlarge Ephesus Seventh-day Adventist Church 101 West 123rd Street at Lenox Avenue New York, N.Y. 10027 http://www.ephesus.org Organ Specifications: ► III/42 Wicks Pipe Organ Company, Op. 5383 (1973) ► II/38 Allen Organ Company electronic (c.1976) – Youth Church • III/ Aeolian Company (installed c.1950) – burned (1969) ► II/21 Hilborne L. Roosevelt, Op. 341 (1886) Harlem's skyline landmark is the slender steeple of Ephesus Seventh-day Adventist Church on West 123rd Street and Lenox Avenue. This is a cultural landmark, too, as the birthplace in 1968 of the Boys Choir of Harlem. The roots of this sanctuary are common with those of the Elmendorf Reformed Church. Both emerged from the Harlem Reformed Dutch Church, which separated along economic and geographic lines in 1887, when this building was constructed as the Second Collegiate Church of Harlem, to serve the wealthier families living in western Harlem. John Rochester Thomas (1848-1901) designed the late Victorian Gothic Revival building faced in yellowish Ohio sandstone that was constructed between 1885-1887. The church's slender tower was once capped by a metal crocket, and the lower level has corbels of monsters that flank the central entrance; between the doors is a mustachioed head of a man. Thomas, who is perhaps best known for his Hall of Records/Surrogate's Court on Chambers Street, designed more than 150 churches, including the 1883 building for Calvary Baptist Church on West 57th Street. A bell cast in Amsterdam in 1734 for the original Harlem church was brought here. The Church Hall, now the Youth Chapel, was erected at the rear of the building between 1894-1895. By the late 1920s, the demographics of Harlem had changed, and many white Protestants relocated to other areas. In 1929, the Collegiate Reformed congregation moved downtown (taking the bell with them) to become the East Eighty-ninth Street Reformed Church. Their former church building was leased in 1930 by an Adventist congregation formed by the merger of two older black groups, and that group, now named Ephesus, purchased the building in 1939. The Ephesus Seventh-day Adventist Church grew rapidly, and by 1945 the membership reached 1,000, the mortgage was satisfied and a new pipe organ was installed.     Church Hall On January 9, 1969, a fire started in the roof of the Youth Chapel and quickly spread to the church. The entire interior was destroyed, except for three stained glass windows. Witnesses on the scene remarked that the fire department took great care in causing minimal damage to the windows. The fire weakened the steeple and the top 30 feet was removed to prevent it from collapsing. While the church was rebuilt (1969-1978), the members of the church worshipped at the St. Andrew's Episcopal Church at 127th Street and Fifth Avenue. The interior of the building and the roof were totally rebuilt at a cost of $2.3 million and, in 1978, the congregation returned. In December 2006, the truncated steeple was restored with the addition of a replacement pinnacle of lead-coated copper and steel. Ephesus Seventh-day Adventist Church is within the Mount Morris Park Historic District, designated In 1971 by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission.             Wicks Pipe Organ Company Highland, Ill. – Opus 5383 (1973) Electric stop and combination action 3 manuals, 45 stops, 42 ranks The present organ in Ephesus Church was built by the Wicks Organ Company in 1973, but since the church rebuilding project was not finished, the organ was stored until it could be installed in the summer of 1976. Exposed pipes (many topped with copper tuning sleeves) of the Great and Pedal divisions are in front of a screen that masks the chamber containing the enclosed Choir and Swell divisions. The detached three-manual drawknob console is in the center of the choir gallery. Total cost of the organ was $100,000.                 Great Organ (Manual II) – 61 notes (2¼" wind pressure) 16   Quintaton 61 1   Mixtur IV ranks 244 8   Principal 61 16   Fagott SW 8   Gedackt 61 8   Trompete [3" pressure] 61 4   Octave 61   Tremolo 4   Spillflöte 61   Chimes 21 tubes 2   Octave 61                     Swell Organ (Manual III) – 61 notes, enclosed (3" wind pressure) 8 Rohrflöte 61 1 3/5   Terz [TC] 49 8   Gambe 61 1/4   Cimbel III ranks 183 8   Voix Celeste [TC] 49 16   Fagott 61 4   Spitzflöte 61 8   Trompette 61 2 2/3   Nazat 61 8   Fagott [ext.] 12 2   Principal 61 4   Hautbois 61 2   Flachflöte [ext. Spitzflöte] 12   Tremolo                 Choir Organ (Manual I) – 61 notes, enclosed (3" wind pressure) 8   Holzgedackt 61 1 1/3   Quinte 61 8   Erzähler 61 1/2   Scharff III ranks 183 8   Unda Maris [TC] 49 8   Schalmei 61 4   Principal 61 8   Trompete GT 4   Nachthorn 61   Tremolo 2   Blockflöte [ext.] 12   Blank             Pedal Organ – 32 notes 32   Resultant — 4   Kleingedackt [ext. Subbass] 12 16   Principal 32 2   Mixtur III ranks 96 16   Subbass 32 16   Posaune 32 16   Quintaton GT 16   Fagott SW 8   Octave 32 8   Trompete [ext. Posaune] 12 8   Bassflöte [ext. Subbass] 12 4   Schalmei CH 4   Choralbass 32                     Couplers     Great to Pedal 8'     Choir to Great 16', 8', 4'     Swell to Pedal 8', 4'     Swell to Choir 8', 4'     Choir to Pedal 8', 4'     Swell 16', 4', Unison Silent     Swell to Great 16', 8', 4'     Choir 16', 4', Unison Silent                 Combination Pistons     Pistons No. 1-2-3-4-5-6 affecting Great stops and couplers     Pistons No. 1-2-3-4-5-6 affecting Choir stops and couplers     Pistons No. 1-2-3-4-5-6 affecting Swell stops and couplers     Pistons No. 1-2-3-4-5-6 affecting Pedal stops and couplers (dup. by toe studs)     Pistons No. 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8 affecting Full Organ (dup. by toe studs)                 Accessories     Swell Expression Pedal   Lock on Combination Setter     Choir Expression Pedal   Wind Indicator Light     Crescendo Pedal and Indicator         Tutti Reversible with Indicator         Great to Pedal Reversible Manual Piston and Toe Stud     Swell to Pedal Reversible         Choir to Pedal Reversible                               Organ in Youth Church (Auditorium): Allen Organ Company Macungie, Penn. (c.1976) Electronic tonal production 2 manuals, 38 stops The Youth Chapel, located in the original "Church Hall" directly behind the sanctuary, contains a two-manual Allen Organ Company digital instrument.                 Great Organ (Manual I) – 61 notes 16   Quintaden   Alterable Voice 5   8   Prinzipal   Alterable Voice 6   8   Dulciana   Alterable Voice 7   8   Hohlflöte   Alterable Voice 8   4   Oktav   Percussion L & R   4   Spitzflöte   Swell to Great   2 2/3   Quinte   Tremulant   2   Doublette   Celeste Tuning   2   Waldflöte   Speech Articulation Off     Mixture IV ranks   Flute Vibrato   8   Schalmei       8   Krummhorn                       Swell Organ (Manual II) – 61 notes 8 Salizional       Alterable Voice 1   8   Gemshorn       Alterable Voice 2   8   Gedeckt       Alterable Voice 3   4   Spitzprinzipal       Percussion L   4   Koppelflöte       Percussion R   2 2/3   Nasat       Chiff   2   Blockflöte       Sustain   1 3/5   Terz       Tremulant   1   Sifflöte       Doubling Off     Mixture III ranks       Celeste Tuning   16   Contra Fagotto       Fast Attack   8   Hautbois       Speech Articulation   8   Trompette       Sub Octave L   4   Clairon       Sub Octave R               Antiphonal Organ               Main Organ Off               Pedal Organ – 32 notes 32   Contra Bass       Great to Pedal   32   Contre Bourdon       Swell to Pedal   16   Prinzipal       Sustain R   16   Bourdon       Percussion L   16   Lieblich Gedeckt           8   Octave           8   Gedecktflöte       4   Choral Bass           4   Flute Ouverte             Mixture II ranks           16   Posaune           8   Trompette                       Aeolian Company New York City – installed c.1950 Electro-pneumatic action 3 manuals Following the removal of the 1886 Roosevelt, the church acquired a three-manual organ built by the Aeolian Company and reinstalled it behind the modified 1886 Roosevelt case. Church sources suggest that the organ had a connection with the Guggenheim family, so it may be that Ephesus obtained Aeolian's Op. 1793 and/or Op. 1794 from the American Women's Association Clubhouse on West 57th Street, both of which had been purchased by Florence (Mrs. Daniel) Guggenheim in 1931. The fire of January 1969 melted the case, but the remains were purchased by Vaughan Ramsey (organist of Flatbush-Tompkins Congregational Church in Brooklyn). Matthew Bellocchio and Larry Trupiano assisted Ramsey with the removal of the pipes. Specifications for this organ have not yet been located.             Hilborne L. Roosevelt New York City – Opus 341 (1886) Mechanical action 2 manuals, 19 stops, 21 ranks The original organ in the Second Collegiate Reformed Church of Harlem was built in 1886 by Hilborne L. Roosevelt of New York City. This organ was similar to Roosevelt's Style 32. When it was learned that the organ was being removed by the church c.1949, organ historian F.R. Webber purchased the pipes for $25 and reinstalled them in his Mount Vernon, N.Y. residence.                 Great Organ (Manual I) – 58 notes 8   Open Diapason 58 2 2/3   Octave Quint * 58 8   Doppelflote 58 2   Super Octave * 58 8   Viola di Gamba 58 8   Trumpet * 58 8   Dulciana * 58   * enclosed with Swell 4   Octave * 58                       Swell Organ (Manual II) – 58 notes, enclosed 16 Bourdon (bass and treble) + 58 4   Flute Harmonique 58 8   Violin Diapason 58   Cornet, 3 ranks 174 8   Stopped Diapason 58 8   Oboe 58 8   Dolce 58   Tremulant 4   Gemshorn 58     + split drawknob               Pedal Organ – 30 notes 16   Open Diapason [wood] 30 8   Violoncello 30 16   Bourdon 30                         Accessories     Swell to Great       Bellows Signal       Swell to Pedal             Great to Pedal                         1910 photo of Roosevelt Organ             Sources:       Adams, Michael Henry. Harlem Lost and Found: An Architectural and Social History, 1765-1915. New York: Monacelli Press, 2002.       Davey, George. Information about the organs at Ephesus Seventh-day Adventist Church.       Dolkart, Andrew S. and Matthew A. Postal. Guide to New York City Landmarks (Third Edition). New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2004.       Dolkart, Andrew S. and Gretchen S. Sorin. Touring Historic Harlem: Four Walks in Northern Manhattan. New York: New York Landmarks Conservancy, 1997.       Dunlap, David W. From Abyssinian to Zion: A Guide to Manhattan's Houses of Worship. New York: Columbia University Press, 2004.       Dunlap, David W. "Steeple on Historic Harlem Church Replaced," The New York Times, Dec. 12, 2006.       Ephesus Seventh-day Adventist Church website: http://www.ephesus.org       Gentry, Glenn A. "A Tale of Two Organs," The American Organist, March 2007. Implied specifications of Hilborne L. Roosevelt organ, Op. 341 (1886).       Gentry, Glenn A. Correspondence (October 13, 1953) from F.R. Webber relating to Roosevelt organ, Op. 341 (1886).       Hickman, Cynthia. Harlem Churches at the End of the 20th Century. New York: Dunbar Press, 2001.       Ogasapian, John. Organ Building in New York City: 1700-1900. Braintree: The Organ Literature Foundation, 1977.       Smith, Rollin. The Aeolian Pipe Organ and its Music. Richmond: The Organ Historical Society, 1998.       Trupiano, Larry. Factory Specifications of Wicks organ, Op. 5383 (1973).       Trupiano, Larry. Information about the second-hand Aeolian Organ removed after the January 1969 fire. Photos:       eBay.com. 1907 postcard of Second Collegiate Reformed Church.       Ephesus Seventh-day Adventist Church Archives: b&w interior of original church; color interior showing organ case (c.1965); Roosevelt organ, Op. 341 (1886); Church Hall.       Lawson, Steven E.: Wicks organ, Op. 5383 (1973).       Price, Alan: color exterior.             | NYC AGO Home Page | Back to NYC Organ Project List |