Editor’s note: the information in this article was delivered as a lecture for the Ernest M. Skinner Sesquicentennial Conference on April 25, 2016, in Evanston, Illinois. The conference was sponsored by the Chicago, North Shore, and Fox Valley Chapters of the American Guild of Organists, the Chicago-Midwest Chapter of the Organ Historical Society, the Music Institute of Chicago, and The Diapason.
Ernest M. Skinner was a busy organbuilder from the time he first organized his own firm in 1901 in South Boston, Massachusetts. Most of the first 100 instruments were built for East Coast clients, though occasionally an organ would make its way further afield. In the Midwest United States, within a few years, Skinner organs would be sent to locations in Ohio, Minnesota, Michigan, Wisconsin, Iowa, and Indiana; however, it would take more than a decade before the first contract for a Skinner organ was inked for a destination in Illinois.
By the turn of the twentieth century, Chicago had fully recovered from the devastating fire of October 8–10, 1871. The city hosted the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition, centered where one now finds Jackson Park. Everything was new in Chicago, with resplendent churches, large fraternal lodges, educational institutions, and residences that drove a healthy, modern market for acquiring pipe organs of all sizes in the most up-to-date designs.
Breaking into the Chicago organ purchasing market must have become a priority for Skinner, for in 1913 a sudden flurry of four contracts was signed in quick succession in Chicago and Evanston for opuses 207, 208, 210, and 211. This breakthrough for the Skinner firm likely came with the assistance of the young and rising-star organist, Palmer Christian. Born in 1885 in nearby Kankakee, Illinois, Christian studied at Chicago’s American Conservatory of Music with Clarence Dickinson before traveling abroad to study with Karl Straube in Leipzig and Alexandre Guilmant in Paris. Upon his return to the United States in 1911, Palmer became organist of Kenwood Evangelical Church in the fashionable Chicago South Side neighborhood of Kenwood.
Kenwood Evangelical Church, Chicago
The city block bounded by 46th and 47th Streets and Greenwood and Ellis Avenues contains three monumental churches of significant architectural quality, all constructed between 1887 and 1926: the former Saint James United Methodist Church (46th Street and Ellis Avenue), Kenwood United Church of Christ (46th Street and Greenwood Avenue, just across the alleyway from Saint James), and Saint Ambrose Catholic Church (47th Street and Ellis Avenue). When these buildings were erected, Kenwood was a neighborhood of high society, as the likes of John G. Shedd of Marshall Field & Company fame belonged to Kenwood Evangelical Church. The Swift family of the meatpacking industry and the Harris family of banking belonged to Saint James Methodist Episcopal Church.
Kenwood Evangelical Church was organized on November 17, 1885, having grown from a Sunday school formed earlier that year. On November 26, 1887, the cornerstone of the present church was laid. The Romanesque Revival building was designed by William W. Boyington in association with H. B. Wheelock and dedicated November 18, 1888. (Boyington designed many important Chicago landmarks, most of which, like the old Chicago Board of Trade Building, are gone. His 1869 Chicago Water Tower and Pumping Station remain.) The edifice and the lot cost $65,423.92. The church is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. In 1888, Steere & Turner of Massachusetts installed its Opus 263, a two-manual, twenty-three-rank, mechanical-action organ costing $3,250. Portions of the gumwood case and the façade, including pipes from the Great 8′ Open Diapason, were retained to hide the new Skinner organ.
As mentioned above, in 1911 Palmer Christian was appointed organist to Kenwood Church. He soon led efforts to replace the Steere & Turner organ, and he specifically worked to have the contract awarded to the Ernest M. Skinner Company. This was to be the first Skinner contract in Illinois.
A specification was drawn for a three-manual organ in January 1913, and the contract was announced in the March issue of The Diapason. This was to be Opus 207, followed closely by three other Chicago-area contracts: Opus 208, First Church of Christ, Scientist, Evanston; Opus 210, Fourth Presbyterian Church, Chicago; and Opus 211, Hyde Park Baptist Church, Chicago.
Several changes would be made to the specification by the time the organ was installed the following year. On May 22, Christian wrote authorizing addition of the Great 8′ Philomela, extended from the Pedal 16′ Diapason, for an additional $150. Already, Christian and Skinner were at odds on just when the organ would be finished:
Regarding the matter of time, I have only this to say, that, inasmuch as our church was the first to get you out here—and, if I must say it, this was entirely due to my “plugging” for you—we most certainly hope that you can make a special effort in our case, if need be, to be ready according to schedule.
On July 14, 1913, the church treasurer, John B. Lord, wrote to Skinner, authorizing several changes to the specification: elimination of the Choir 8′ English Horn and casework; addition of the Choir two-rank 8′ Dulcet; 8′ Posaune, 8′ Salicional, and 4′ Octave borrows from the Swell to the Great; addition of Chimes for $500; and a six-rank Echo division on a fourth manual for $1,800. The church could now claim it was to have a four-manual organ, not three, as another Chicago church had since signed a contract for a four-manual Skinner organ, Fourth Presbyterian Church.
Christian wrote Skinner on December 19, 1913, reminding him that he wanted Swell and Choir Unison Off couplers, five pistons for each manual except Echo (there were no General pistons), Swell to Pedal reversible, and a Choir to Pedal 4′ coupler. The old organ had been removed from the church, and Christian was complaining about the delay in completing the new organ, noting he had lost $100 in wedding fees, as there was no organ to play for the ceremonies. He asked if Skinner would be able to keep a February 1, 1914, completion date, as he wanted his former teacher Clarence Dickinson to play the dedicatory recital soon thereafter when he was in Chicago.
Dickinson did not play the dedicatory recital during this visit. The May 1, 1914, issue of The Diapason notes that Christian himself played the opening recital on April 16. Apparently, Mr. Skinner was present for the program. This was the first Skinner organ to be completed in Illinois, but not for long.
The Great, Swell, Choir, and Pedal divisions are housed behind the old Steere façade above the pulpit and choir loft at the front of the nave. The Echo division and Chimes are in a room located off the second-floor rear balcony. The console sits in the choir loft at the far right. The manual compass is 61 notes (C–C); pedal compass is 32 notes (C–G). (Opus 208 would have a 30-note pedalboard.) The unaltered organ has been unplayable for several decades.
The congregation is now known as Kenwood United Church of Christ. The church has experienced a renewal in numbers over the last several decades, mostly due to the leadership of Reverend Dr. Leroy Sanders.
First Church of Christ, Scientist, Evanston
Evanston’s First Church of Christ, Scientist, was founded in January 1895. The first worship site was probably a residence located on the present property, which was converted for use as a church. This building burned in 1897, and the members of the congregation set about building a new church costing $25,000.
Construction for the present church seating 900 commenced in 1912 and was completed the following year. It is an excellent example of Neo-Classical architecture that has been revered by Christian Scientists everywhere and by the denomination’s founder, Mary Baker Eddy. Mrs. Eddy became interested in this style of architecture while attending the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago. Many of the exhibition buildings reflected this influence, including the Parliament of World Religions. First Church of Christ, Scientist, Chicago, now home to Grant Memorial African Methodist Episcopal Church, was among the first buildings of this type. The architect of First Church, Evanston, Solon Spencer Beman, also served as architect for First, Second, Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Churches of Christ, Scientist, Chicago. He designed the mansion of the W. W. Kimball family on South Prairie Avenue, Chicago, as well as the entire “town” of Pullman on the South Side of Chicago. Beman became a personal friend of Mrs. Eddy, became a Christian Scientist, and served as a consulting architect for construction of the Mother Church Extension in Boston. First Church, Evanston, was Beman’s final commission, as he died the following year at the age of sixty-one. The church reportedly cost $100,000 to build.
The first organ that the congregation owned was apparently a reed organ built by Leonard Peloubet & Co. of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In 1902, Lyon & Healy of Chicago built their Opus 105 (factory number 1357) for the congregation. This two-manual organ had mechanical key and stop action. When the present building was constructed, the Lyon & Healy was retained and installed in the Sunday school room of the lower level. In the 1990s, the then small congregation, unable to retain the organ, turned it over to the Organ Clearing House for eventual sale.
The organ in the new church auditorium, built by the Ernest M. Skinner Company, was completed on June 1, 1914, as Opus 208. The contract was signed in 1913. It is the oldest functioning Skinner organ in the state of Illinois. The Diapason announced the organ in July 1914:
The organ chamber is at the rear of the readers’ platform, and the tone comes into the auditorium through open ornamental lattice work, which conceals the pipes. The console is at the north (right) end of the platform, at the left of the readers.
Within the organ, the Great is centrally located with the Swell behind. The Choir and three Great additions are to the right. Interestingly, the pedal compass is 30 notes (C–F). During construction, the 4′ Octave was added to the Swell division, on its own chest with channel jumpers. Wind pressure was six inches throughout. The late Roy Kehl of Evanston has noted that Opus 208 was nearly identical to Opus 204, installed in Synod Hall of the Cathedral Church of Saint John the Divine, New York, New York.
At a later date, three ranks were added to the Great. Additional tilting tablets above the Swell manual were added for these stops, which were not controlled by the combination action. This work is believed to have been carried out by La Marche of Chicago.
The congregation was served by several excellent organists. Rossetter Gleason Cole was appointed organist in 1909 and served through 1929. Cole was born in 1866. After study at the University of Michigan and in Berlin, he returned to the United States, settling in the Chicago area in 1902. For over fifty years, he served on the faculty of the Cosmopolitan Music School, and for a time served as dean of the school. He was twice dean of the Illinois (now Chicago) Chapter of the American Guild of Organists (1913–1914 and 1928–1930). On January 1, 1930, he became organist to Second Church of Christ, Scientist, Chicago. During his lifetime, over ninety of his compositions were published in many different forms. He died in 1952, at Hilltop, near Lake Bluff, Illinois.
One of the oldest community music schools in the state, the Music Institute of Chicago was founded in 1931 and has campuses in Downers Grove, Evanston, Highland Park, Lake Forest, Lincolnshire, Northbrook, and Winnetka. In 2001, Music Institute purchased its second Evanston campus, the former First Church of Christ, Scientist. First Church had recently merged with Second Church of Christ, Scientist, Evanston, moving to that congregation’s worship space.
First Church vacated its building in 2001, and renovations for the Music Institute began the following year. The building is registered on the National Register of Historic Places. In 2003, when renovations were complete, the prestigious Richard H. Driehaus Award was presented to the Music Institute for its creative reuse of this historic building. For the organ’s ninetieth birthday celebration, the Organ Historical Society presented its Historic Organ Citation #312 on June 13, 2004, during a recital by James Russell Brown.
Between 2005 and 2007, the organ received a historic restoration by J. L. Weiler, Inc., of Chicago. At the conclusion of this project, the organ was reinaugurated in recital by Thomas Murray on September 28, 2007.
Fourth Presbyterian Church, Chicago
The Fourth Presbyterian Church of Chicago is the merger of North Presbyterian Church (founded in 1848) and Westminster Presbyterian Church (founded in 1855); Fourth Church was formally organized February 12, 1871, thus celebrating its sesquicentennial in 2021. According to the church’s website: “The name ‘Fourth’ was selected not because it was the fourth Presbyterian church to be founded in Chicago, but because Fourth was the lowest number then not in use.”
Fourth Church refurbished the North Church building at the southeast corner of Wabash and Grand Avenues and dedicated it on October 8, 1871. Within a day, the church burned in the Great Fire of Chicago. North Church housed 1865 Pilcher Bros. & Chant Opus 65, which burned with the church.
The congregation built a new stone building at the northwest corner of Rush and Superior Streets and dedicated it in February of 1874. This building housed Johnson & Son Opus 436, a three-manual organ.
The cornerstone of the present building was laid on September 17, 1912. The English and French Gothic edifice was designed by Ralph Adams Cram, while the accompanying buildings were built to the designs of Chicago’s Howard Van Doren Shaw. This part of what is now North Michigan Avenue was then known as Lincoln Parkway.
The building was dedicated in May 1914. In the ensuing years, the sanctuary was adorned with stained glass windows by Charles J. Connick. At its dedication, it also featured a new, four-manual organ built by the Ernest M. Skinner Company, Opus 210. In the church archives, there is a letter from Ernest M. Skinner to Mrs. Emmons Blaine, 101 Erie Street, Chicago, dated February 13, 1913. Mrs. Blaine was the donor of the organ. Apparently, Skinner had come to the church during its construction, met with Mrs. Blaine, took measurements, and drew a preliminary specification for an organ while at her house. There must have been disappointment with what was perceived to be the size of the organ that could fit into the small main chamber. In the end, the chamber’s exceptionally large height allowed Skinner to stack the organ, providing a much larger instrument to be built. Skinner probably overdid it in this letter by stating:
When I say I am pleased with the result, I mean that the tone will have a perfect outlet, that the organ is not crowded in any way, that it is roomy and convenient of access for the tuners, and that it is a very large complete instrument, second to none in this country; that while there are several stops appearing in the Cathedral organ in New York that I did not put here, I did get in one or two stops that are not in the Cathedral organ, because they were not in existence when that was built. I have invented a new stop through my study over this case.
I wanted to put in a Flute Celeste of which I am very fond. It takes up considerable room, and I set about finding a way to take less. I wanted to make the stop softer than usual, so I had some pipes made to small scale from the model of my Erzahler. The result is a most beautiful combination. I think the most beautiful soft effect I have heard.
It is easy to make a soft tone. It is not easy to make a soft tone and fill it with significance. The sheer beauty of this stop gives me a very great asset and adds another to my list of original stops. I call it “Kleine Erzahler,” which means “little story tellers.” Erzahler means story-teller, it is a german [sic] word and is a stop I designed seven or eight years ago. The stop is so talkative, I have always said it named itself. This new one is a smaller scale of the same family and it takes two pipes to each note, and so becomes plural. They speak with a vibration, as a Violin. I feel very happy over it . . . .
I say without reservation, I am better pleased with this specifications [sic] than any other I have drawn. It is a fine church organ and besides has a wealth of orchestral color and it does not contain a stop of doubtful value. I have always hoped I should land in Chicago with a big one.
While Palmer Christian may have given Ernest Skinner his first organ in Chicago, and even a four-manual organ, it was Mrs. Blane who gave Skinner his first four-manual organ in Chicago that would definitively sow the seeds for more large contracts.
The first mention of Opus 210 in The Diapason occurred in the February 1, 1913, issue on the front page:
Ernest M. Skinner has been commissioned by the Fourth Presbyterian Church of Chicago to build for it a four-manual organ which will be one of the largest and most noteworthy instruments in the country. The organ is to be installed in the new edifice under construction by that church on the north side of the city. This will be probably the largest Presbyterian church in Chicago and the music here, which has always been of the best, is to continue so when the new building is occupied . . . . Expense is not to be spared, and Mr. Skinner is to incorporate every feature that could be of advantage when the size of the building is considered . . . . Mr. Skinner closed the deal when in Chicago about the middle of January. There was no competition for the contract.
The article also mentioned J. Lawrence Erb had been hired as the new organist for the church. The May issue provided the organ’s specification.
The June 1, 1914, issue of The Diapason noted the organ was played at the opening of the church on May 10, and that afternoon a recital was given by Eric DeLamarter, who by then had become the church’s new organist. The article noted the work on the organ had yet to be finished, and Mr. Skinner had made several visits to Chicago during installation. Voicing was done at night, “when the noises of the city were nearly enough stilled to permit them to get in their artistic touches.” Walter Binkemeyer and T. Cecil Lewis were assisting with voicing.
In 1946, Aeolian-Skinner would make some tonal revisions to the organ, adding six ranks. This project was paid for again by Mrs. Blaine. In 1971, the organ was rebuilt/replaced by the Aeolian-Skinner Organ Co. with its Opus 1516, among the last organs completed by the firm, with four manuals, 125 ranks. Goulding & Wood of Indianapolis, Indiana, renovated the organ in 1994 with slight alterations. In 2015, Quimby Pipe Organs completed for this church its Opus 71, the largest organ in Chicago, with five manuals, 142 ranks.
Hyde Park Baptist Church, Chicago
On May 9, 1874, the First Baptist Church of Hyde Park was founded. Hyde Park was a township annexed by Chicago in 1889. With the opening of the University of Chicago nearby on October 1, 1892, the congregation grew rapidly in membership. One of the congregation’s new members was Dr. William R. Harper, president of the new university. Under Harper’s influence, the church began discussions about a new plant in 1893. A new chapel-sized building was finished on the present property in 1896.
In November 1897, ideas about completion of the main church and the acquisition of a pipe organ took form. In 1901 the congregation received a generous gift in the amount of $15,000 from John D. Rockefeller, Jr., who was instrumental in the building of the nearby University of Chicago. Architect James Gamble was commissioned to design the church of Romanesque influence, seating some six hundred persons. In 1904, the congregation changed its name to Hyde Park Baptist Church. The new church was dedicated on January 7, 1906. The exterior is of red sandstone with limestone trim. Original plans called for construction entirely of stone, but this proved too costly. The interior is constructed of limestone, brick, and dark oak, crowned with massive cross beams. A brochure printed by the church notes that “the peaked ceiling is as high as the center aisle is long (some 76 feet).” A small pipe organ acquired a few years earlier at a cost of $1,000 was moved from the chapel to the new church, but it proved inadequate.
In 1914, a new organ was installed by the Ernest M. Skinner Company. The contract was dated January 31, 1913, at a cost of $8,000.00. By April 30, it was decided by mail to move the Swell 8′ French Horn preparation (knob only) to the Choir. It was stipulated: “Both kinds of Vox Humana pipes to be sent for the church to decide which it wants.”
Construction of the organ commenced in May 1914, and it was dedicated on October 22 of that year. This project corresponded with a general decoration of the church interior, designed by James R. M. Morrison. The three-manual, electro-pneumatic action organ, Opus 211, consisted of thirty-one stops, twenty-one ranks, with a total of 1,281 pipes. The console had a manual compass of 61 notes (C–C) and a pedal compass of 30 notes (C–F). The organ was powered by a 71⁄2-horsepower Spencer Orgoblo turbine. Several years later, a set of chimes was added in memory of T. B. Merrill.
This organ was rebuilt by M. P. Möller of Hagerstown, Maryland, in 1956, and is now a thirty-rank organ. The project retained seven ranks of Skinner pipework as well as most of the chests. A new three-manual, drawknob console with 32-note pedalboard was installed. The existing blower was reused. In 1965, the congregation again changed its name, becoming the Hyde Park Union Church, reflecting its affiliation with both the American Baptist Church and the United Church of Christ.
§
The year 1914 became an important and busy year for Skinner in Chicago. Opus 207 (Kenwood Evangelical) and Opus 210 (Fourth Presbyterian) had their first recitals within a month of each other (April 16 and May 10, respectively), and the First Church of Christ, Scientist, Evanston, organ (Opus 208) was finished the following month (June 1). Dedication for Opus 211 at Hyde Park Baptist was not that far behind (October 22). Once these instruments became known to organists of the region, the Skinner and Aeolian-Skinner firms would proceed to build dozens of additional organs for the area, continuing through to the end of the company’s work.
Kenwood Evangelical Church, Chicago
Specification of 1914 Ernest M. Skinner Organ Company Opus 207
GREAT (Manual II, 6″ wind pressure)
16′ Bourdon 61 pipes
8′ First Diapason (scale 42) 61 pipes
8′ Second Diapason (scale 45) 61 pipes
8′ Philomela 73 pipes
8′ Waldflote 61 pipes
8′ Salicional (fr Sw 8′ Salicional)
8′ Erzahler (“com”) 61 pipes
4′ Octave (fr Sw 4′ Octave)
4′ Flute (“Har #2”) 61 pipes
8′ Posaune (fr Sw 8′ Posaune)
Chimes (fr Echo)
SWELL (Manual III, enclosed, 7-1/2″ wind pressure)
16′ Bourdon (“#2”) 73 pipes
8′ Diapason (scale 44) 73 pipes
8′ Gedackt (“com”) 73 pipes
8′ Salicional (scale 64) 73 pipes
8′ Voix Celestes (scale 64) 73 pipes
8′ Aeoline (scale 60) 73 pipes
8′ Unda Maris (TC, scale 60) 61 pipes
4′ Octave 61 pipes
4′ Flute (“#2”) 61 pipes
2′ Piccolo (“com”) 61 pipes
[III] Mixture (“1 break”) 183 pipes
16′ Contra Posaune (“cc 4-1⁄2”) 73 pipes
8′ Posaune (“cc 4-1⁄2”) 73 pipes
8′ Oboe (“com”) 73 pipes
8′ Vox Humana (“com”) 73 pipes
Tremolo
CHOIR (Manual I, enclosed, 6″ wind pressure)
8′ Diapason (scale 50) 61 pipes
8′ Concert Flute 61 pipes
8′ Dulciana (scale 56) 61 pipes
8′ Dulcet 122 pipes
4′ Flauto Traverso (“#2”) 61 pipes
8′ Clarinet (“com”) 61 pipes
8′ French Horn (“com”) 61 pipes
8′ Orchestral Oboe (“com”) 61 pipes
Tremolo
Celesta
ECHO (Manual IV, enclosed, 5″ wind pressure)
8′ Rohrflöte 73 pipes
8′ Quintadena 61 pipes
8′ Unda Maris (2nd rank TC) 110 pipes
4′ Flute 61 pipes
8′ Vox Humana 61 pipes
Tremolo
Cathedral Chimes 25 tubes
PEDAL
16′ Diapason (ext Gt 8′ Philomela)
16′ First Bourdon (Gt)
16′ Second Bourdon (Sw)
16′ Echo Bourdon (ext Echo 8′ Rohrfl)
10-2⁄3′ Quinte (fr Gt 16′ Bourdon)
8′ Octave (fr Gt 8′ Philomela)
8′ Gedackt (fr Gt 16′ Bourdon)
16′ Ophicleide (fr Sw 16′ Contra Pos)
COUPLERS
Great to Pedal
Swell to Pedal
Swell to Pedal 4
Choir to Pedal
Choir to Pedal 4
Echo to Pedal
Swell to Great
Choir to Great
Echo to Great
Swell to Choir
Great to Great 4
Swell to Great 16
Swell to Great 4
Choir to Choir 16
Choir to Choir 4
Swell to Swell 16
Swell to Swell 4
ACCESSORIES
5 Great Pistons (thumb)
5 Swell Pistons (thumb and toe)
5 Choir Pistons (thumb)
3 Echo Pistons (thumb)
5 Pedal Pistons (toe)
Combination Setter (thumb)
Pedal to Great Combination On/Off (thumb)
Pedal to Swell Combination On/Off (thumb)
Pedal to Choir Combination On/Off (thumb)
Pedal to Echo Combination On/Off (thumb)
Great Unison On/Off (thumb, left key cheek)
Swell Unison On/Off (thumb, left key cheek)
Choir Unison On/Off (thumb, left key cheek)
Balanced Swell expression shoe
Balanced Choir expression shoe
Balanced Crescendo shoe
Sforzando Reversible (toe, hitch-down)
First Church of Christ, Scientist, Evanston
Specification of 1914 Ernest M. Skinner Company Opus 208:
GREAT (Manual II)
16′ Bourdon (49 stopped wood, 12 open metal trebles) 61 pipes
8′ Diapason (leathered lips, metal) 68 pipes
8′ Philomela (wood) 80 pipes
8′ Erzähler (metal) 68 pipes
8′ Gedackt (fr Sw 8′ Gedackt)
8′ Dulciana (fr Sw 8′ Aeoline)
4′ Flute (fr Sw 4′ Flute)
8′ Cornopean (fr Sw 8′ Cornopean)
4′ Octave (addition, metal) 61 pipes
2-2⁄3′ Twelfth (addition, metal) 61 pipes
2′ Fifteenth (addition, metal) 61 pipes
SWELL (Manual III, enclosed)
16′ Bourdon (wood) 68 pipes
8′ Diapason (metal) 68 pipes
8′ Gedackt (wood) 68 pipes
8′ Salicional (metal) 68 pipes
8′ Voix Celestes (metal) 68 pipes
8′ Aeoline (metal) 68 pipes
8′ Unda Maris (TC, metal) 56 pipes
4′ Octave (metal) 68 pipes
4′ Flute (metal) 68 pipes
2′ Flautino (metal) 61 pipes
16′ Posaune (metal) 68 pipes
8′ Cornopean (metal) 68 pipes
8′ Flügel Horn (metal) 68 pipes
8′ Vox Humana (metal) 68 pipes
Tremolo
CHOIR (Manual I, enclosed)
8′ Geigen Principal (metal) 61 pipes
8′ Concert Flute (12 stopped wood basses, 25 open wood, 24 open metal trebles) 61 pipes
4′ Flute (metal) 61 pipes
8′ Clarinet (metal) 61 pipes
Tremolo
PEDAL
16′ Diapason (ext Gt 8′ Philomela)
16′ First Bourdon (Gt)
16′ Second Bourdon (Sw)
8′ Octave (fr Gt 8′ Philomela)
8′ Still Gedackt (fr Sw 16′ Bourdon)
16′ Posaune (Sw)
COUPLERS
Great to Pedal
Swell to Pedal
Swell to Pedal 4
Choir to Pedal
Great to Great 4
Swell to Great
Choir to Great
Swell to Choir
Swell to Great 16
Swell to Great 4
Choir to Great 16
Swell to Swell 16
Swell to Swell 4
ACCESSORIES
4 Great Pistons (thumb)
5 Swell Pistons (thumb)
4 Choir Pistons (thumb)
4 Pedal Pistons (toe)
Great to Pedal Reversible (toe)
Pedals to Great Combinations on/off (thumb)
Pedals to Swell Combinations on/off (thumb)
Pedals to Choir Combinations on/off (thumb)
Combination Setter (thumb)
Balanced Swell Expression Shoe
Balanced Choir Expression Shoe
Balanced Crescendo Shoe
Sforzando Reversible (toe)
Fourth Presbyterian Church, Chicago
Specification of 1914 Ernest M. Skinner Company Opus 210:
GREAT (Manual II, 6″ wind pressure, 16′ Diapason on 5″)
16′ Diapason 73 pipes
16′ Bourdon 61 pipes
8′ First Diapason 61 pipes
8′ Second Diapason 61 pipes
8′ Third Diapason 61 pipes
8′ Philomela 73 pipes
8′ Waldflöte 61 pipes
8′ Erzähler 61 pipes
4′ Octave 61 pipes
4′ Flute 61 pipes
2′ Fifteenth 61 pipes
16′ Ophicleide (10′′ wind pressure) 97 pipes
8′ Tromba (ext 16′ Ophicleide)
4′ Clarion (ext 16′ Ophicleide)
SWELL (Manual III, 7-1/2″ wind pressure, enclosed)
16′ Bourdon 73 pipes
16′ Dulciana 73 pipes
8′ Diapason 73 pipes
8′ Clarabella 73 pipes
8′ Gedeckt 73 pipes
8′ Spitzflöte 73 pipes
8′ Salicional 73 pipes
8′ Voix Celestes 73 pipes
8′ Aeoline 73 pipes
8′ Unda Maris (TC) 61 pipes
4′ Octave 73 pipes
4′ Flute 73 pipes
2′ Flautino 61 pipes
III Mixture (12-15-17) 183 pipes
16′ Contra Posaune 73 pipes
8′ Cornopean 73 pipes
8′ Oboe 73 pipes
8′ Vox Humana 73 pipes
4′ Clarion 73 pipes
Tremolo
CHOIR (Manual I, enclosed, 6″ wind pressure)
16′ Gamba 73 pipes
8′ Geigen Principal 73 pipes
8′ Concert Flute 73 pipes
8′ Quintadena 73 pipes
8′ Kleine Erzähler (2nd rank TC) 110 pipes
8′ Dulcet II 122 pipes
4′ Flute 73 pipes
2′ Piccolo 61 pipes
16′ English Horn 73 pipes
16′ Fagotto (So)
8′ Clarinet 73 pipes
8′ Orchestral Oboe (So)
8′ Flügel Horn (So)
Tremolo
Celesta (61 bars)
SOLO (Manual IV, enclosed, 10″ wind pressure)
8′ Philomela (Gt)
8′ Gamba 73 pipes
8′ Gamba Celeste 73 pipes
16′ Fagotto 73 pipes
8′ Tuba Mirabilis (15′′ wind pressure) 73 pipes
8′ French Horn 73 pipes
8′ Flügel Horn 73 pipes
8′ Orchestral Oboe 73 pipes
Tremolo
ECHO (6″ wind pressure, enclosed)
8′ Diapason 61 pipes
8′ Gedeckt 61 pipes
4′ Flute 61 pipes
8′ Vox Humana 61 pipes
Tremolo (by Solo Tremolo knob)
PEDAL (5″ and 6″ wind pressure)
32′ Contra Violone 56 pipes
16′ Diapason (ext Gt 8′ Philomela)
16′ Violone (ext 32′)
16′ First Bourdon (Gt)
16′ Second Bourdon (Sw)
16′ Gamba (Ch)
16′ Dulciana (Sw)
8′ Octave (fr Gt 8′ Philomela)
8′ Gedeckt (fr Gt 16′ First Bourdon)
8′ Still Gedeckt (fr Sw 16′ Bourdon)
8′ Cello (So)
32′ Bombarde (ext Gt 16′ Ophicleide)
16′ Ophicleide (fr Gt 16′ Ophicleide)
16′ Posaune (Sw)
8′ Tromba (fr Gt 16′ Ophicleide)
4′ Tromba (fr Gt 16′ Ophicleide)
COUPLERS
Great to Pedal
Swell to Pedal
Swell to Pedal 4
Choir to Pedal
Choir to Pedal 4
Solo to Pedal
Swell to Great
Choir to Great
Solo to Great
Swell to Choir
Choir Sub
Choir Super
Swell Sub *
Swell Super *
Solo Sub *
Solo Super *
Echo to Solo
* “transferred to Great with Swell to Great”
ACCESSORIES
3 Full pistons (draw manual and pedal combinations 5, 6, and 7, does not affect couplers)
7 Great pistons (thumb)
7 Swell pistons (thumb and toe)
7 Choir pistons (thumb)
7 Solo and Echo pistons (thumb)
7 Pedal pistons (toe)
Pedal to Swell Combinations on/off
Pedal to Great Combinations on/off (Great and Pedal combinations effect the other)
Pedal to Choir Combinations on/off
Pedal to Solo Combinations on/off
Combination adjuster (thumb)
Great to Pedal reversible (toe)
Balanced Swell expression shoe
Balanced Choir and Solo expression shoe
Balanced Crescendo shoe
Sforzando reversible (toe, hitch-down)
Hyde Park Baptist Church, Chicago
Specification of 1914 Ernest M. Skinner Company Opus 211:
GREAT (Manual II)
16′ Bourdon 61 pipes
8′ Diapason (17 basses in façade) 61 pipes
8′ Philomela 73 pipes
8′ Erzähler 61 pipes
8′ Gedackt (Sw)
8 Dulciana (Sw)
4 Flute (Sw)
8 Cornopean (Sw)
SWELL (Manual III, enclosed)
16′ Bourdon 61 pipes
8′ Diapason 61 pipes
8′ Gedackt 61 pipes
8′ Salicional 61 pipes
8′ Voix Celeste 61 pipes
8′ Dulciana 61 pipes
8′ Unda Maris (TC) 49 pipes
4′ Violin (knob only)
4′ Flute 61 pipes
2′ Piccolo 61 pipes
8′ Cornopean 61 pipes
8′ Flügel Horn 61 pipes
8′ Vox Humana 61 pipes
Tremolo
CHOIR (Manual I, enclosed)
8′ Geigen Principal 61 pipes
8′ Concert Flute 61 pipes
4′ Flauto Traverso 61 pipes
8′ Clarinet 61 pipes
8′ Orchestral Oboe 61 pipes
8′ French Horn (“knob only”)
Tremolo
PEDAL
16′ Diapason (ext Gt 8′ Philomela)
16′ First Bourdon (Gt)
16′ Second Bourdon (Sw)
8′ Octave (fr Gt 8′ Philomela)
8′ Gedackt (fr Gt 16′ Bourdon)
8′ Still Gedackt (fr Sw 16′ Bourdon)
COUPLERS
Great to Pedal
Swell to Pedal
Choir to Pedal
Swell to Great
Choir to Great
Swell to Choir
Great 4
Choir to Great 16
Choir to Great 4
Swell to Great 16
Swell to Great 4
Choir 4
Choir 16
Swell 4
Swell 16
ACCESSORIES
3 General Pistons (toe)
5 Great Pistons and Cancel (thumb)
5 Swell Pistons and Cancel (thumb)
5 Choir Pistons and Cancel (thumb)
5 Pedal Pistons (thumb)
Pedal to Great Combinations on/off (thumb)
Pedal to Swell Combinations on/off (thumb)
Pedal to Choir Combinations on/off (thumb)
Great to Pedal Reversible (thumb and toe)
Swell to Pedal Reversible (toe)
Choir to Pedal Reversible (toe)
Balanced Swell Expression Shoe
Balanced Choir Expression Shoe
Balanced Crescendo Shoe (with indicator)
Sforzando Reversible (toe)
