2017-09-28 - The former girls' school was occupied by the Naval Security Station in 1943. Revoiced and rebuilt by Newcomer in 1966 and the 1990s. The organ is for sale in 2005. (Information from Alan Kinzey in 2005.) -Database Manager
Typed stoplist Source: Lewis & Hitchcock (?) writeup Date not recorded
Washington, District of Columbia
U.S. Naval Security Station - Chapel
Organ Built by E.M. Skinner, 1926
Tonal Changes by Newcomer, 1966
Rebuilt by Newcomer, 1993
REGISTER STOP PIPES DETAILS
GREAT:
Blank prepared for future addition
Blank prepared for future addition
Chimes 25 tubes, in Choir box, 1929
1. 8' Diapason 61 pipes
2. 8' Bourdon 61 pipes
8' Gedeckt from #4
8' Salicional from #7
3. 4' Octave 61 pipes
4' Flute from #9
8' Trompette from #13
16' Great to Great
8' Great Unison Off
4' Great to Great
SWELL:
Blank prepared for future addition
Blank prepared for future addition
4. 8' Gedeckt 73 pipes
5. 8' Viola da Gamba 73 pipes, 1966
6. 8' Gamba Celeste tc 61 pipes, 1966
7. 8' Salicional 73 pipes
8. 4' Principal 73 pipes, 1966
9. 4' Flute 73 pipes
10. 2' Flautino 61 pipes
11. III Plein Jeu 183 pipes, 1966
12. 16' Contre Hautbois 73 pipes, 1966
13. 8' Trompette 73 pipes, 1966
14. 8' Cor d'Amour 73 pipes
15. 4' RohrSchalmei 73 pipes, 1966
Tremolo
16' Swell to Swell
8' Swell Unison Off
4' Swell to Swell
CHOIR:
Blank prepared for future addition
Blank prepared for future addition
Blank prepared for future addition
Harp from Celesta
Celesta 61 bars, 1929
16. 8' Concert Flute 73 pipes
17. 8' Dulciana 73 pipes
18. 4' Flute 73 pipes
19. 8' Clarinet 73 pipes
Tremolo
16' Choir to Choir
8' Choir Unison Off
4' Choir to Choir
PEDAL:
Blank prepared for future addition
Blank prepared for future addition
Blank prepared for future addition
Blank prepared for future addition
32' Resultant from #’s 20 & 2, 1993
20. 16' Subbass 44 pipes
16' Bourdon 12 pipes & #2
8' Octave from #20
8' Bourdon from #2
16' Hautbois from #12, 1966
8' Trompette from #13, 1993 20 registers
8' Hautbois from #12, 1966 22 ranks
4' RohrSchalmei from #15, 1993 1,505 pipes
COUPLERS:
PEDAL:
8' Great to Pedal
4' Great to Pedal
8' Swell to Pedal
4' Swell to Pedal
8' Choir to Pedal
4' Choir to Pedal
GREAT:
16' Swell to Great
8' Swell to Great
4' Swell to Great
16' Choir to Great
8' Choir to Great
4' Choir to Great
CHOIR:
16' Swell to Choir
8' Swell to Choir
4' Swell to Choir
Solid-State Combination action, having:
Pistons: General 1-8, Swell 1-6, Great 1-4, Choir 1-4, Pedal 1-4, General Cancel, Set.
Toe Studs: General 1-8, Pedal 1-4.
Reversibles: Great to Pedal and Sforzando, by piston and toe stud.
Shoes: Choir, Swell, Crescendo.
Crescendo and Sforzando indicator lights.
Plexiglass music desk with light.
Adjustable bench.
Memory Level Selector
The organ was built in Boston, Massachusetts in 1926 by the famous organ builder Ernest M. Skinner. It was installed by the local representatives, Lewis & Hitchcock, in the Chapel of the Mt. Vernon Female Seminary. The organ chambers on the sides of the chancel are made to resemble organ cases, and feature gilded facade pipes. The chamber on the left contains the Swell division and the largest pedal pipes. The chamber on the right contains the Choir and Great divisions, and the remainder of the Pedal division.
The organ was enlarged in 1929 with the addition of the prepared Harp, Celesta and Chimes. These were added by Lewis & Hitchcock, Inc, who maintained the organ from 1926 to 1966.
In 1943 the campus became the Naval Security Station, and the chapel became the Chapel for the Station.
In 1966 the organ was tonally modified, and some repair work was done. This contract was awarded to the Newcomer Organ Company. Major items were:
1. Substitution of more modern pipework for many stops. This was to update the sound of the organ, so that it could better accompany congregational singing and perform the works of organ literature.
2. Repairs to the pneumatic switching systems. Very thin leather was used for the switches, where air pressure moved gangs of contacts together. This leather had to be periodically replaced.
Since 1966 the organ has been maintained by the Newcomer Organ Company. In 1983 the Newcomer Organ Company was purchased by Lewis & Hitchcock, and the firms have merged.
By 1992 the organ again needed to be releathered. In addition the console needed a great deal of attention. When the organ was built the standards of the American Guild of Organists had not been accepted by many organ builders. These standards are helpful to organists, because they assure that stops and controls will be located in a standard formation, thus easily found. In the 1926 console design the couplers were not in a standard formation, and many common couplers were not included. In the 1966 revision all the available controls had been used; also the console did not have the standard type of General combinations, moving all the stops and couplers at one time.
This lack of standardization meant that a visiting organist had to spend a great deal of time finding the proper stops and couplers, and working around the lack of certain couplers and combinations. Some anthem and solo accompaniments are quite difficult without sufficient pre-set combinations. As the console had reached the point of needing to be rebuilt, it was decided to include a modern solid-state combination action, offering multiple memories, as well as all the missing items. Space has also been provided for future additions.
The action of the windchests was converted from electro-pneumatic to pure electric. Formerly the switching on and off of pipes was done by a combination of electricity and air pressure. Now it is done by simple electromagnets, operated by solid-state relays. The solid-state equipment has no moving parts to get out of adjustment, and is silent in operation.
Some additional stops were made available in the Pedal, so that less coupling and thus more independence was possible.
Some general information about pipe organs:
The names of the divisions are from traditional sources. The Great division takes its name from the fact that originally it had the largest compass (The Great Organ). It commonly is the center manual of a three manual organ.
The Swell division was originally the only division enclosed in a chamber or box. The shades in the front of a Swell box resemble huge Venetian blinds, and are operated by a pedal or shoe at the console, resembling the accelerator of a car. Pressing down on the pedal opens the shades, which lets the sound out. The reverse motion closes the shades, keeping most of the sound inside. This is the volume control for the division. The Swell division usually plays from the top manual.
The Choir division has two sources for its name. In English churches the organ commonly sat on the Rood Screen between the Nave and the Chancel. The congregational singing was accompanied by the Great division, which faced the Nave, and the choir was accompanied by the smaller division that faced the Chancel and Choir. This smaller division was behind the organist, forming a Chair behind the console. Thus the Chair division accompanied the Choir, and eventually the division was called the Choir Division. The Choir is usually the bottom manual, and it also is enclosed in a swell box.
The Pedal division provides the bass notes, and is played with the feet. Many times stops in the tenor and higher registers are provided, so that the Pedal can provide a solo line as well.
The console has stops (draw knobs) that control the operation of the pipes. Putting on the Flute stop places 61 flute pipes ready to play, as many pipes as there are keys. Some divisions even include enough pipes to play an additional octave at the top, only available through the 4' couplers; thus they will have 12 more pipes, for a total of 73.
The pipes are arranged on the wind chest in rows or ranks. Sometimes a stop will play more than one row or rank. The Plein Jeu of the Swell division plays three ranks of pipes, three pipes for each key. These pipes sound a harmonic cluster that compliments or enforces the unison tone. These stops are called Mixtures, as they sound a mixture of tones.
When organs were first invented all the ranks of a division would sound on each key. The organist desired a control to shut some of them off in order to play more softly. The organ builder provided a slider under the pipes, to shut off air to some of the pipes. This was connected to a control knob at the console, called a "stopping knob". The mechanism was later reversed to turn the ranks on, but the designation "stop-knob" or "stop" remained; they actually should be called "starts" instead of "stops".
The foot designation on the stop knobs refers to the length of the longest pipe of that stop or rank. An 8' stop, whose longest pipe is 8' long, sounds unison or original (written) pitch. A 16' stop sounds an octave lower than unison, a 4' stop sounds an octave higher, and a 2' stop sounds two octaves higher than unison.
The couplers enable the organist to merge divisions, or to make the division play at additional pitches. An 8' coupler is one that works at unison or original pitch. A 16' coupler plays an octave lower, and a 4' coupler plays an octave higher.
There are buttons under the manual keys, called "pistons". These can be pre-set to bring on groups of stops. There are pistons for each division, and General pistons, for the entire organ. There are also pistons for the feet, called "toe studs". They have the same function as pistons, and may operate the stops of the Pedal division or the entire organ.
Reversible pistons or toe studs work one mechanism. Pressing the reversible will put that mechanism on if it is off, or off if it is on.
The Crescendo shoe looks like the Choir or Swell shoe, but it is mounted a little higher, so the organist can feel which is which. The Crescendo shoe puts on stops in order of volume, from the softest to the loudest. This is useful when the organist needs to make a major change in volume while playing. There is also a Sforzando reversible, which puts all the stops on. The Crescendo and Sforzando are "blind" mechanisms. They do not move the stops, but have an indicator light to tell when they are in operation.
The console has an adjustable bench, to accommodate tall and short organists. In addition the music desk is made of clear Plexiglass. This enables the organist to see the choir and ministers easily.
The recent work on the organ was under the direction of David Selby. Those who worked on the organ are:
Stephen Algire Steve Kimble
Allen Ashworth David McCahan
Alan Binger Bob Meyer
Henry Brissette Gerald Piercey
Bob Copeland Larry Ramberg
Dick Cook David Rider
Steven Drexler Carl Schwartz
Kay Garner
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