Our sanctuary preserves the oldest church bell in Holly Springs as

well as one of the oldest working Pilcher organs in the country. The
church was originally established in 1837 in a small building on the corner
of West College and Craft Street. That property was deeded to William
Long, who built a new church building in 1849 for a partial exchange of
materials and labor. The deed which records this transfer also shows that
the pews and pulpit from the early church were moved to the new
building. The property for 175 E Van Dorn Avenue belonged to Robert
Alexander who orally deeded the land to the church. To help pay for the
spire and the building’s façade, each pew was rented. Mr. Alexander
disapproved of this so much that he paid for any seats that were left so
anyone could have a free seat. In 1888 and 1889, the first hand-pumped
organ was installed.

Henry Pilcher, Sr. was born in Canterbury, England in 1798 and

apprenticed as an organ builder in London. He constructed his first pipe
organ in Dover, England, in 1820. In 1832 Mr. Pilcher arrived in New York
and established his business in Newark, New Jersey. His sons, Henry Jr.
and William opened an organ building shop in St. Louis, Missouri in 1852.
During the Civil War era, the firm relocated to Chicago, Illinois. This
factory survived the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 and, in 1874, the Pilcher
firm once again moved and opened their business in Louisville, Kentucky.
The firm built over 1,800 organs for churches, concert halls, and
universities across the country. Over a period of almost 125 years, four
generations of family members-built Henry Pilcher & Sons Organ Company
into a business known for its high manufacturing standards. The
institution they created placed organs only saw its end with the outbreak
of World War II. In 1944 the factory closed and the assets were sold to
the M. P. Möller Organ Company of Hagerstown, Maryland.

In 2014 a historical sketch of the company and opus list of each

organ installation made was published by Bynum Petty- archivist at the
Organ Historical Society Library in Princeton, NJ. The organ in our
sanctuary was completed in October of 1920 for $2,520. It features a 61-
note manual compass (range) and a 30 note pedal compass with tubular-
pneumatic action. There are 7 ranks of pipes varying from 4’ to 16’ and 2
manuals (keyboard). The organ was originally installed with 7 stops- or a
set of pipes with a like tone quality. The unique chimes were likely
installed in 1958 by S.W. Holcombe (Crown Point, NY) along with an a
crescendo pedal. "Tubular-pneumatic action" refers to the lead tubing
that connects each key, pedal key and stop on the organ console to the
wind-chest; changes in air pressure within the tubes regulate the valves
in the wind-chest that control the flow of wind into each pipe. Our organ
is currently maintained by the Milnar Organ Company near Murfreesboro,
TN.

I know Lee is also celebrating this day with us and trying to remind
me of something that I’ve forgotten. I know that today I’ve learned to
truly appreciate this beautiful instrument we’ve been blessed with for
100 years and I hope you have as well. I will remain steadfast in my
passion to preserve and record its history, as well as the amazing
organists that have served our church through music.