The Historic Organs Citations Program endeavors to recognize pipe organs which have been deemed to be of historical value as worthy of preservation. Organs may be cited for various reasons of historical merit, for example, as valuable in view of its impact on American organbuilding, as a unique or outstanding example of organbuilding, or in light of its rarity or geographical scarcity. Further information is included in the Checklist of Desired Materials available below.

The Organ Historical Society awarded its first Historic Organ Citation in 1975, for the 1867 Marklove organ in Saint Mary Episcopal Church, Candor, New York. As of July, 2004, approximately 325 organs in thirty-five American states, the District of Columbia, and in two Canadian provinces have received this distinguished award.

Consideration is given to pipe organs of all types. Awards have been given to the smallest of chamber organs of just a few ranks to some of the world’s largest organs. Organs of all types of key actions have been cited: mechanical, electro-pneumatic, tracker-pneumatic, and tubular-pneumatic actions are equally prized. Examples of numerous builders have been honored: American, Canadian, British, and Dutch as well. Generally, an organ must be at least fifty years old to be considered for a Historic Organ Citation.

A Citation takes the form of a professionally-custom-framed certificate of calligraphy. The owner of the organ keeps the Citation on behalf of the Organ Historical Society, so long as the organ is maintained in a manner consistent with its historic nature. Frequently, the Citation is presented to the organ’s owner by a member of the Citations Committee or another member of Society, usually during a special recital or program or, if appropriate, during a special worship service.

Anyone can nominate an organ for a Historic Organ Citation: membership in the Society is not required. (Of course, we are always happy to welcome new members, too!) The Checklist of Desired Materials, which lists the information we request be submitted to nominate an organ, may be downloaded by clicking on the link below.

If you have questions, please contact the Chair of the Historic Organ Citations Committee, Stephen Schnurr. Contact information is provided below as well as in the Checklist of Desired Materials.

Stephen Schnurr, Chair
OHS Historic Organ Citation Committee
c/o Saint Paul Catholic Church
Post Office Box 1475
Valparaiso, Indiana 46384-1475

Office: (219) 531-0922
Fax: (219) 464-4833
citations@organsociety.org 

Checklist of Desired Materials PDF Format - May be printed out

Information about organs that have been cited and their locations can be found in our searchable database.