The Follen Church is a Unitarian Universalist congregation in the heart of birthplace of the American Revolution. Located on the route of Paul Revere’s ride and surrounded by the taverns and battlefields of the legendary Minutemen, it is a place with a strong historical sense. The historic octagonal building was home to a home-made pipe organ, assembled from a collection of unrelated parts by a parishioner.

When the Unitarian Universalist congregation in neighboring Stoneham announced it was closing, selling its building, and offering its historic organ to another UU church that would be able to restore it and give it a good home, the people of the Follen Church advised by OCH executive director John Bishop took on the project.

The fourteen-stop organ, built in 1868 by Boston organbuilders E. & G.G. Hook (Opus 466), was unique as a perfect and unaltered example of the artistry of that fabled firm. We restored the organ in accordance with the highest standards of historical accuracy and installed it in the church where it was first played for worship on Easter Sunday. A large and enthusiastic group of church members volunteered to help with the project, refinishing the black-walnut case, reclaiming original metal action parts, and gathering for an old-time barn-raising in the first days of the installation.