St Christopher's Catholic Cathedral
Franklin Street. Forrest (Manuka)

1968 Hill, Norman & Beard, Inst. present location 1972 & enl. 1973.
2m., 28 sp.st. (8 rks. + mixture ext.), 3c., el.mag.



Information from Kelvin Hastie, “St Christopher’s Catholic Cathedral, Franklin Street, Manuka”, Capital Organs. Organ Historical Trust of Australia, 24th Annual Conference, 29 September – 4 October 2001. Canberra and South East New South Wales. Conference Booklet (Sydney: Organ Historical Trust of Australia, 2001), pp. 43-44.


St Christopher's was originally part of St Gregory's Parish, Queanbeyan, until 1912. (Queanbeyan was in the archdiocese of Sydney till 1918 when it was transferred to the Diocese of Goulburn on the forming of the diocese of Wagga Wagga). In 1927 a foundation stone for a school-cum-church was laid.

In 1930 a cathedral was proposed for the site behind Regatta Point, but the Depression and World War II made this impractical. In 1928 St Christopher's became an independent parish. In 1948 the Diocese of Canberra and Goulburn was created and St Christopher's came to be called a pro-cathedral, even though still a parish church. When Archbishop Eric O'Brien took up residence in Canberra it was called a Co-cathedral with SS Peter and Paul, Goulburn.

The church was extended to twice its size in 1973, holding 1000 worshippers, and was consecrated as the Cathedral Church of the Diocese, superseding SS Peter & Paul. The present pipe organ was built by Hill, Norman & Beard (Melbourne) and was used by St James' Anglican Church, King Street, Sydney, whilst their organ was being rebuilt. Its size was doubled when installed on the gallery 26 September 1972. There are 1100 wood and metal pipes contained in two cases on either side of the rose window.


GREAT
Contra Salicional
Open Diapason
Rohr Gedeckt
Principal
Nason Flute
Quint
Fifteenth
Mixture
Trumpet

SWELL
Salicional
Gedeckt
Fugara
Lieblich Flute
Block Flute
Larigot
Octavin
Mixture
Trumpet

PEDAL
Sub Bass
Octave
Flute
Salicional
Super Octave
Octave Flute
Nachthom
Mixture
Trumpet
Clarion

COUPLERS
Swell to Great
Great to Pedal
Swell to Pedal

16
8
8
4
4
2-2/3
2
III
8


8
8
4
4
2
1-1/3
1
III
8


16
8
8
8
4
4
2
III
8
4
TC



[1] Information supplied by Geoff Wells, February, 2001.





Photos supplied by Trevor Bunning (April 2006)



Detached console in the gallery


Great side façade pipes


Swell Pipework


Great Pipework


Photos supplied by Trevor Bunning (May 2007)