In 1926 the Casavant Frères Organ Company of Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec, founded in 1879, was commissioned by Saint James Methodist-Episcopal Church, 4611 South Elis Avenue, Chicago, to build a new pipe organ to replace the organ lost when the previous church burned in1925. This 1926 organ project was directed by Miss Tina Mae Haines, the church organist -  as well as one of the leading musicians in Chicago of that time - who studied under the famous Parisian organist Félix-Alexandre Guilmant. The organ was dedicated in memory of Gustavus F. Swift, founder of the Swift Meat-Processing Company, and given by Ann Higgins Swift, his widow, and his children.
 
Miss Tina Mae Haines used her knowledge of the magnificent Cavaillé-Coll organs, which dominated the city of Paris, in helping Casavant to construct an organ that would reflect the highest quality of craftsmanship. This 1926 Casavant Organ, Opus 1130, became one of the prominent concert organs in Chicago; the famous Parisian organist and composer Marcel Dupré, a personal friend of Miss Haines, frequently concertized on this organ and gave it great acclaim.
 
Over time Casavant’s Opus 1130 fell into disuse as Saint James went in to decline. In 2011, as Saint James was closing, Dr. Stephen Schnurr of the Organ Historical Society, and Mr. Jeff Weiler, of J.L.Weiler, Inc., a Chicago based Organ Restorer, and Conservator, approached Rev. C. Frank Phillips, at that time Pastor of Saint John Cantius Church, about the possibility of acquiring this organ for Saint Cantius Church, which was in need of a pipe organ that could serve the needs of the church’s musical program.
 
In 2011, the Patrons of Sacred Music, the volunteer organization at Saint John Cantius that promotes the restoration of the sacred through music, worked in harmony with the Northern Illinois United Methodist Conference to purchase this organ.
 
The organ’s removal from Saint James Church was timely because the ceiling over the organ was beginning to collapse, and rain was leaking into the organ chambers, subjecting the organ to irreparable damage. Then, the capable hands of Casavant Frères and J.L. Weiler took care of it for its historic restoration. Part of the instrument returned to Quebec to the same room where it was crafted 85 years before, while others went to Jeff Weiler’s studio in Chicago’s south loop for restoration. In 2013, the organ historical restoration was completed.
 
The organ has been named “Tina Mae” to honor Miss Tina Mae Haines; furthermore, this name is most fitting, for “Tina,” the shortened form  of the name "Christina" recalls the name of Christ our Eternal High Priest, just as “Mae” is a variant of the Holy Name of “Mary.”
 

• Casavant Frères Pipe Organ, Opus 1130 Specifications

• Chicago Tribune Article about Casavant Organ Dedication »

• Article on the Casavant from the Catholic New World »

• Gazette Article