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The Wicks Organ Company started in the early 1900′s in a small jewelry and watch-making store
in Highland, Illinois. The local Catholic priest had asked John Wick to study organ and become the church organist. Soon the parish wanted a new pipe organ to replace their aging reed organ, so John Wick, with the help of his brothers, used their jeweler, watch and cabinet maker talents and created a small mechanical action instrument.
It wasn’t long before nearby churches heard of their work, and wanted an instrument for their growing parishes.. By 1908, they incorporated the Wicks Organ Company, producing pipe organs for homes and churches in nearby states and eventually almost every state.
Wicks initially used the common mechanical action, but with the advent of electricity and electric blowers, began to experiment with electro-pneumatic actions, of which there are surviving example still.
By 1914, Wicks had perfected DIRECT-ELECTRIC® with only one moving part, no perishable materials, pipes could be arranged in any fashion, were easily serviceable, and could function under any given wind pressure.with instant reaction time .
In their first 13 years of building pneumatic and mechanical action instruments, Wicks built 275 instruments. In the 15 years after inventing DIRECT-ELECTRIC® action, the Wicks opus list grew to over 1000 . Wicks continued to build instruments for the many small churches around the Illinois and Missouri countryside. Most of these organs are still playing today, a testament to the longevity of the Wicks DIRECT-ELECTRIC® action.
Many large instruments have been built over the years, including the 82 rank organ at First Baptist Church in Memphis, or the 92 rank instrument at Morehouse College in Atlanta , the enlargement of the 118 rank Kilgen/Möller instrument in the Cathedral Basilica in St. Louis.
The first Wicks pipe organ is still playing today, proving that durability, reliability, and longevity are foundations of the Wicks Organ Company. The third generation of the Wick family oversees our facilities and trained staff. The traditions of quality, innovation, and customer satisfaction continue today. Wicks is a bondable company, with a secure financial background, a rarity among organ building firms. We know our organs will be around for many years, and so will we.
