The Meneely Bell Rings Again
The Jamesville Community Museum's bell is ringing once again. Our museum is located in the former Episcopal Church, which was built in 1878 on the corner of Apulia Road and East Seneca Turnpike. The bell in the tower of the museum is believed to be the original bell used for the church and is the only working bell now in existence in Jamesville. The bell is no ordinary bell. It is a Meneely bell that was cast by the Meneely Bell Foundry of West Troy, New York. Meneely bells are high quality instruments that were cast of bronze, and while the bells themselves can last forever, the mechanical parts and supporting equipment must be updated from time to time. The bell is twenty-eight inches in diameter and its weight is estimated at four hundred fifty pounds. This does not include the weight of other equipment such as the ringer and the frame for the wheel.
Three years ago, when the bell tower was being inspected, it was discovered that one of the two original cast iron frames was cracked and missing a cross-section piece. It was determined that the wheel that holds the rope used to ring the bell was falling apart and the main support bolt that connects the bell to the bell yoke was over one hundred years old and needed to be replaced.
Having a bell that weighed four hundred fifty pounds or more plus the bell on an old broken frame and hanging on a steel bolt exposed to over one hundred years of weather in an open tower about forty feet above the entrance of the museum was something that the Trustees wanted to rectify quickly.
In 2005 a pull-cord was reattached to the wheel/bell and fished down to the main entrance of the museum but using the bell in its precarious state was not safe. A search began for a company that could professionally evaluate the bell and recommend measures to enable the bell to ring out as it once did in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries without danger of falling.
Ultimately, the Verdin Company was selected to examine the bell and to restore it to working order. A representative of Verdin hosted field trips to churches in the area that they had previously worked for. In each case the owners of the facility were pleased with the results of Verdin's work. The Trustees made a decision as to how the bell should be restored. Should it have a new wheel constructed with a pull cord or should an electronic bell ringer be installed? After much discussion it was decided that the electronic bell ringer would be a safer and more reliable method based on the age of the building and bell tower components.
Upon completion of the installation of the electronic bell ringer, the museum's bell is now safe to use and in working order.
On behalf of the museum, the Trustees would like to recognize the following people and companies for their part in the bell project:
thanks to Hanson Company for loaning their man-lift to the museum curator, Gregory Titus, to inspect the bell tower,
Ken Griffin and his son of Griffin Tree Service for taking time out on a Saturday morning to hoist Jim White of Verdin Bells to do a last minute check list before construction began. Jim White also juggled his work schedule (and his wife having a baby) to get the work done by December 1, 2007,
Mike Ambrose of Patricia Electric to orchestrate the electrical work and components to electrify the bell,
the Trustees who drove the project forward with the support of museum officers,
and, most importantly, the membership of the Jamesville Community Museum whose participation and contributions made the project possible.
At one time in Jamesville, many years ago, there were several places of worship with each having a bell to call people to church and to celebrate special events in the community. Today, the bell atop the museum is the only original working bell in Jamesville.
The first official ringing of the restored bell was used to mark a special event in the community. It was the Jamesville community's annual Christmas tree lighting event in the town square on December 1, 2007. The bell rang loud, clear, and often on that very crisp evening as a light snow was falling. As we look to the future, we hope to hear the bell used to accent the many special occasions in our community.
