<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3c.org/TR/1999/REC-html401-19991224/loose.dtd">
<HTML><HEAD>
<META http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1"><!-- Network content -->
<META content="MSHTML 6.00.2900.2963" name=GENERATOR></HEAD>
<BODY style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffffff" bgColor=#ffffff>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2>Thomas Russell I of Wootton
(b.1667-d.1744) was principally a clockmaker - and a very notable one
- who was a native of Hampshire. He trained in London and settled in
Bedfordshire in 1700. He turned his hands to bellfounding in about 1710,
and with his sons Thomas II (1707-c.1750) and William (1710-1770) cast some 72
bells between c.1710 and 1743. Of these some 40 survive, including the back
five at Hillmorton near Rugby, four bells at Napton on the Hill, three at
Walgrave (Northants). Former rings at Biggleswade and Houghton Conquest
have been recast. His largest surviving bell is the 18 cwt tenor at Blunham.
Otherwise his output consisted largely of single bells. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2>His bells are generally very neat
castings - those at Hillmorton are especially well moulded with lengthy
inscriptions in neatly formed lettering in two different sizes - but of average
18th century tone. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2>CP</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2></FONT><!--End group email --></DIV></BODY></HTML>