Glastonbury St John ex-7/8

[Susan Dalton]

Further to MRTH's note here is a list of bells that I am aware of by this 
founder:
Cherington (Glos) 4/5, 1870, for JW Gardner of Tetbury
Yeovilton, 6/6, 1872, for Petter of Yeovil
Glastonbury St John ex-7/8 and ex-8/8, 1872, for L & J (the latter recast by
Taylor as early as 1877)
Lamphey, (Pembs), 2/4. 3/4 and 4/4, 1874, for L & J.

All these bells are (or were) good castings and well shaped. They certainly
bear no resemblance to what Taylors were doing in the early 1870s, and
frankly they are superior to bells being turned out by any of the mainstream
foundries at that time. I have wondered about a founder in Bristol or
Bridgwater (earlier bells cast there also had radial canons). But whoever he
was, he was content to put other firms' names on his bells rather than his
own. All very mysterious.

L & J were certainly casting large bells themselves in the 1860s. Charlynch
was probably one of them and there are others at Middlezoy, Stapleton
(Bristol) and St Nicholas, (Glam). But they also went on buying in bells
until the latter part of 1874, by which time they were turning out (fairly)
decent shaped and competently cast bells of their own.

Christopher Dalton