[Bell Historians] Re: FW: a neglected tower

[Andrew Bull]

This wouldn't surprise me - the attitude of both the church authorities and
the local community can be very odd in these circumstances.

 

I once got involved in the case of St Luke, Abercarn, in South Wales. Here,
a massive new church was built in 1923-26, on a hillside above the town. The
church was equipped in 1947 with a 12 cwt Whitechapel chime, though the
trebles were just above the 3 cwt mark.

 

The church became unpopular because of the steep climb from the town centre,
and the hillside situation caused problems with damp. I spoke to a priest
who preached there shortly before the church was closed in 1985 - he said
that water would cascade over the altar. The church was closed and
deconsecrated, and the bells were at one time advertised for sale in the
Ringing World. I took a trip out there is 1989 and was shocked by what I saw
- the church had been badly vandalised. How they managed to break all the
glass in the enormous windows I don't know, but they did. All the lead was
stripped from the roof. Thieves had sawn through one of the wooden beams
holding three of the bells, and had stolen them. The vicar, Rev Ray Summers,
told me he went to the church one night to find a bell on the floor; when he
returned after calling the police the bell had gone.

 

I wrote to the archdeacon concerned, and asked if he was aware of the state
of the church and that five of the bells were still in the tower waiting to
be stolen. He told me that the Representative Body was having trouble in
deciding what to do with the site, as the building was listed. The locals
had decided they wanted to keep the bells, so there they had stayed in the
tower of the abandoned and vandalised church.

 

As a result of my intervention, the remaining five bells were removed from
the tower by local ringers, and stored safely in a barn for some years at a
ringer's farm. Eventually, Rev Ray Summers moved to the nearby parish of
Mynyddislwyn, and acquired the bells from Abercarn to form, with three new
Taylor bells, a 12 cwt ring of eight to replace the very derelict two-bell
installation that previously existed at Mynyddislwyn.

 

Abercarn church still stands, massive, brooding and derelict, looming high
over the small town. It is a quite extraordinary sight, well worth a visit
if you are passing that way. It is not now possible to enter the church
itself, so one cannot experience the eerie atmosphere inside this massive,
still structurally complete church, but the church grounds are still
accessable and the church is an unforgettable sight.

 

Andrew Bull

 

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Subject: RE: [Bell Historians] Re: FW: a neglected tower

 

> Why on earth are the bells still in there?

Rumour has it that it is due to local politics - perhaps someone in the area
knows more? I recall David Potter telling me that he tried to buy the bells
but they wouldn't sell them.

David 

           
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