[Bell Historians] Bell of Doom

[Andrew Wilby]

The hand bell is still there in the church.
I have the impression that access to the cell was through the cellar of 
the Viaduct Tavern and under the road. You can still go down into the 
cellar and see a couple of cells and the remains of the passage under 
the road to the Old Bailey which of course is on the foundations of the 
old Newgate Prison.

The tenor bell was also rung for executions, possibly as a substitute 
for the handbell.

There is an old cupboard in St Seps belfry with a pencil inscription 
recording the last time the tenor was rung for an executution.

As well as doom for the prisoner it probably spelt cash for the member 
of the scroof who did the ringing and there may be a connection between 
the handbell ceasing to be used, the tenor and money?

A similar story...it was said by some with a long memory that at St 
Paul's Cathedral there was formerly a payment to the ringers for ringing 
Great Paul immediately before the service and after ringing the 12.
To avoid the inconvienience of crossing to the other tower etc they 
substituted 5 mins of the Tenor. They kept their mouths shut and no one 
noticed but they still got paid!

The fact that the original standard length Sunday touch was 3 courses of 
Stedman and for a long time now it has been 4 might fit the story as well.

Andrew




matthewhigby at OqN3RxWZSpSRSwbnCBW7VWGj1bZ-C80UfQWLx0bQ-s4RKICyzdTGGf4rxQcQS-sZibIWNyknrOCHsU7n.yahoo.invalid wrote:
>
>
> I remember seeing it there about 15 years ago.
>  
> Matthew
>
>     I found this item, in a strip called 'London is Stranger than Fiction'
>     in the London 'Evening News' of 25 January 1950.  Is the bell still
>     there?
>
>     "The Bell of Doom [drawing]
>
>     Once the ringing of this simple handbell, now resting harmlessly in St
>     Sepulchre's Church, Holborn Viaduct, spelt doom for hundreds of
>     persons.
>
>     A certain Robert Dowe left a sum of money for it to be rung outside
>     the condemned cell of Newgate on the night before every execution."
>
>     John Camp
>
>
>
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: John Camp <camp at OGqUvlHpvV3WADSg9SHkxTeLvw4TpyWQ0kODws-42Lce6nVmlo4C-OSO155hhSO3DaGXVHMGjIchixxMOz0.yahoo.invalid>
> To: bellhistorians <bellhistorians at yahoogroups.com>
> Sent: Thu, Mar 11, 2010 10:44 pm
> Subject: [Bell Historians] Bell of Doom
>
> I found this item, in a strip called 'London is Stranger than Fiction'
> in the London 'Evening News' of 25 January 1950.  Is the bell still
> there?
>
> "The Bell of Doom [drawing]
>
> Once the ringing of this simple handbell, now resting harmlessly in St
> Sepulchre's Church, Holborn Viaduct, spelt doom for hundreds of
> persons.
>
> A certain Robert Dowe left a sum of money for it to be rung outside
> the condemned cell of Newgate on the night before every execution."
>
> John Camp
>
>
>
> ------------------------------------
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