[Bell Historians] Fort William

[Alan Ellis]

Hi Bryan,


The following is an excerpt from an article I am writing about St. James.


Best wishes


Alan



St. James (Granville) Vancouver, B.C.

This tower has a ring of 8 bells cast by Taylor’s of Loughborough in 1936. 

 

The tenor weighs 41cwt 1 qrtr 8 lbs.   If only they had been hung for 
ringing, they would be the second heaviest ringing 8 in the world.  

 

Thanks to Andrew Higson of Taylor, Eayre & Smith, the complete details 
of the bells are as follows:

 

NOTE                WEIGHT                        DIAMETER

C                      5-1-22               30.5 in.

B                      6-0-22               32.0 in.

A                      8-3-22               36 in.

G                      12-2-11             40.5 in.

F                      18-1-7               45.5 in.

E                      20-1-25             48 in.

D                      31-2-20             53.88 in.

C (517 Hz)         41-1-8               60.5 in.

 

The inscription band for bell nos. 1 through 7 shows

 

* JOHN TAYLOR & Co. * FOUNDERS * LOUGHBOROUGH * ENGLAND * 1936 *

 


End of quote



Bryan McCahey wrote:

>  
> Thanks for this Alan. What date is the Vancouver chime?
> Bryan
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> From: Alan Ellis <alan_ellis at 8XEPdcmSRi7nSVwu7tyh2vS6srnl-9BU3ZmZLczWzimgKIoHAv2rJ4Odii0rz_J9-WPMA8xGR55YOOk.yahoo.invalid>
> To: bellhistorians at yahoogroups.com
> Sent: Wed, March 24, 2010 8:53:21 PM
> Subject: Re: [Bell Historians] Fort William
>
>  
>
> Hello Bryan, 
>
> This is interesting because the clavier for the Taylor 42 cwt chime in 
> St. James (Anglican) church in Vancouver is also located immediately 
> beneath the bells.  It is surrounded by walls and ceiling of what we 
> know as 'ten test' for sound control inside the room. 
>
> Someone had written out a course of Stedman Triples in music format, 
> which my wife played.  Sounded great on that 42 cwt 8.
>
> At St. James, there is also an automated chiming system, fed from the 
> player-piano style equipment behind the choir.   This system uses 
> electro-pneumatic connections between  player and belfry.
>
> Thanks for your info.
>
> Alan Ellis
> Vancouver BC
>  
>
>
>
>
> Bryan McCahey wrote:
>
>>  
>> The 8 bell chime in Fort William is indeed at St. Mary's RC Church to 
>> the east of the town. I did a knock-knock there when on holiday in 
>> 1995. The parish priest gave me the tower key and was very happy for 
>> me to explore unaccompanied. There was an old people's home 
>> immediately next door so he asked me to ring only for a few minutes, 
>> which I duly did! They were a magnificent Taylor chime of 24 cwts in 
>> D, contemporary with the church (1930s, I think). The tower is 
>> massive and rises above the sanctuary at the east end. Access was 
>> from a prominent stair turret in the north west corner of the tower, 
>> accessed from the rather elaborate sanctuary.
>>
>> I seem to remember quite an impressive painted ceiling below the 
>> tower a la Buckfast, but might be wrong here. The church itself has 
>> an impressive parabolic vaulted roof to the nave and is reminscent, 
>> inside, of a 1930s art deco cinema. Because the tower is so squat, 
>> there is no ringing room. Consequently the baton clavier is attached 
>> to one side of the bell frame itself with no sound-proofing cabin for 
>> protection.  Why the chiming appratus was not positioned at 
>> ground-level is unclear. Perhaps for aesthetic reasons?  The noise 
>> from the clavier was understandably deafening and it was just as well 
>> I only rang a few hymn tunes and some plain hunt! Probably because of 
>> the unsatisfactory ringing arrangements (and possibly complaints from 
>> the home next door) the bells were not rung very often. The 
>> installation was in good order though and the bellchamber very clean 
>> and well maintained. The small louvres are in rows of four 
>> round-headed arches on each side. An unusual feature was that some 
>> were hinged for opening. Several were ajar, I think.
>>
>> Bryan McCahey
>>
>> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>> From: Richard Smith <richard at ex-parrot. com>
>> To: bellhistorians@ yahoogroups. com
>> Sent: Wed, March 24, 2010 11:21:08 AM
>> Subject: Re: [Bell Historians] Fort William
>>
>>  
>>
>> Mike wrote:
>>
>> > I have been asked for information about the bells at St
>> > Mary's Church, Fort William. Can anyone help? Is this the
>> > R.C. church, perhaps?
>>
>> Dove claims the unringable four are in St Andrew's, which is
>> the dedication of the Episcopal church there. The Catholic
>> church is dedicated to St Mary. From memory, there are four
>> churches in Fort William with towers that look substantial
>> enough to house a light four, and it's possible that one of
>> the others may be dedicated to St Andrew too.
>>
>> RAS
>>
>>
>
> 

           
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