[Bell Historians] Heathcote bell

[fartwell2000]

--- In bellhistorians at yahoogroups.com, "Nick Bowden" <nickwbowden at ...> wrote:
>
> 
> I would say 11 cwt. A very interesting find.
> Nick
>

Indeed a very interesting find.

A few months earlier, John Greenhough discovered an unhung bell cast in 1828, at Chipping (Lancs) RC. Off list discussion has suggested that the Chipping bell (one of two unhung bells) may have been cast in Wigan.

I turned up an unhung bell at Brindle, RC Church at the same time-also cast in 1828. This one is cast in brass and is 15" diameter.

The interesting thing about the Brindle bell, is that it was cast by J Lindsay & Co, Canal Foundry, Preston, Lancs. That Foundry appears to be trading under the name of Stevenson & Co by the 1830s.

There is a bronze bell from the Canal foundry (also found by John), at Withnell, Lancs. Stevenson & Co cast two bronze bells in 1835 as replacements for a ring which was at Leyland, St Andrew.

Gillett and Johnston recast that ring in 1929. But the fact that the Stevenson & co bells at Leyland were in existance for over ninety years is remarkable. It would take a lot of effort in the 1800's for a company who didn't cast bells as part of a ring/chime as part of thier normal business, to cast two bells as part of a ring.

There is/was a bell from the Canal Foundry up in Rothesy, Scotland, I understand.

But I wonder how many bells there are in existance cast by that foundry, and how many were cast in bronze? It could be that the foundry only cast bells when asked to, in addition to their main business, or that they tried unsuccesfully, to break into the market as bellfounders.

Alan