[Bell Historians] Bradford St John

[Andrew Aspland]

Having seen JPF’s notes about the 9 bells at Bradford St John it is clear that the extra bell was roped up to be rung as a 5#.  It also had a rope extension to the ground floor so probably continued in use as a service bell.  What I have not yet been able establish is if it was made use of as a 5#.  The peals rung at St John’s were all on the eight.  There is an article about forming a band in the 1886 Bell News.  However, membership of the Yorkshire Association seems to indicate that the ringers at St John’s and at St Peter’s (Cathedral) had an alliance of sorts.
Yours
Andrew

St John, Little Horton, Bradford

The 8 + 1 bells were received by Taylors in April 1966 when this rather impressive church was being demolished. The tenor was 3' 7.75" diameter, weight 15-0-20 in F#. The treble & 3rd were kept as metal for Bradford Cathedral trebles.

It appears from inspection notes by J P Fidler in 1947 that the bells had fallen into poor condition from neglect. He in fact did not notice that the 5# was by Mears 1840, and hung above the 8 installed by Barwell (? cast by Barwell and installed by Shaw) in 1873. The 5# appears to have had much to do with the remainder as its rope was drawn so that it fell in the circle and next to that of the 5th, for which it would be the substitute if ringing was to take place on the 'light six'. It hung on transverse beams above the 8 and was quite possibly the bell supplied when the church was built.

A number of interesting bells lost in Bradford at about this time - the Shaw ring of 8 at St James, Bolton, by Shaw 1878 scrapped by Whitechapel in 1969 and also Shaw's chime of 8 at St Barnabas, Heaton (+ a ringing bell by Mears 1864, the same note as the treble of the chime), recast in 1966 by Taylor.

DLC
             
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