Bellfoundry and church bells

Taylors Bellfoundry and the bells of the Loughborough parish church

One of the sounds that one can’t fail to have missed during the past 9 months is that of church bells ringing out – for all sorts of occasions, as well as calling people to a regular service. Whether or not you are a member of a church, whether or not this is your religion, the ringing of church bells is something that would normally permeate every village, town and city in the country. This is the first time since the Second World War that church bells have fallen silent.

In Loughborough, the irony of the silence of the church bells is that the town is home to the country’s last remaining bellfoundry, Taylors, as the Whitechapel bellfoundry closed in May 2017. Taylors has been an integral part of Loughborough’s industrial history since 1839, when the foundry moved here. Initially, the yard behind the Packhorse pub (now the Organ Grinder) served the bellfounders well, when they arrived in the town to re-cast the bells of the parish church, but by 1859, a larger, purpose-built factory had been created in the area around Freehold and Cobden Streets.

As a working factory, the bellfoundry has an extensive private archive and some of the history of the bellfoundry is shared on the internet, via the bellfoundry website, and that of the Loughborough Bellfoundry Trust. The trust has been in existence since about 2016 and was created to protect the buildings, the archives, and the museum within the bellfoundry for future generations.

A visit to the museum is a real treat as the work of the bellfoundry is showcased not only in a dedicated museum space, but also through an organised tour of the actual foundry where on casting days it’s possible to observe bells being made.

Although church bells may have fallen silent during this pandemic, work at the foundry has continued, and work to create a new museum for the 21st century has also forged ahead, with the appointment of a new museum director:

The new Museum Director for the Bellfoundry Trust, courtesy of Twitter

Also during the pandemic, the bell foundry has been in receipt of grants from the government’s Culture Recovery Fund, and, just before Christmas it was announced that the bellfoundry’s application to the Heritage Lottery Fund for a substantial grant had finally been approved. This success made the national news, and was reported on the BBC website, as well as being featured on the Heritage Fund website, and on the website of Ingham Pinnock the economic and regeneration consultants who have been working with the bellfoundry since about 2014.  

The last time I visited Loughborough parish church, in February 2020, was to assist with keeping the church open whilst a ringing event took place, from 2pm, with an expected completion time of 5.45pm. This was a successful challenge - for the bellringers and myself!

Loughborough parish church tower

Inside the parish church Feb 2020

Inside the parish church, Feb 2020

Inside the parish church, Feb 2020

 

More recently, on Christmas Day, 2020, a small band of bellringers were able to ring the bells of the parish church. This was a momentous occasion as it was the first time the bells had been rung since 15th March 2020, just before the national lockdown. Several important safety inspections were carried out before this COVID-safe peal was allowed to go ahead, but those involved were absolutely thrilled to be able to ring, and people in the neighbourhood were thrilled to hear that iconic sound of church bells.

Let’s hope 2021 brings more opportunities for bellringers to ring, for townsfolk to hear the familiar sounds, for the bellfoundry works to flourish, and the bellfoundry's museum plans to develop.  

Posted by lynneaboutloughborough 27 December 2020

You are welcome to quote passages from any of my posts, with appropriate credit. The correct citation for this looks as follow:

Dyer, Lynne (2020). Bellfoundry and church bells. Available from: https://lynneaboutloughborough.blogspot.com/2020/12/bellfoundry-and-church-bells.html [Accessed 27 December 2020]

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Lynne        

Loughborough firms in the spotlight

This week has been one of revelations, discoveries and fun, fun, fun!

As we surely must all know by now, Taylors Bellfoundry is the last remaining dedicated bellfoundry in the UK. I say 'last remaining dedicated' because although the Whitechapel Bellfoundry closed in 2017, and plans to convert it into a boutique hotel have very recently been passed by the local council and associated organisations, the Whitechapel name is continued in the making of bells at the 200-year old metal foundry in Newcastle-Under-Lyme, called the Westley Group.

But, back to Taylors. We probably all know that although the buildings occupied by the local bellfoundry are still used in the making of bells, they could do with a bit of upgrading. To this end, the Bellfoundry Trust* has been set up specifically to secure a Heritage Lottery Fund grant to not only improve the site, but also to share, expand and improve the special and unique experience that is a visit to the working factory during a bellcasting, and a visit to the museum. As part of the grant application, the Bellfoundry Trust have reached out to the local community, and engaged them in a discussion of what the bellfoundry might offer the local and distant visitor, and how this could be achieved.

The vision for the future was presented by Caro Architects, the company which describes itself as conservation and heritage architects. The firm has been brought in to help devise a plan for the conservation of the buildings, and the creation of a sympathetic visitor attraction that would allow the public to experience the craft of bellfounding as it happens at the foundry, as well as learn the history of bellfounding and of Taylors.   

What a fabulous initiative this is, to keep one of Loughborough's most iconic firms viable and visitable! Having arrived in Loughborough from Oxford to re-cast the bells of All Saints in 1839, John Taylor set up a temporary foundry at the back of the Pack Horse Inn, before a more permanent site was bought and developed in 1858. The site was extended by local architects Barrowcliffe and Allcock** in 1898. 

Other bells created by the firm include the Great Paul bell for St Paul's Cathedral in London, the cast of which is now in Queen's Park; Great George (the 6th largest bell in the UK) housed in the Wills Memorial Building  at the University of Bristol; Great Peter for York Minster, and so the list goes on and on ...

As does the list of books produced by another iconic Loughborough company, Ladybird Books, once an integral part of the town's heritage, but since 1999 part of Penguin. The Being Human Festival is now in its 6th year, and is a festival that specifically celebrates the humanities. The theme of this year's festival was discoveries and secrets, and aimed to present research on a huge range of humanities topics in an accessible way, showing how such research is relevant to our everyday life. 

The event I attended was about Ladybird Books and was held in Charnwood Museum. Volunteers from Loughborough Local and Family History Centre (based in the Local Studies area of Loughborough public library) brought along books from their own Ladybird collections, as well as their extensive knowledge of Ladybird Books. 

Representatives from The MERL*** (Museum of Rural Life), who brought along various ladybird merchandise, were in attendance too, because the Ladybird archive is lodged with Reading University. Leicestershire Museums Services brought along some items from their collection and along with expert and collector Helen Day they were collecting Ladybird stories from Loughborough people - people who may have worked at the factory, or knew someone who did. Oh, and not forgetting the archivist from Penguin who was also present. Charnwood Museum had a display in their changing exhibition area, and the Ladybird benches were still in Queen's Park, inviting people to sit and rest awhile. Despite the very heavy rain, and despite the fair being in town, lots of people popped down to be involved in this event, although the guided walk didn't take place, so instead, we were treated to the surprising story of Ladybird Books from inside in the dry from a Ladybird expert at the university!

All in all, a great week for Loughborough, and all topped off with the last travelling fair of the season! 

*The Bellfoundry Trust can be found on Twitter and on Facebook. 

**Ironically, the architectural firm which has grown from the original practice created by Edward T. Allcock when he left the joint practice he had with Barrowcliffe is now known as A+G Architects (formerly Allcock and Grieves), and as well as having an office on Leicester Road, Loughborough, they also have an office in Oxford.

***The MERL also have an extensive collection of material related to Robert Bakewell.

You are welcome to quote passages from any of my posts, with appropriate credit. The correct citation for this looks as follow:

Dyer, Lynne (2019). Loughborough firms in the spotlight. Available from: https://lynneaboutloughborough.blogspot.com/2019/11/loughborough-firms-in-spotlight.html  [Accessed 17 November 2019]

Take down policy:

 post no pictures that are not my own, unless I have express permission so to do. All text is my own, and not copied from any other information sources, printed or electronic, unless identified and credited as such. If you find I have posted something in contravention of these statements, or if there are photographs of you which you would prefer not to be here, please contact me at the address listed on the About Me page, and I will remove these.

Thank you for reading this blog. 

Lynne
        

Whitechapel and Taylors bell foundries

So, are you bored of bells yet?? Sorry, but I don't think I could ever be!!

This past week I've been to Woodhouse Eaves church again, and admired the Taylor's bell in the porch! I was actually there to listen to a friend present some of the research done on the architect of the church, and was reminded of my recent visit to London, by mention of the Whitechapel Bellfoundry.

When I went to London for my son's graduation, we popped into the local medical museum, The Royal London Hospital Museum, as we were aware they had some significant material. On entering the crypt of the former church the first display we came across was a bell. According to the information board: 

"Operation bell of the London Hospital. Date: 1791.This bell, together with the bell of 1757 that hangs in the Hospital entrance, was made at the Whitechapel Bell Foundry. Before the introduction of anaesthetics in 1846, it is reputed to have summoned attendants to hold surgical patients still." 

Further into the museum we saw the replica skeleton of Joseph Herrick, otherwise known as the Elephant Man. This was here because the hospital had done much investigation of his condition during his lifetime.

Once we'd been around all the museum, we headed off down the length of Whitechapel Road to get into Central London. 

Along the way we spotted various things of interest, but none of greater interest than the Whitechapel Bell Foundry buildings! Founded in 1570, the Whitechapel Bell Foundry moved to its buildings on Whitechapel Road in 1739, has the honour of being the oldest British manufacturing business. Since 1904 the business has been owned by the Hughes family, but in 2016 they sold the Grade II listed buildings and the foundry finally closed for business in May 2017. 

Some of the most well-known bells that were cast at Whitechapel include the Liberty Bell, cast in 1752, and in 1856 Big Ben, although this had to be re-cast in 1858 because it developed a crack during the testing process. More recently, Whitechapel designed the bell which was used to start the 2012 Olympics, although because it was too big to be cast in their foundry, it was actually cast in The Netherlands. They did, however, cast the bell for the leading barge on the Thames for the Queen's Jubilee Pageant in 2012. From the markings on the photo below, Whitechapel did not just cast bells: this is the base of a lamppost in the vicinity.

When we walked past the foundry buildings - well, ok, we didn't just walk past, we lingered for quite some time - the buildings did not appear to be in use, but nonetheless seemed well-kept. I do wonder what will happen to them. Of course, this does mean that Taylors Bell Foundry, at one time financially vulnerable, and its buildings still in need of a degree of renovation, is now the sole remaining bell foundry in the UK. As we've already read, its bells can be found across the globe, and can its renovation work on bells that may have been cast in different foundries. 

Regarded as a relative newbie, the company has a direct link from the Leicester bell founder, Johannes de Stafford who seems to have been casting bells earlier than 1338, although the Taylor family didn't become involved until 1784, first coming to Loughborough in 1839, moving to the present site in 1859. One of Taylors most notable bells is the Great Paul bell which was cast for St Paul's Cathedral in London. Anyway, long may Taylors continue!

And here I feel I must stop! 

You are welcome to quote passages from any of my posts, with appropriate credit. The correct citation for this looks as follow:

Dyer, Lynne (2018). Whitechapel and Taylors bell foundries. Available from: https://lynneaboutloughborough.blogspot.com/2018/08/whitechapel-and-taylors-bell-foundries.html  [Accessed 19 August 2018]

Take down policy:

I post no pictures that are not my own, unless I have express permission so to do. All text is my own, and not copied from any other information sources, printed or electronic, unless identified and credited as such. If you find I have posted something in contravention of these statements, or if there are photographs of you which you would prefer not to be here, please contact me at the address listed on the About Me page, and I will remove these.

Thank you for reading this blog. 

Lynne