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Post by sader1970 on Dec 27, 2016 18:46:33 GMT -5
ncaam, if I recall, about the same time that"our" bell was stolen, maybe a couple of weeks before, there was another church bell stolen from somewhere in northern RI. Might have been recovered in a scrap yard by police. All a vague memory but thought I posted about it at the time, which led some to believe it was a ring stealing bells for scrap.
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Post by KY Crusader 75 on Dec 27, 2016 19:07:13 GMT -5
This could be like the low-lifes who steal copper from air conditioners and other sources and then sell it to unscrupulous recyclers.....
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Post by ncaam on Dec 27, 2016 19:31:28 GMT -5
ncaam, if I recall, about the same time that"our" bell was stolen, maybe a couple of weeks before, there was another church bell stolen from somewhere in northern RI. Might have been recovered in a scrap yard by police. All a vague memory but thought I posted about it at the time, which led some to believe it was a ring stealing bells for scrap. No proof of scrap.. See postings above
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on Dec 28, 2016 6:25:37 GMT -5
The photos of the Mahoney bell are accessible only to those logged into AOL. __________________________
On the old board, IIRC, the thread(s) about the stolen bell came to the following findings/conclusions, some of which were.definitive than others.
1.) The bell was stolen either by pranksters, or by thieves who probably had done some construction work on campus.
2.) The police had alerted scrap yards in the area to be on the lookout for the bell. (Probably to no avail if the thieves cut up the bell.)
3.) The bell was removed from Fenwick tower either because the wood framing inside the tower could not support the weight of the bell, or the ringing of the bell. (It may have also also become unsafe for someone to manually toll the bell.)
4.) The recovered bell / replacement bell could not be re-installed in Fenwick for the above reason(s). Thus, the suggestion that the bell's sound be recorded and amplified from the tower.
If one wished to re-create the sound of the bell, one could try and locate another Hooper bell of similar vintage and size, and record it, and then broadcast the recorded sound. The 48 inch diameter bell from Bar Harbor will likely have a quite different sound than the stolen bell.
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Post by ncaam on Dec 28, 2016 7:36:50 GMT -5
I will try to make the Mahoney bell pictures more accessible. His bell was larger than ours.
These were not pranksters but professional thieves who had significant equipment.
There is Crossroads article above detailing when and why bell came down.
Mr Monaco a bankrupt and now deceased ran a preservation business. He made off with gargoyles from a local church project. Efforts are on way to recover them.
PP maybe you can find out if Monaco did work at HC. If he did he could have learned how vulnerable our bell was.
I am going to keep looking. Fr K deserves our efforts.
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Post by rgs318 on Dec 28, 2016 8:11:33 GMT -5
Thank you for that, ncaam.
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Post by sader1970 on Dec 28, 2016 8:41:53 GMT -5
Indeed he does. Your efforts are appreciated, ncaam. Continued good luck in your search!
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on Dec 28, 2016 10:12:06 GMT -5
The masonry work on the O'Kane steps and the Fenwick porch/steps was done, IIRC, after the bell went missing. The bell disappeared April 17-19, 2009, with students on campus. Easter was April 12. email sent circa May 2 2009. Note the bell is stated as being cast in 1854. Article on Monaco Restorations in 2009. www.telegram.com/article/20090708/NEWS/907080356
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Post by ncaam on Dec 28, 2016 10:49:52 GMT -5
It was cast in 1853 by Henry Hooper, who was a successor to Paul Revere. Mounted in Fenwick in 1854, it was moved to one of the towers in 1867. It was used to announce the beginning and end of the day and was rung at 5:30AM, noon, 6 PM and 9PM. It also tolled to announce the death of member of the Jesuit community
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Post by ncaam on Dec 28, 2016 10:51:29 GMT -5
PP did monaco do our restoration work?
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Post by sader1970 on Dec 28, 2016 11:25:31 GMT -5
Having been to Nichols campus a couple of times, I was always struck by a church, not related to the college, in the middle of the campus though Nichols basically runs down the main drag of Dudley, a one-horse town.
But, was this a typo? A two ton bell, if my math is correct, weighs 4,000 pounds, 10 times heavier than the one stolen from Holy Cross? That's one really big bell for a pretty small church. Or has a ton shrunk from 2,000 pounds to 200 pounds?
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on Dec 28, 2016 12:03:48 GMT -5
I have no idea whether Monaco did restoration work at HC, but the specialty was historic restoration, and the only two projects that would seem to potentially require a historic restoration specialist company were the Fenwick porch/steps (particularly) and O'Kane. The Fenwick Commencement Porch/stairs were rebuilt in 2011, O'Kane porch and stairs in 2013.
Nearly all HC projects such as the above are done during the summer months.
Figge Hall was constructed 2010-11. Construction of the Integrated Science Complex was underway in 2009, but one wouldn't subcontract with a masonry restoration company for that. _______________________
Re: a two ton church bell. In Dudley, church bells were used to sound an alarm of fire and summon the volunteer firemen, so it is possible that an atypically large bell might be found in a Dudley church steeple.
In 1890, in Dudley: "June 10--Fire destroyed the Congregational Church on Dudley Hill. The bell was rung to summon help until its rope burned off."
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Post by ncaam on Dec 28, 2016 16:09:02 GMT -5
Monaco was in financial trouble for some time. Was likely doing some general contracting as mentioned above. May have looked at hc prior to work during bid process.
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Post by ncaam on Dec 28, 2016 17:12:40 GMT -5
Two views of stolen Mahoney bell Attachments:
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Post by ncaam on Dec 28, 2016 17:32:21 GMT -5
Monson Bank did not receive any bells in its Monaco inventory.
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on Dec 29, 2016 7:05:14 GMT -5
Thank you for following though on Monaco, but it looks to be a dead end. ______________________
My recollection (a retrospective interpretation) of Fr. K's goals is as follows:
Goal 1: Given its presence on campus for over 150 years, the recovery and return of the stolen bell.
Goal 2: Restoring the sound of the bell as a feature of campus life/environment. (This could be accomplished by recording the sound of the original bell or a similar bell, and playing the recorded sound using amplifiers in Fenwick tower.)
A much lower goal was to secure a replacement bell of similar vintage / size / made by Hooper or a contemporary.
Obtaining and installing a replacement bell (with the above characteristics) as a static display is relatively meaningless, unless the sound of that bell is heard on campus.
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Post by sader1970 on Dec 29, 2016 7:19:58 GMT -5
While I agree that Fr. K would overwhelmingly prefer the original bell for many reasons, he was an historian as well as a Jesuit professor and I am pretty sure he would have preferred a replacement, functional bell over a recording of a bell. Just MHO.
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Post by CHC8485 on Dec 29, 2016 8:11:48 GMT -5
A recording of a bell - the bell? - was used in the early to mid 1980s. Not sure when it stopped, but I'd agree, a recording was probably way down the list of Fr. K's preferences to replace the stolen bell.
And I think commissioning the casting of a new bell would have been one of the options he would have endorsed heartily as a replacement option.
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Post by sarasota on Dec 29, 2016 8:47:40 GMT -5
I think the sound of a bell on a college campus, whether real or recorded, is a nice touch.
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on Dec 29, 2016 9:21:13 GMT -5
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on May 7, 2017 14:39:15 GMT -5
I believe Fr. K. would have enjoyed this article about the bell at Harvard's Memorial church. memorialchurch.harvard.edu/news/cracked-bell-granted-new-life-memorial-churchOf note, when the original bell cracked, Harvard substituted a recording through a loudspeaker. The article indicates the sound was a poor substitute for the original. The original bell is now on static display on the ground, a replacement bell, nearly identical to the original, was installed.
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Post by tim1980 on May 24, 2017 20:21:18 GMT -5
I am willing to match ncaam's contribution.
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Post by ncaam on May 25, 2017 6:00:19 GMT -5
there are hooper bells out there 5-10 k
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Post by rgs318 on May 25, 2017 7:43:25 GMT -5
I am willing to match ncaam's contribution. I will match it as well.Lets get this done.
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Post by CHC8485 on May 25, 2017 9:15:07 GMT -5
I have another 2 years of tuition payments before I can pledge a Grover Cleveland but I'm curious ...
... why a Hooper bell cast around the same time as the stolen bell is necessary? The history of such a bell increases the price.
I see about $3000 "pledged" for a replacement. How much does a newly cast bell cost? Might that be a more feasible undertaking?
A new bell commissioned by the college can be cast cast with the name of the College on it as well as a recognition of Fr. Kuzniewski.
I imagine the size could be specified which makes it more possible - or at least allows some funds to go into reinforcing the structure - to allow the bell to return O'Kane tower and be rung daily, as in the past, and following significant athletic victories (the Kuzniewski Victory Bell?), at the conclusion of graduation ceremonies, and other significant events.
Just some food for thought.
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