| Birkenhead - St Mary Last updated 16 February 2003 |
| Clock Bell | |||||||||||||||||||||
| No. | Note | Dia. | Inscription | Weight | Founder Date 1
|
| 3' 0½"
| {Shoulder} |
7-3-14
| Taylors of Oxford | Recast 1837 | ||||||||||
| The bell is presently hung dead in St Mary's tower, the fifth of a former ring of six (see below). Although services are held on the site, the use of the bell in the tower has no religious significance, save an historical one, so is classified as 'secular' on this website. (See History). All other five bells were melted down and metal used in the augmentation of the bells at Wallasey St. Nicholas in 1977. The above bell is, therefore, the only one remaining. It has a clock hammer fitted but, due to vandalism, the clock mechanism is out of action so the bell cannot presently be heard.
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| Note: It was the fifth bell of the former ring of six, rather than the tenor, which was retained because of its association with the Revd. Andrew Knox, a highly respected local figure at the time. This is acknowledged on the adjacent plaque in the tower, which bears the following inscription.
|
| THE KNOX BELL REINSTATED IN ST. MARY'S TOWER JANUARY 1990 with kind donations from L. HANKS & SON LTD. PARKMAN CONSULTING ENGINEERS THE FRIENDS OF THE WILLIAMSON ART GALLERIES AND MUSEUMS |
| There is another local memorial to Knox at Birkenhead Christ the King, formerly St Anne's, Birkenhead.
|
| The 1929 Ring of Six | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. | Dia. | Weight | Founder Date 1
| 2' 37/8"
| 5-1-25
| William Dobson | 1821 2
| 2' 5½"
| 5-2-0
| William Dobson | 1821 3
| 2' 7½"
| 5-3-1
| William Dobson | 1821 4
| 2' 77/8"
| 6-1-10
| William Dobson | 1821 5
| 3' 0½"
| 7-3-14
| William Dobson 1821 | Recast Taylor 1837 6
| 3' 4"
| 11-1-26
| William Dobson | 1821 |
The information in this table was kindly supplied by Chris Pickford via an email dated 29 January 2002. This source was also used to establish the weight of the present single bell in the table above. The diameter of this bell was confirmed by physical measurement during a visit by Peter and Mark Humphreys on 30th January 2002, when details of the inscription on this bell and the adjacent plaque were also noted. TOWER CLOCK | A plate attached to the clock mechanism bears the following inscription:
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