The story of the Stawley Bells
A peal of six bells now rings out across the parish of Stawley and brings great joy to the parishioners and the ringers. But it might have been a very different story if it hadn’t been for the efforts and generosity of a few.
A beautiful church
St Michael and All Angels, Stawley is a beautiful church of the 11th/12th Century and has always been well maintained, but that was not always the case with the church bells. The church has had a peal of five bells since 1871, including three 15th Century, bells, but the church record books show that the bells were only rung intermittently during the early 1940’s. By the end of World War II the condition of the bells, and in particular the wooden bell frame, had badly deteriorated. For reasons of safety the bells were taken down from the ringing chamber and stood on the belfry floor for the next twenty-five years, gathering dust and grime and creating more and more of a dilemma for the Parochial Church Council (PCC).
A threat to the bells
The PCC eventually decided that it was time to act and the minutes of a meeting in the early 1970’s had an item on the agenda concerning the church bells. An accompanying note shows exactly what the options being considered were:
Do nothing and leave the bells as an appreciating asset to act as a nest egg against a rainy day. Re-hang all five bells at a cost of some thousands of pounds. Re-hang the three older bells with an Ellacombe chime manual which would enable one person to ring them. Cost £800. Re-hang one bell with an Ellacombe chiming hammer. Cost unknown. Re-hang either one or three bells but with much of the cost offset by the sale of the two 19th century bells.
At this time not only was there concern about the future of the bells but also about the lack of ringers because an automated ringing system was being actively considered.
An anonymous donor triggers action
It is not clear from the records exactly how long the options were debated but in July 1973 an anonymous donation of £1,000 was given to the church for the sole purpose of helping re-hang the bells. Quotations were sought on the costs of carrying out repair work to the tower and re-hanging the bells in a new frame. These facts were then put to the parishioners at the Annual Church Meeting in April 1975 and a majority voted that the work should be carried out as soon as possible.
A working committee was set up, under the Chairmanship of Mr Raymond Stevens and Mrs Madge Webber as Secretary. A further £1,500 was quickly raised from parishioners through interest free loans. The committee then sought and gained a Faculty (formal permission) from the Church of England authorities and worked very hard to raise the full amount needed. Sufficient funds were in hand to allow the contract to be awarded to Fidler’s of Bow for the bell work and Baker and Smoldon of Wiveliscombe for the tower repairs. Work commenced in February 1976 when the bells were removed from the church for major renovation.
In the meantime, the committee and helpers were hard at work raising funds to meet their financial target. Garden parties, a sponsored walk, whist drives, skittles matches and dances were all well supported and all contributed to the fund. It must have been a very lively time for the social life of the community and by the end of the summer more than £4,000 had been banked. The cost of renovation and re-hanging was raised entirely from within the parish, apart from a grant of £50 from the Diocesan Association,
Hard work for all
By September 1976 everything was in place for the return of the bells and the re-hanging took place, with help from several of the committee on a rota basis. A picture in the ringing chamber shows one of the bells being lifted from a lorry by a farm tractor and muck loader. The work took nine days and by the end of the month the five bells had been hung in the tower on a steel frame fitted with roller bearings and new fittings. On the 1st October 1976 the work was completed and the bells were beautifully rung by a test team of ringers from Bow.
On the morning of Sunday 3rd October 1976, combined with the Harvest Thanksgiving Service, the bells were dedicated and blessed by the Lord Bishop of Bath and Wells, the Right Reverend John Bickersteth; the Rector, the Reverend Eddie Heathcote; along with the churchwardens, Graham Henson, Raymond Stevens and the large congregation. After the service, rounds and call changes were rung by Jack Smith, (treble) Peter Smith (tenor), Mervyn Hayes, Joan Enticott and Nicholas Wotton.
The Church was full to overflowing, in spite of torrential rain and winds on the morning. Coffee and biscuits were served to the congregation by Mrs Nancy Henson and her helpers while the ringing continued with invited ringers until lunch-time.
And so, after standing on the belfry floor for many years silent, covered in dust and bird droppings, the bells rang out once again over the parish. New ringers were introduced to the art and the bells have been rung for Sunday services, weddings and other special occasions ever since.
The story continues
But this is not the end of the story. When the new bell frame was installed, a provision was made for a sixth bell but the additional cost of adding to the peal in 1976 proved prohibitive. However, as bell ringers will know, there are significant limitations on the methods and combinations that can be rung on five bells compared with six. On five bells, only one hundred and twenty changes are possible, whereas on six bells, seven hundred and twenty changes can be rung.
Almost thirty years later, the knowledge of a newly founded organisation, the Keltek Trust that specialises in re-homing redundant bells, stimulated action. A decision was made by the ringers and the Parochial Church Council to add a sixth bell to enhance the peal.
A bell fund was set up in January 2005 and quotations were obtained from three bell hanging companies. Fund raising began with letters written to a number of potential donors and charitable organisations. A Faculty was then sought from the Bath and Wells Diocese. Once formal permission had been obtained the contract was awarded to Matthew Higby and Company from Radstock who then found that they already had a suitable bell in their workshop. It was a bell that had been hung in Maperton Church in Dorset until a recent refurbishment.
Local fund raising began with a barn dance, followed by a musical evening, hosting ringers’ outings, a talk about the bells and a supper, together with a number of generous donations from parishioners and supporters of Stawley Church.
Contributions were sought and gratefully received from:
The Alan Evans Memorial Trust
The Bath and Wells Diocesan Association
The Barron Bell Trust
The Stephen Clark Charitable Trust
The Sharpe Trust
By summer 2007 the target of nearly £7,000 had been reached which funded the purchase of the additional bell and the re-tuning of the two existing 19th century bells by Taylor’s of Loughborough, together with a new set of ropes and muffles.
The final achievement
The work was completed in July 2007 and the bells were then test rung. At the Harvest Festival Service on the evening of Sunday 21st October 2007 the new ring of six was dedicated and blessed by the Lord Bishop of Bath and Wells, the Right Reverend Peter Price, together with the Reverend Ian Brierley, Church Wardens Mrs Penny Hare, Graham Henson (also Tower Captain) and a large congregation.
The bells were rung during the dedication service by Graham Henson (treble), Pam Crow, Penny Stanbury, Jeremy Carter, Maurice Stanbury and Clive Wall (tenor) and afterwards by visiting ringers. Everyone then enjoyed a harvest supper and celebrated the achievement at Stawley Wood.
A great success
The ring of six has been a great success, attracting visiting ringers from many other towers, to enjoy the experience. Even more importantly, the local ringing team makes full use of the tower on practice nights and for ringing on Church occasions.
A recent recruitment drive means that we now have twelve ringers, which is a record for our local parishes.
Bell Weight (cwt) Diameter (ins)
Treble 25 3½
Cast in 1902 in a London foundry by Warner Bros. and previously hung in Maperton Church, Dorset.
2nd 27½ 4
Inscribed ‘Presented to Stawley Church by the Rev. John Hayne in the year 1872, who had then been Rector of the parish for 30 years’. ‘J. Taylor & Co. Ltd 1871’
3rd 29½ 4¾
Inscribed ‘J. Taylor & Co. Ltd 1871’
4th 30½ 5¼
5th 33½ 7
Tenor 36½ 8½
The 4th, 5th and Tenor bells were cast by the Exeter Foundry, probably by Robert Norton, between 1420 and 1440 and are listed by the Church Building Council which gives them special protection.