The bell in the Sac City First Presbyterian Church bell tower
has a long, interesting history.
It began with its casting by Meneeley & Company of Troy, New York,
in 1850. The Church of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, used this bell for 27 years,
where it was mounted on a platform in front of the church until a small
tower was erected for it. Across the street was the boyhood home of a
man, Dr. John S. Ely, who, as a boy, rang the bell on many momentous
occasions. It was rung for fires, celebrations, and to call the people
to worship. It was rung when General Lee surrendered, and tolled when
Abraham Lincoln was assassinated.
At
the time when Reverend George Carroll, a former Cedar Rapids boy, came
to Sac City as resident stated supply pastor, Dr. John S. Ely and
others gave the bell to the Sac City First Presbyterian Church. A Sac
Sun news item of December 7, 1877, reported that Reverend Carroll had
gone to Cedar Rapids to get the bell, reported then as weighing 400
pounds. (Later reports give its weight as 300 pounds.) Thus quotes a
news item: "It is a gift of friends in Cedar Rapids, and when placed in
position, will be a great convenience to our church-going people."
A week later, December 14, 1877, the Sac Sun reported that the bell had
been broken during shipment from Cedar Rapids to Wall Lake (the closest
railroad station), and could not be used. It can be assumed that the
Trustee of the Church and the Railroad Company made claims and
counter-claims for about three months, because on March 15, 1878,
another Sac Sun news item appeared, stating: "Arrived. The bell for the
Presbyterian Church, which was given to it by Dr. John S. Ely of Cedar
Rapids, and which was cracked in shipment, was brought up from Wall
Lake Tuesday, and will be placed in position. The Railroad Company
desired a trial of it, agreeing to pay for it in case of furner
breakage."
We find no other word abot the bell until April 11, 1879, when this
report appeared in the paper: "The bell in the tower of the
Presbyterian Church broke Saturday evening while the sexton was ringing
it. While in transit from Cedar Rapids to this place a year ago, it was
cracked by reason of careless handling, but the Railroad Company
thought so long as the tone was not altered, it did not belong to them
to make good the damage. Perhaps they will now replace or repair it."
We learn later that something was done about the bell, as it was recast
in 1880 in the McChane Company of Baltimore. The bell now is reported
to weigh 300 pound, a 100 poound shrinkage since the original casting
reported in 1850!
The bell, after recasting, then served the Church and Community from
its position in the towers of the first and second Presbyterian church
structures. It almost slipped out of our possession at the time the
second church was raised in 1963. Some of the members of the
congregation raised $300 with which to reclaim the bell from the
salvage company, and then had it stored until a new bell tower was
erected in 1967.
The present lofty bell tower of steel is a splendid addition to the
church property. It is redwood incolor, set on a six-foot-square
concrete platform, and measures 45 feet to the top of the tower. A
fifteen foot Cross extends the structure to a total of 60 feet. This
tower was presented to the church as a memorial to Mrs. Ray Wilson by
Mr. Ray Wilson, and makes a fitting place for the bell, which is now
124 years old since the original casting.
Now, through electrification, the bell may be rung at the touch of a
button, the controls being located in the pastor's study.
May the future generastions treasure its history, and faithfully
preserve its continued service for decades to come!
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