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Big Joe is struck at 6 am, 12 noon and 6 pm for [[Angelus]], followed by the chiming of four smaller bells, known as the "ladies in waiting", resting above it.<ref>http://saintfrancisdesalesparish.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/SFDS_History1.pdf</ref><ref>http://thecatholicbeat.sacredheartradio.com/2012/03/20/treasures-st-francis-de-sales-bells/</ref>
Big Joe is struck at 6 am, 12 noon and 6 pm for [[Angelus]], followed by the chiming of four smaller bells, known as the "ladies in waiting", resting above it.<ref>http://saintfrancisdesalesparish.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/SFDS_History1.pdf</ref><ref>http://thecatholicbeat.sacredheartradio.com/2012/03/20/treasures-st-francis-de-sales-bells/</ref>

==See also==
*[[St. Petersglocke]], the largest swinging bell in the world


==References==
==References==

Revision as of 08:40, 22 March 2013

Specifications
Weight: 37,000 lb (16,818 kg)
Diameter: 9 feet (2.7 m)
Material: Bronze
Yoke: unknown pounds (unknown kg)
Clapper: unknown pounds (unknown kg)
Location: Cincinnati, Ohio, United States
Casting Date: 1895
Musical note: E
Raising of Big Joe, 1895

Joseph (commonly known as Big Joe) is a bronze bell that hangs 125 feet (38 m) into the bell tower of Saint Francis De Sales Catholic Church in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States.[1][2] The endearing moniker Big Joe is a combination of the names of Joseph T. Buddeke, the largest donor of the project, and Big Ben, the great bell in the iconic Palace of Westminster clock tower in London.[3][4] The bell and its church are part of the wider St. Francis De Sales Church Historic District.

Measuring 7 feet (2.1 m) tall and with a diameter of 9 feet (2.7 m), the 17.5 ton bell is the largest swinging bell ever cast in the United States.[5] It was cast on October 30, 1895 by the E. W. Van Duzen Company at their foundry on Second Street and Broadway.[6][7] The massive bell was hauled by 12 horses up Gilbert Avenue, then down Madison Road to St. Frances de Sales in what is now East Walnut Hills.[8]

When first swung in January 1896, its tremendous peal startled the Walnut Hills neighborhood and could be heard for 15 miles (24 km).[9] The resultant E shook the houses and buildings below and shattered nearby windows.[10] Following the bell's inaugural ring, the parish priests decreed the bell shall "remain immobile forever".[11] The 640-pound (290 kg) clapper was never used again; today the bell is rung only with a small hammer tapping its rim.[12][13] However, an bell expert at Cincinnati-based The Verdin Company, foundry of the nearby and even larger World Peace Bell (which was cast in France), dismisses damage to window glass inflicted by Big Joe as a local lore. According to them, Big Joe was never swung again because of trembling in the bell tower; the bell was simply big for its tower.[14]

Big Joe is struck at 6 am, 12 noon and 6 pm for Angelus, followed by the chiming of four smaller bells, known as the "ladies in waiting", resting above it.[15][16]

See also

References

  1. ^ http://www.cincinnati-oh.gov/planning/linkservid/54E4387F-09E9-F09C-596DE968C1F11E03/showMeta/0/
  2. ^ http://books.google.com/books?id=GesCAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA38&lpg=PA38&dq=%22Big+Joe%22+AND+cincinnati+AND+bell&source=bl&ots=5eULAU8Nrd&sig=-3TRFzhOgKKEyMDIsUwyRdZGVtE&hl=en&sa=X&ei=cOhLUZerB9Lj4APszYGABQ&ved=0CEoQ6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=%22Big%20Joe%22%20AND%20cincinnati%20AND%20bell&f=false
  3. ^ http://thecatholicbeat.sacredheartradio.com/2012/03/20/treasures-st-francis-de-sales-bells/
  4. ^ http://saintfrancisdesalesparish.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/SFDS_History1.pdf
  5. ^ http://thecatholicbeat.sacredheartradio.com/2012/03/20/treasures-st-francis-de-sales-bells/
  6. ^ http://saintfrancisdesalesparish.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/SFDS_History1.pdf
  7. ^ Logansport Journal (Indiana), November 20, 1895, page 7
  8. ^ http://saintfrancisdesalesparish.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/SFDS_History1.pdf
  9. ^ http://thecatholicbeat.sacredheartradio.com/2012/03/20/treasures-st-francis-de-sales-bells/
  10. ^ http://www.cincinnati-oh.gov/planning/linkservid/54E4387F-09E9-F09C-596DE968C1F11E03/showMeta/0/
  11. ^ http://books.google.com/books?id=GesCAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA38&lpg=PA38&dq=%22Big+Joe%22+AND+cincinnati+AND+bell&source=bl&ots=5eULAU8Nrd&sig=-3TRFzhOgKKEyMDIsUwyRdZGVtE&hl=en&sa=X&ei=cOhLUZerB9Lj4APszYGABQ&ved=0CEoQ6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=%22Big%20Joe%22%20AND%20cincinnati%20AND%20bell&f=false
  12. ^ Dwyer, Jim, ed. (1989). "Once Was More Than Enough". Strange Stories, Amazing Facts of America's Past. Pleasantville, New York/Montreal: The Reader's Digest Association. p. 12. ISBN 0-89577-307-4.
  13. ^ http://thecatholicbeat.sacredheartradio.com/2012/03/20/treasures-st-francis-de-sales-bells/
  14. ^ http://enquirer.com/columns/pulfer/1999/04/13/lp_will_newport_bell.html
  15. ^ http://saintfrancisdesalesparish.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/SFDS_History1.pdf
  16. ^ http://thecatholicbeat.sacredheartradio.com/2012/03/20/treasures-st-francis-de-sales-bells/