Big Joe (bell)
| Specifications | |
|---|---|
| Weight: | 37,000 lb (16,818 kg) |
| Diameter: | 9 feet (2.7 m) |
| Material: | Bronze |
| Yoke: | unknown pounds (unknown kg) |
| Clapper: | 640 pounds[1] |
| Location: | Cincinnati, Ohio, United States |
| Casting Date: | 1895 |
| Musical note: | E♭ |
Joseph (commonly known as Big Joe) is a bronze bell that hangs 125 feet (38 m) into the bell tower of Neo-Gothic Saint Francis De Sales Catholic Church in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States.[2][3] 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.[4][5] 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.[6] It was cast on October 30, 1895 by the E. W. Van Duzen Company at their foundry on Second Street and Broadway.[7][8] 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.[9]
When first swung in January 1896, its tremendous peal startled the Walnut Hills neighborhood and could be heard for 15 miles (24 km).[10] The resultant E♭ shook the houses and buildings below and shattered nearby windows.[11] Following the bell's inaugural ring, the parish priests decreed the bell shall "remain immobile forever".[12] The 640-pound (290 kg) clapper was never used again; today the bell is rung only with a small hammer tapping its rim.[13][14] However, a modern-day 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 legend with no historical basis. According to them, Big Joe was never swung again because of trembling in the bell tower and crumbing of mortar; the bell was simply big for its tower.[15]<[16]
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.[17][18]
See also
- St. Petersglocke, the largest swinging bell in the world
References
- ^ http://books.google.com/books?id=GesCAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA38&lpg=PA38&dq=%22Big+Joe%22+AND+cincinnati+AND+bell+-duskin&source=bl&ots=5eULAW0Srd&sig=AY3UXzViettWpmzTu1-DdbARuP4&hl=en&sa=X&ei=RBlMUaKFEsfI4APCnIC4Ag&ved=0CEcQ6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=%22Big%20Joe%22%20AND%20cincinnati%20AND%20bell%20-duskin&f=false
- ^ http://www.cincinnati-oh.gov/planning/linkservid/54E4387F-09E9-F09C-596DE968C1F11E03/showMeta/0/
- ^ 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
- ^ http://thecatholicbeat.sacredheartradio.com/2012/03/20/treasures-st-francis-de-sales-bells/
- ^ http://saintfrancisdesalesparish.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/SFDS_History1.pdf
- ^ http://thecatholicbeat.sacredheartradio.com/2012/03/20/treasures-st-francis-de-sales-bells/
- ^ http://saintfrancisdesalesparish.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/SFDS_History1.pdf
- ^ Logansport Journal (Indiana), November 20, 1895, page 7
- ^ http://saintfrancisdesalesparish.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/SFDS_History1.pdf
- ^ http://thecatholicbeat.sacredheartradio.com/2012/03/20/treasures-st-francis-de-sales-bells/
- ^ http://www.cincinnati-oh.gov/planning/linkservid/54E4387F-09E9-F09C-596DE968C1F11E03/showMeta/0/
- ^ 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
- ^ 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.
- ^ http://thecatholicbeat.sacredheartradio.com/2012/03/20/treasures-st-francis-de-sales-bells/
- ^ http://enquirer.com/columns/pulfer/1999/04/13/lp_will_newport_bell.html
- ^ http://books.google.com/books?id=GesCAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA38&lpg=PA38&dq=%22Big+Joe%22+AND+cincinnati+AND+bell+-duskin&source=bl&ots=5eULAW0Srd&sig=AY3UXzViettWpmzTu1-DdbARuP4&hl=en&sa=X&ei=RBlMUaKFEsfI4APCnIC4Ag&ved=0CEcQ6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=%22Big%20Joe%22%20AND%20cincinnati%20AND%20bell%20-duskin&f=false
- ^ http://saintfrancisdesalesparish.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/SFDS_History1.pdf
- ^ http://thecatholicbeat.sacredheartradio.com/2012/03/20/treasures-st-francis-de-sales-bells/
- Wecker, David (2000-01-18). "Meet Big Joe". The Cincinnati Post. E. W. Scripps Company. Archived from the original on 2004-06-21.
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External links
- BIG JOE "Largest swinging bell in the world. Presented to St. Francis de Sales's congregation by the late Joseph G. Buddeke."
- St. Francis de Sales Church
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