Bells at St. John’s Evangelical Lutheran Church

The three big bells in the tower of St. John’s Church are again firmly secured in the belfry and ready to chime and toll for another hundred years.

Chairman of Church Properties, Jim Minor discovered a problem in May 2003. Coincidentally with his receiving in the mail a brochure from a bell maintenance company reminding him to “Check your bells,” one of the bell ropes broke. Jim climbed the ladder to the belfry to repair the rope.

He discovered that one bell was precariously tipped at an angle because the supporting timber was seriously split. Not only that, but the 1/2 inch bolts holding the bell in place were corroded to 1/8 inch and were bent. If the 2000 pound bell had fallen against the adjoining bell, they both could have cracked and been ruined. However, disaster was averted in the nick of time.

Jim immediately engaged John Witkowiak and his team of bell experts to make repairs. The workmen replaced the cracked beams under all three bells with 4 by 6 inch pressured treated timbers. They inserted new bolts and hardware to hold the bells. They also installed new sealed bearings and replaced the tolling hammer on one of the bells.

St. John’s has three bells, two of which weigh 2000 pounds each and one which weighs 500 pounds. The large bells are 44 inches in diameter across the bottom. The small bell is 30 inches across. The bells are cast in bronze, which is 80% copper and 20% tin. They are valued currently at about $20 a pound. The investment our forefathers made in 1928 and in 1890 has appreciated enormously.

The bells, by the way, do not hang from timbers in the ceiling of the belfry. Rather each is attached to a steel cradle arching above the bell, which is supported by legs bolted to the timber on which it stands. Think of pictures you’ve seen of the Liberty Bell.

The bell rope is attached to a wheel, a pulley, connected by an axle to the bell. When the rope is pulled, the wheel turns the axle, and the bell swings causing it to hit the clapper mounted inside and making it ring.

The bells are exposed to the elements because the belfry is open. You can see the bells if you stand on the lawn and look up. The ladder to access the belfry is in the closet behind the organ at the base of the tower.

Bob Bahr has taken some detailed close-up pictures of the bells. These photos are in a book in the office for anyone who is interested to look at.

The first of the three bells of St. John’s is located in the northwest corner of the tower. It was moved there from the early church (1882-1929) when the present church was built. It is a 2000 pound Key of F bell cast by the Centennial Bell Foundry, G. Campbell & Sons, Milwaukee in 1890. This name appears on the frame and on the bell itself. The Frauenverein or Ladies’ Aid of St. John’s donated it.

The bell contains the following inscription:

Von den Frauen der Gemeinde

Ehre sei Gott in der Hoehe (Luke 2:14)

Gehet zu seinem Thoren mit Danken

Zu seinen Vorhoefen mit Loben (Psalm 100:4)

The translation of the inscription is:

From the women of the congregation

Glory to God in the highest (Luke 2:14)

Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,

And into His courts with praise (Psalm 100:4)

The congregation minutes of March 2, 1890 state: “A communication from the Ladies Aid concerning a tower and bell will be held over until next Sunday. Concerning the offer, a committee of five voters were named for the procurement of plans and specifications for the building of the tower. They are: A. Lentz, Julius Marquardt, Sam Eltag, Gustave Schiebe, the Pastor (William Rader), and Carl Findago.” Translation of these German notes is by Norbert Manthe.

In his 25 year history of St. John’s, Pastor Thiele wrote: “On the 2nd of March, 1890, the Ladies’ Aid transmitted a writing to the congregation in which they requested permission to build a tower and the procurement of a bell. The congregation accepted the offer with thanks and named a building committee to work together with the Ladies’ Aid: A. Lentz, J. Marquardt, S. Eltag,

G. Scheibe, C. Findago, C. Dittmar, and O. Ulich. The cost of the construction and the bell amounted to $1,500. The tower and the bell were dedicated in the autumn of 1890.

A similar paragraph appears in the Golden Jubilee booklet of 1932. “Through the untiring efforts of the Ladies’ Society a tower and a bell were added to the church in 1890 at the cost of $1,500.” The committee members are named followed by: “It was constructed by Mr. A. Lentz.” (Lentz Millwork was on 70th and State streets and furnished all the pews, altar and chancel for the present church.)

This church to which this tower was added was dedicated in 1882. Our present building was dedicated on June 23, 1929. At this time two more bells were donated.

For the “new” church, which is our present worship facility, St. John’s received two more bells. Both bells are inscribed with the name of the donor: “Donated by Mr. and Mrs. Ernst Schrubbe”. Both were cast in 1928 by the Hy. Stuckstede B.F. Co., St. Louis, MO. The foundry name is also inscribed on each bell.

A 2000 pound bell, Key of F, is located near the southwest corner of the belfry. This is also the tolling bell. When the tolling rope is pulled, the tolling hammer hits the inside of the bell.

Pastor Karl Otto told two interesting stories about this bell. The first is that the first funeral for which this bell tolled was that of the donor Mr. Schrubbe. The second is that the spectacular Ascension widow on the back wall of the balcony was given by Mrs. Glaus, a sister of Mrs. Schrubbe.

This large bell sounds at pitch F which is the same as the 1890 bell. Dr. Ted Otto remembers that the 1928 bell was ordered in a different key, but it arrived with the same key as the previous bell. Since it was already cast and inscribed, they decided to keep the bell. The error probably occurred because two different foundries used slightly different mixes of metals or molding processes.

The smallest bell weighs 500 pounds, Key of C, and is located near the southeast corner of the belfry. It rings in a north to south direction as does the 1890 bell. The large 1928 bell rings east to west. The belfry is at about mid-level of the bell tower, and the steeple rises above it.

Built on the Rock the Church shall stand

Even when steeples are falling;

Crumbled have spires in ev’ry land;

Bells still are chiming and calling,

Calling the young and old to rest,

But above all the soul distressed,

Longing for rest everlasting. 

- CW Hymn 529

[ About Us ] [ Contact Us ] [ Donations ] [ Calendar ] [ Church Information ] [ Map and Directions ] [ School Information ] [ Organizations ] [ Grow & Serve ] [ Links ]