Saint Michael’s Church
Serving God and Bishop’s Stortford
Bells
St Michael’s tower contains a ring of 10 bells, the largest weighing 17 cwt in the key of E flat. The ring was installed in 1820 and contains three bells originally cast in 1713.
It is not known when there were first bells in St Michael’s but the Churchwardens accounts for 1439 show the tower contained five bells. A sixth was added in 1671 and in 1713 John Waylett recast three of these. From the metal of the remaining three he cast five new bells to make a ring of 8. For this work he was paid £44-17s-6d (£44.88).
In 1819 the bells were taken into storage and the upper part of the tower and the spire were rebuilt. John Briant of Hertford re-hung the bells in 1820, in a new wooden frame and provided two new treble bells to increase the ring to 10.
This constitutes the present ring, and apart from being retuned and re-hung in 1928 and regularly maintained, they remain in their original condition and frame.
The church clock was also supplied by John Briant in 1820. It is situated in a wooden casing in a floor between the belfry and the bell-chamber. The three faces show the time except on the west face of the tower and the mechanism requires winding by hand twice per week.
The Bells
|
Diameter |
Weight | ||||
| Cwt | Qu | Lb |
Note | ||
|
No.1 |
|
5 |
2 |
3 |
G |
|
No.2 |
|
5 |
2 |
7 |
F |
|
No.3 |
|
6 |
1 |
4 |
Eflat |
|
No.4 |
|
6 |
0 |
19 |
D |
|
No.5 |
|
7 |
0 |
11 |
C |
|
No.6 |
|
8 |
0 |
3 |
Bflat |
|
No.7 |
|
9 |
0 |
18 |
Aflat |
|
No.8 |
|
10 |
2 |
12 |
G |
|
No.9 |
|
13 |
0 |
2 |
F |
|
No. 10 |
|
16 |
3 |
15 |
Eflat |
DETAILS OF THE INSCRIPTIONS ON THE BELLS
No. 1 W: FRANCIS & J : FAIRMAN C: WARDENS J : BRIANT HERTFORD FECIT 1820
No.2 W: FRANCIS & J : FAIRMAN C: WARDENS J : BRIANT HERTFORD FEC IT 1820
No.3 J BOULTWOOD & T SCOTT C W J BRIANT HERTFORD FECIT 1791
No.4 IOHN WAYLETT oo MADE ME 1713
No.5 IOHN WAYLETT oo MADE ME 1713
No.6 o THO CLAYTON o AND THO SCOTT o CH WAR 1713
No.7 J BOULTWOOD & T SCOTT C W J : BRIANT HERTFORD FECIT 1802
No. 8 STATUTUM EST OMIBUS EMEL MORI. J : BRIANT HERTFORD FECIT 1802
No. 9 JOHN BOULTWOOD & THOMAS SCOTT CHURCH WARDENS JOHN BRIANT HERTFORD FECIT AN : DOM : 1791
No. 10 RO : : BOULTWOOD : : WILLIAM : SPEARING : : THO MOTT 1730 : : I WAYLETT FECIT
Office Address:
Saint Michael’s Church
Windhill
Bishops Stortford
Hertfordshire
CM23 2ND