I showed this to about half a dozen people on the way home after buying it, not a single person could tell me what the hell it was before I told them!
But it’s neat, yeah?
What we got here is a “Velvetone Bell Company” streetcar or horse-carriage bell, from the late 1800s. Bells like this were found on streetcars, cablecars, trams, horse-carriages, and even some early motor-cars, and were used by the driver to warn people ahead of approaching traffic.
Bells like this featured a removable plunger, usually connected to the bell by a short chain (as you can see in the picture), which could be pressed down into the bell using the driver’s foot, which activated the spring-tensioned striker-merchanism, which rang the bell…very loudly! Twice!
This bell hadn’t been used in 50 or more years, and so as a result, the striker mechanism inside the bell was extremely stiff. After a few experimental ding-dings, the whole thing seized up! So I pulled it apart…
…then cleaned, and lubricated the striker mechanism…
…to get it ringing again. Although this looks extremely crude, it’s actually a very effective mechanism. The chunk of brass on the right with the screw in it is the hammer that hits the side of the bell. The rest of it is all part of the spring-mechanism that jerks it back and forth to ring at each push-pull motion of the plunger.
The last thing I did was to re-reddify the red background on the plaque at the top of the bell…
…and put in some modern screws. I’ll replace these with brass ones one day, if I can find any.
You have the eye for finding such historical interesting finds and telling us the story, I have read all of your website info, in the past couple of years. Thanks for your work.
Hi Doris! Thanks. Glad you like my posts!
Hi Scheong,
I have one of these but unfortunately it doesn’t work. After scouring the internet, I found your post which was fascinating ( I had no idea of the original use) and Im trying to get it to work again. Do you have any more pictures of the internal mechanism? The one I have is missing the band of metal and the upright screw that holds it in place. I’ve replaced these but it still wont ring and the plunger is very stiffmany thanks in advance!!!
I’ll see what I can do, but I’d rather not try and pull the bell apart again. It’s quite fiddly. Have you tried lubricating it? It can get quite stiff, with how old they are.
Wow, this is a very beautiful bell and I certainly would have known what the item is. I have a similar nickel plated Tram/Carriage/Automobile Plunger Bell made by Glenn Wayne Jr. Bell Company of Waterbury Conn, and it is in magnificent condition and plays two very distinct tones, A-flat and up to a D-flat.
I collect and use bells in my music making activities and have many bells of various types, and I belong to the American Bell Association. I recorded with the tram bell many times and it can be heard on Roscoe Mitchell’s “Maze” recording.
Where did you get the bell and are there any like it available, and what did it cost?
I purchased my bell from an antique shop in Chicago IL over forty five years ago.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Peace and Joy Bells are Ringing.
Respectfully,
Douglas R. Ewart
Hi Doug,
I bought the bell at a flea-market years ago for…I think it was about $50.00. I don’t have it anymore (I sold it a few years ago), but it’s a FAIRLY common item. You could probably find one on eBay if you search hard enough. The most I’ve seen one asking for, is about $150.00.
Need parts for my carrage bell