Sending out their joyful sound every Sunday mornings until June 2022, the 10 bronze bells of the Seabury Chime at Grace Episcopal Church, 924 Lake St., will again toll over downtown Oak Park.
The sound stopped when it was discovered that a century of use had taken its toll. The bells fell silent, and 10 tons of wood, iron, and bronze were removed from the tower during restoration. The Seabury Chime was given by C. Ward Seabury in memory of his father, the late Charles Seabury (1839-1910), a pillar of Grace Church’s early life. This restoration was made possible by a gift from Dr. Fred and Carole Barber, longtime Grace members and leaders in the area medical community.
A special liturgy will be held on Sunday, Nov. 16 to officially welcome the bells back into use. Over 100 years, they have chimed to call worshippers to service, at weddings, funerals, and other special events like holidays. At funerals, the bell is tolled for the number of years the deceased person has lived, a tradition in English churches coming from a meditation by the 17th century poet John Dunne, “For whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.”
The bells range in weight from 375 to 3,600 lbs., totaling 13,500 lbs. Originally, they were made by Old Meneely Bell Foundry in West Rye, New York. Paccard Bell Foundry in Annecy, France, established in 1796, has completed the restoration to replace the wood with steel frames and holders with all new clappers. A special high crane was required to lift each bell into position.
A single carillonneur plays the bells from a console located in the room below the bell chamber. It has 10 wooden levers, each connected to a clapper of a bell by chains, rods, and springs. Volume is controlled by how vigorously the lever is depressed. This means that, whenever the bell rings, a real person is at the console or pulling the levers or the rope for the swinging bell. Under proper conditions, the bells can be heard for 3 miles.
Charles Chauncey Wells
Oak Park