History of the Bells
History of the Bells
| 1553 |
Tower had four bells and a Sanctus bell |
| 17th Century |
Original bells recast into 3 bells and hung in an oak frame |
| 18th Century |
Two new bells and a new Sanctus bell added |
| 1887 |
Bells re-tuned and frame repaired |
| 1940 |
Fourth bell cracked |
| 1949 |
John Taylor of Loughborough recast 3 of the bells, added a new treble, and fitted a new 8 bell frame |
| 1997 |
John Taylor of Loughborough cast two new treble bells |
| 2018 |
John Taylor of Loughborough rehang the 4th and 6th bells on metal canon retaining headstocks. At the same time, all of the clappers were refurbished, and the bell frame painted. |
Details of the present ring of 8 bells
|
Bell |
Weight (Cwts-Qtrs-Pds) | Casting Date |
|
Treble |
4 - 1 - 14 | 1997 |
|
2nd |
4 - 3 - 14 |
1997 |
|
3rd |
5 - 0 - 15 | Recast in 1949 |
|
4th |
6 - 2 - 1 |
1730 |
|
5th |
7 - 3 - 23 | Recast 1949 |
|
6th |
8 - 0 - 3 | 1662 Re-tuned in 1949 Rehung in 2018 |
|
7th |
12 - 2 - 6 | Recast in 1949 |
|
Tenor |
18 - 2 - 23 | Recast in 1949 |
Why a tower and a spire?
Wanborough church is famous for being one of three churches in the country with both a western tower and a central spire. The others are at Purton and Ormskirk. Why? Here is one of the tales which tells why Wanborough has both.
Once upon a time, the Lord of the Manors wife was expecting her first born baby, and to mark the occasion the Lord of the Manor offered to pay for the building of a church tower if his wife gave birth to a son, or he would pay for a spire if his wife gave birth to a girl. However, his wife had twins, a baby boy and a girl, so he built a tower and a spire.