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Trenton Public School’s Bell September 30, 1882, C. Hall was instructed by the Trenton School Board to get an estimate of cost for a round tower superstructure to house a clock and bell for the new school currently under construction. In August of 1883, L.D. Hall was assigned by the board, as a committee of one, to ascertain a price and procure a bell for the school. The Buckeye Bell Foundry/Vanduzen & Tift, Cincinnati, Ohio, was selected to furnish the school bell at 23 cents per pound delivered with fixtures and hangings. An additional $13.65 was allowed in October for freight and drayage. The Buckeye Bell Foundry cast the bronze school bell with “Trenton Public Schools” lettering in relief on one side indicating its one-of-a-kind status. It measured thirty-eight inches in diameter and twenty-eight inches tall and cost $253.73. Its weight was approximately 1000 pounds, and the bell pealed a mellow A below middle C.
If iron and steel bells were the “Fords” then bronze bells were the “Cadillac's.” A well made bronze bell will hold its “hum note” for up to a minutes after being struck. The content of a bronze bell is 80% copper and 20% tin. After approximately eighty years, the bell’s color will change from a golden hue to silver, similar to nickel. If the bell is polished or cleaned, it takes on the finish of a slightly dull tin can and looks like silver. Silver bells of this size are an “old wife’s tale” because silver is too soft to ring well. Today a replacement for the bell would cost in the neighborhood of $21,140. If the bell were melted for scrap, one could realize between $3,000-$4,000. The resale value of the bell would depend on existing flaws and the eagerness of a buyer.
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The
now defunct Buckeye Foundry was one of the seven largest producers of
bronze bells in the United States during the 1800’s through the turn
of the century. The bell manufactory of the Vanduzen & Tift Company
was one of the oldest and best-known manufactories in Cincinnati,
having been established in 1837. The foundry name was maintained
throughout more than a century of operation with slight changes as a
result of different family members assuming leadership roles.