The afternoon of Monday, October 11, 1875 was cool and cloudy as the vestry members of Saint Mark's Church, Philadelphia, converged on Sixth and Locust Streets to meet at the office of Mr. Richard R. Montgomery, Rector's Warden. Seven of the twelve vestrymen were able to attend the 3:00 PM meeting together with Dr. Hoffman, rector of Saint Mark's.

The Reverend Eugene Augustus Hoffman had been rector of Saint Mark's for six years. Dr. Hoffman was an imposing man with a wide forehead, straight, broad nose and a salt-and-pepper beard. He was a man of broad interests and during his tenure many spiritual and material changes occurred at Saint Mark's. On Advent Sunday, 1869, Dr. Hoffman began the celebration of the Holy Eucharist every Sunday and on all Prayer Book Holy Days. He started the parish Employment Society in 1869 to give part-time work to unemployed women in the neighborhood. In 1870 he began the Workingmen's Club and Institute to help the working men of the neighborhood through intellectual, social and employment activities. In 1870 he started the Altar Society which, during his tenure, made altar hangings and vestments for the church. The Hospital Aid Association was formed in 1873 to provide aid to patients of the Episcopal Hospital. A parish school and Sunday school flourished during his tenure with about 275 children in the Sunday school. The fabric of the building had been added to by the addition of several stained glass windows including the large west window. The purchase and installation of bells for the bell tower were now a priority item for the energetic Dr. Hoffman.

The church building had been completed in 1849 and consecrated in 1850. At that time the tower had only been finished to the first story. In 1851 two members of the congregation had offered to pay for the completion of the tower and spire. The work was completed in 1852. For twenty-three years the completed tower had awaited the installation of the bells for which it had been built.

The object of the special vestry meeting on that cloudy October afternoon in 1875 was to consider the purchase of bells for the tower. A bell fund had been started in 1869, Dr. Hoffman's first year as rector. Mr. Montgomery reported that $4,000 was in hand, enough to purchase four of the eight bells planned for the tower.

The vestry resolved to purchase the four bells. An order was placed with the bell foundry of Mears and Stainbank, the famous Whitechapel bell foundry, in London.

Whitechapel foundry had been (and still is) casting church bells on the same site since 1570. The bells of Westminster Abbey and countless churches throughout Britain were cast at Whitechapel. The "Liberty Bell" was ordered cast by Whitechapel in 1732 by the government of the Province of Pennsylvania to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the granting of the Charter by King Charles II to William Penn. The peal of eight bells of Christ Church, Philadelphia were cast by Whitechapel in 1754, as well as the peals of Saint Peter's, Philadelphia (1842); Trinity, New York (1797); Saint Michael's, Charleston (1764) and Saint Mary's, Burlington, New Jersey (1865 - this under the rectorship of Dr. Hoffman). The order to Mears not only included the casting of the four bells, but also four sets of change-ringing fittings, an oak bell frame and chime hammers. It was only appropriate that the tower of a church built in the gothic appearance of an early English parish church should have a peal of English bells which were set up for English change-ringing.

The English tradition of change-ringing church bells could date back as far as the late middle ages and became fully developed in the 17th Century. Change-ringing is a method whereby each bell is rung by one ringer, who weaves its note into a mathematical sequence of "changes." The bells are rung full circle and halted in their turn by each ringer catching the bell at it’s balance point, which leaves the bell, mouth up, until the ringer pulls it around again. At each turn the bell is struck one blow by the clapper. This controlled method of ringing results in a cascade of sound ever changing as the ringers weave an intricate tapestry of tones. The ringing begins with "rounds", each bell ringing from the highest pitched to the lowest, down the scale. At a signal, the ringers begin to change the order in which the bells are struck, without altering the steady rhythm of the striking. Each variation, or "change" can occur only once. Ringers memorize various patterns or "methods" with very English-sounding names such as "Plain Bob", "Kent Treble Bob" or "Grandsire".

At the time there were a number of ringers living in and around Philadelphia who kept this ancient tradition alive by ringing changes in the area's church towers, most notably Saint Mary's, Burlington, New Jersey; Saint Peter's, Philadelphia and Christ Church, Philadelphia where a famous "ringing-match" which lasted three hours, fifteen minutes was held on Sunday, June 9, 1850.

Saint Mark's vestry next gathered after the beginning of the new year on Tuesday, January 4, 1876 at 8:00 PM. Following the usual business the subject of the bells was covered. A letter had been received addressed to the Rector, Wardens and Vestry of Saint Mark's and signed by twenty-one neighbors living in the vicinity of the church. This letter was put forward for consideration. The neighbors had heard that the bells for the tower had been ordered and requested that the plans for hanging the bells not go forward. They stated that the ringing of any bells would be a shock to the nervous systems of sick persons and young children, would reduce the property values of those living near the church and might cause the church tower and spire to collapse causing great loss of life.

The vestry authorized Mr. Montgomery, the Rector's Warden, to reply that the bells had been ordered and that the vestry had decided to install them in the church tower. This reply was duly composed and sent by Mr. Samuel Wagner, Jr., Secretary to the vestry, on Friday of that same week.

The block of Locust Street between 16th and 17th Streets was quiet and serene. Paved in cobblestones and flanked on either side by brick sidewalks laid in a herringbone pattern. The dominating feature of the block was the spire of Saint Mark's Church and the brownstone church itself. An iron fence separated the sidewalk from the church's garden and young trees spaced about ten feet apart lined the curbside.

The block had been developed during the decade before the Civil War as an exclusive neighborhood. In the words of one of the residents the neighborhood,

...has always been considered a very attractive one for its beauty, for its general quiet and its freedom from places of traffic of every kind, and its attractiveness was enhanced by its nearness to Saint Mark's Church, whose fine architecture and tasteful grounds, and seclusion from all disturbing sights or sound, induced the hope that the desirability of this particular locality for a residence would be maintained.

This same neighbor stated that his residence, built in 1856, had cost him over $50,000; a sum which will be brought into perspective when it is understood that a workingman of the time earned less than $1,000 per year.

The neighborhood was inhabited by wealthy professionals and businessmen who were used to getting their own way. To maintain the comparatively noiseless" quality of the street these rich and powerful people had mounted a "resolute opposition" to the running of "railway cars" on Locust Street, causing the laying of railway track on the sixteen hundred block of Locust Street to be abandoned. The street cars which would have passed down the street were propelled not by electricity, but by horses. A "noiseless" street indeed!

The people of Saint Mark's were likewise wealthy, influential people who, like the opponents to the bells were used to having their own way. The brownstone-lined block of Locust Street was about to become a battlefield for these refined Victorian ladies and gentlemen.

Meanwhile, in London, the casting of the bells was proceeding. The bell molds were formed of yellow London clay. Inscriptions to be placed on the bells were impressed into the molds and then the molds were coated in graphite and fired in a large oven. The bell metal, consisting of 77% copper and 23% tin, was then melted and poured into the molds. The finished bronze bells were then removed from the molds when the metal had cooled. About the middle of May, 1876 this process was completed. The four bells with a total weight of 5,563 pounds were crated for shipment along with the fittings and bell frame made of heavy oak beams. The bells were shipped from London to Liverpool and hoisted upon the steamship Illinois which departed on May 25, 1876 with its cargo and 274 passengers.

After an uneventful voyage of nine days and nineteen hours the Illinois nudged into the pier of Peter Wright and Sons on the Philadelphia waterfront. It was Sunday, Pentecost Sunday by the Church's calendar, June 4, 1876. The passengers debarked, clearing customs and going their various ways. The cargo was unloaded and claimed by its various owners after proper customs duties had been paid. The bells were probably warehoused with Wright and Sons until their installation in the tower during the week of June 19 - 23.

George Hewitt, an architect with offices at 310 Chestnut Street, was engaged by the church to oversee the installation of the bells. The actual installation was done by Adam A. Catanach, a carpenter and master builder, who lived at 1523 Christian Street.

Timbers were installed in the tower and flooring laid. The bell-frame of English oak was hauled up into the tower in pieces and assembled. Finally, the four bronze bells were uncrated and carefully raised into the tower to be mounted in the frame. The neighbors must have looked on with dismay as the carter brought the bells and Mr. Catanach and his workmen unloaded them and manhandled them into the tower.

The Spring and Summer of 1876 was an exciting time for the city of Philadelphia. The Centennial Exposition had opened in Fairmount Park on May 10. President Grant opened the exposition which covered 236 acres. Over 200,000 people had crowded the exposition on its first day, and in the following five months almost 10 million visitors would have seen the fair. The city was crowded and bustling with tourists. Locust Street appeared to slumber on in its isolation, the two, three and four-story brownstone houses casting their shadows across the brick sidewalks into the cobblestone street.

The Philadelphia Evening Bulletin for Saturday, June 24, 1876 contained a short article tucked in with the religious notices and church news:

During the past week four of a peal of eight bells have been placed in the tower of Saint Mark's Church. These bells have a very rich musical tone, and were cast by the old English firm of Mears & Stainbank... These bells will be first tested this afternoon at half-past 6 o'clock, at which time the "changes" will be rung according to the old style, which has been preserved since the fifteenth century in the Church of England.

It was a clear warm day with the wind from the south and the temperature in the low 80's. William Brown, an English-born watchmaker had been the bell-ringer at Saint Stephen's Church for fifteen years. Brown had arrived at Saint Mark's that afternoon with three other bell-ringers to test ring the bells. Brown had been introduced to Dr. Hoffman, Saint Mark's rector, earlier in the week by Frederick Widdows also English-born who had the care of the chime of bells at the Centennial Exposition. According to Widdows, Brown's ringers were from Kensington, no doubt friends who had rung with Brown before and probably, like Brown, English-born.

Widdows walked up Locust Street on that pleasant evening and encountered Dr. Hoffman and a Mr. Wells, of the Evening Bulletin. Brown and his band of ringers proceeded to ring the bells, according to Widdows, "...the bells were very well rung, reminding me of English bell-ringing..."

The bells were first rung for Divine Service on the next day, Sunday June 25. Saint Mark's schedule of Sunday worship included services at 7:00 AM, 10:30 AM, 4:00 PM and 7:30 PM. The bells were rung for a half hour before each of these services. As a side note, this day, June 25, 1876, is also known for a more spectacular event in American History, the Battle of the Little Bighorn, which was underway at the very moment Saint Mark's people were gathering for their 10:30 AM service.

The next day, MacGregor J. Mitcheson, Esq., attorney for the aggrieved neighbors, himself a resident of 1608 Locust Street and a pew-holder of Saint Mark's wrote from his office at 528 Walnut Street,

I have been requested to ascertain whether it is your purpose to continue the ringing of your church-bells between 6 and 7 A.M.? Upon Sunday last they startled some persons from sound sleep, bringing on violent headache, &c.,

utterly preventing religious observance of the day by them at least...Trusting that the nuisance complained of was an inadvertence that will not be repeated, I am

Yours, resp'y

M. J. Mitcheson

The Centennial summer ended and the Exposition itself closed on October 10. Just one week earlier the vestry had met. At this October 3 meeting the rector reported on the arrival of the bells and informed the vestry that the cost for the first bells amounted to $4,980.05 with the receipts and disbursements broken down as follows:

Receipts

Disbursements

The Rector also reported that, "It is earnestly hoped that the $2,000 still required to purchase four more bells and complete the peal, may be contributed before long."

Mr. Mitcheson's letter of June 26 was also laid on the table for consideration by the vestry.

In late October the son of Mr. George L. Harrison, one of the complaining neighbors, called on Dr. Hoffman, "...in reference to his father's alleged nervous condition, and objected to the chiming of the bells for the seven o'clock morning service..." He said that even the expectation of the bells ringing kept his father awake all night.

On November 3, Mr. Harrison's physician, S. Weir Mitchell, who was also a popular author of the time, wrote to Mr. Thomas H. Kirtley, a member of Saint Mark's vestry, reporting that some of his patients were "driven wild" by the early bells. The next day this note was shown to Dr. Hoffman who directed the early ringing to be discontinued.

A special meeting of the vestry was scheduled for 4:00 PM November 6 where a petition signed by 48 neighbors was presented by John S. Newbold, a member of the vestry. A letter signed by 14 physicians was also presented. The neighbors' petition asked that the bells be discontinued "excepting for a single service." The doctors' petition asked that the bells "early", "frequent" and "prolonged" ringing be discontinued because it was "...prejudicial to the health of some and to the discomfort of many of the residents..."

The Rector told the vestry about Dr. Mitchell's note and his decision to discontinue the early bells. Feeling that the early ringing was the problem and since it had been already discontinued, the vestry decided to state their rights as to the regulation of the bells but also to consider cases of special need. they resolved, "That while the vestry entirely denies the right of the residents...to regulate the...ringing of the bells...,they feel confident that the corporation (of Saint Mark's)...will always be ready...to hear and consider any special appeal that may be made for stopping the ringing of the bells in any specified case of illness."

The next day, November 7, Mr. Newbold, the presenter of the neighbors' petition, resigned from Saint Mark's vestry. The day following, Mr. Edward S. Buckley, also resigned from the vestry.

Shortly thereafter a circular was printed by the complaining neighbors alleging to contain all correspondence in the matter, but failing to include the correspondence of Dr. Mitchell and Dr. Hoffman's reply discontinuing the early bells. Copies of the circular were leaked to the newspapers making it appear that Saint Mark's Church was ignoring the pleas of doctors on behalf of their delicate patients.

The press was outraged and Saint Mark's was severely criticized for still ringing the early bells which in actual fact had been discontinued for several weeks.

It was then that the neighbors instituted proceedings to file suit to stop the ringing of the bells. A bill for injunction was filed with the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas on January 2, 1877 to restrain the ringing of the bells.

During January and February depositions were taken from residents near the church, medical and scientific experts, real estate experts, theological professors, clergy of other churches with bells, the sexton of Saint Mark's, professional bell ringers, and residents near other churches having bells.

Of the residents of houses in the vicinity of Saint Mark's it was ascertained that there were 98 houses in the area bounded by Walnut Street on the north, Spruce Street on the south, Sixteenth Street on the east, and Seventeenth Street on the west. A summary of affidavits was made as follows:

Six of the 47 supporters later made second affidavits on behalf of the complainants modifying their first testimony and if these were stricken from the list the final tally would be:

Medical and scientific experts testified for both sides about the harmful (or harmless) effects of sound waves upon the nervous system. Included in this array of experts was the prominent Philadelphia surgeon, Dr. D. Hayes Agnew who, four years later, would attend to the sufferings of President James Garfield, felled by an assassin's bullet. (Dr. Agnew testified for the complainants.)

Real estate experts testified to the reduction of (or enhancement of) property values of residences in the vicinity of a church with bells.

Theologians testified that bells are not a necessary part of Christian worship (or have been used to call Christian people to worship from the earliest times.)

Professional bell-ringers testified to the loud, discordant sound (or to the sweet, soft sound) of Saint Mark's bells. Enough testimony was taken to fill a book 491 pages long. A map of the area around the church was drawn, color coded as to the location of the complainants. The color coding was contested as inaccurate by the attorneys for the church. A scale model of the neighborhood five feet five inches by four feet one inch and a half was built of wood. The measurements of the model were disparaged by the church's attorneys.

Map, model and reams of testimony all converged on the courtroom of Presiding Judge Hare and Associate Judge Mitchell together with P. Pemberton Morris and George W. Biddle, lawyers for Saint Mark's, and William Henry Rawle and R. C. McMurtrie for the complainants.

The arguments were made by each of the attorneys in the best oratorical style of that day of great oratorical styles. Mr. Rawle began his argument by saying, "I will try to condense what I have to say within the smallest possible compass." He then proceeded with a speech which fills almost sixty pages of closely typeset text in the printed report.

Mr. Rawle's argument ended with the following statement:

As a member of the Church, I would be the last man on earth to interfere with any part of its beautiful service. I am even tolerant as to many things which some good people look upon as anathema maranatha - processions, and bowings, and candles, and incense, and vestments, and the like, which seem more appropriate on the stage than in the sanctuary. I am tolerant of these because I think it is better to worship God with a little nonsense, than to have more wisdom and not worship at all.

But this bell-ringing is no part of divine service. The bells are never rung while worship, and praise, and prayer are going on. Nor are they aids to the prosperity of the parish, because for nineteen years they have never had a bell of any kind. And thus, while I would not interfere with them in that which really pertains to their service, I humbly ask that they shall not interfere with us in the happiness and comfort of our homes.

George W. Biddle, attorney for Saint Mark's recalled the testimony of near-by neighbors, quoting them, "...the bells...do not annoy me in any way. I like to hear them ring...I would miss them if they were stopped", and " I like to hear church-bells ring", and "I do not notice their ringing unless my attention is called to it."

Mr. Biddle even used poetry in his argument to sway the Judges, quoting the poet, William Cowper,

"There is in souls a sympathy with sounds,

And as the mind is pitched the ear is pleased

With melting airs or martial, brisk or grave.

Some chord, in unison with what we hear,

Is touched within us, and the heart replies.

How soft the music of those village bells,

Falling ant intervals upon the ear

In cadence sweet, now dying all away,

Now pealing loud again and louder still,

Clear and sonorous, as the gale comes on!

With easy force it opens all the cells

Where memory slept."

Concluding, he included a quote from Shakespeare,

I would say to these complainants, in the language of the greatest of all who have lived within the sound of church-going bells (the church at Stratford being very much like Saint Mark's in its general appearance), --

If ever you have looked on better days;

If ever been where bells have knolled to church;

If ever sat at any good man's feast;

If ever from your eyelids wiped a tear,

And known what 'tis to pity and be pitied,--

Let gentleness your strong enforcement be,"--

and not mingling in the wranglings and vexations of courts, which (take my word for it) will do more harm and injury to the over-wrought nervous system than all the bells on all the churches in this good city of Philadelphia.

 

The closing arguments completed, Judge Hare decreed as follows:

And now, this twenty-fourth day of February, A.D. 1877, this cause came on to be heard on a motion for a special injunction, and was argued by counsel. Whereupon, in consideration thereof, it is ordered and decreed that upon security being entered in the sum of one thousand dollars, an injunction issue, restricting the defendants from ringing the bells of Saint Mark's Church or otherwise using the same so as to cause nuisance or annoyance, by sound or noise, to the complainants, or any of them, within their respective houses.

The following day, Sunday, February 25, 1877, a satirical poem appeared in the Sunday Dispatch. The poem is called "In Statu Quo Ante Bellum",

Oh! glory to the Common Pleas, from whom all glories are!

And honor to their Honors, too, who face the wordy Bar!

And chiefest, high above the rest, we cry: "Huzza for Hare!"

Who molds the law for brownstone folks

Who live in St. Mark's square.

And glory to the lawyers, too, surcharged with common lore--

With cases, points, and precedents, and arguments a store;

Injunction now is just the thing to suit the people there

No nuisance now for brownstone folks

Who live in St. Mark's square.

No more the clanging sound of bells shall fright the quiet air;

No more the tolling "country chimes" will agitate the fair;

And drowsy Cit may sweetly doze upon his easy chair.

No chiming now for brownstone folks

Who live in St. Mark's square.

At midnight now the soldier "swell" from club may safely reel,

And pausing at his lofty door, for friendly latch-key feel;

His morning nap is all secure--his dream's his own affair

No matin-bell now for brownstone folks

Who live in St. Mark's square.

To Justice--sweet and noble maid, with balances so true,

Who blindly weighs the good and bad--our thanks are warmly due;

But loftier, greater, grander, still is Equity so rare,

Who guards the nerves of brownstone folks

Who live in St. Mark's square.

Three days after Judge Hare's decision, in a letter, Dr. Hoffman, rector of Saint Mark's wrote,

The injunction which was granted on Saturday last against the ringing of St. Mark's bells is the first time in the history of Christendom that a church has been enjoined for availing itself of its ancient and time-honored custom of announcing its services by the ringing of bells...The authorities of St. Mark's Church, believing that this injunction is an invasion of their legal rights, if not the beginning of a crusade against all church bells, have, under the advice of counsel, taken an appeal to the Supreme Court against it.

In June, 1877 the Supreme Court of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania affirmed the lower court's decree, but modified it to allow the bells to be rung on Sundays for two minutes at thirty minutes before the beginning of divine worship and the smallest bell to be rung alone for five minutes before. This ringing was limited to the usual three divine services on Sunday, forenoon, afternoon and evening and did not include early morning services.

In January, 1878 a further modification was made to permit the bells to be rung under the same conditions as pertained to Sundays on the following days: Washington's Birthday, Fourth of July, first day of the year, sixth of January (Feast of the Epiphany), Ash Wednesday, Good Friday, Ascension Day, first of November (All Saints Day), Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, and at weddings and funerals.

In spite of the injunction the church went ahead with plans to purchase and install four more bells to complete the set of eight. In April, 1878 Mears and Stainbank crated and shipped from their London foundry an additional four bells with a combined weight of 2,923 pounds.

When the bells arrived in Philadelphia a new timber structure was built higher in the tower at the base of the spire. The four bells already mounted in the English bell frame were remounted in this new structure and the four new bells were winched up the tower to join their counterparts. The bells were mounted with three bells hanging above five. This was probably done to elevate the bells further from the street to soften the sound. To this day the original English change-ringing bell frame remains in the tower with the marks upon it where the first four bells had been originally mounted.

It appears that traditional change-ringing was done at Saint Mark's for a very short time in 1876 and then only with the four heavier bells which were first mounted in the English change-ringing bell frame. When the four lighter bells joined their heavier mates the entire peal of bells was mounted in the new timber structure higher in the steeple. Under this arrangement the bells may be chimed, that is, swung back and forth so that the clappers strike the swinging bells, but they may not be rung full circle in the ancient English manner.

The neighborhood of Saint Mark's today is far different than it was in 1876. A few of the brownstone houses in which the neighbors lived are still standing across the street from the church and are now no longer residences, but professional offices or shops. The spire of Saint Mark's, which dominated the 1876 skyline of the block, is now dwarfed by office and apartment towers. The quiet street which couldn't even bear the sound of a horse-drawn street car now carries automobiles, vans and trucks. In the caverns below, commuter trains rumble.

The spire of Saint Mark's continues to point expectantly heavenward as it has since it was first built. Inside, four tons of bronze bear mute testimony to events over a century old. The principals of that long-ago controversy are all gone from the scene, but the bells remain.

As the years passed, members of Saint Mark’s would chime the bells for Sunday services and Church feast days. From the early 1980s onward a faithful group of parishioners regularly chimed the bells, but time began to take its toll. The old wooden fittings began to crack and fail under use and one by one the bells began to fall silent.

As the old cast in crown staples rusted with age they were in danger of expanding and cracking the bell metal that surrounded them.

An inspection in the late 1990s revealed a dangerous degeneration of the old bell frame.

As an act of stewardship – taking care of what has been entrusted to them – to preserve the marvelous legacy that had been left by a generation long gone, the vestry of the church resolved in 1998 to begin restoration of the bells to preserve them from decay and to stabilize them to eliminate a growing unsafe situation.

At this writing, the bells are in the midst of restoration. They have been dismounted from the old decaying fittings and frame and are now mute, at rest, in a cluster up in the belltower like a flock of expectant birds waiting to fly.

A band of ringers, drawn from members and friends of Saint Mark’s is learning to ring bells in the ancient English manner.

The restoration will be complete in the Summer of 1999, almost exactly 123 years to the day of their first being rung.

Soon skilled hands, first of bell hangers, and then of bell ringers, will be employed and the bells will awaken from their slumber, soar and fly like birds and sing forth with clear and joyful voices.

BIBLIOGRAPHY AND SOURCES

Rinhart, Floyd and Marion America's Centennial Celebration, 1976

Gilkyson, Claude St. Mark's - One Hundred Years on Locust Street, 1948

Mortimer, Alfred G. St. Mark's Church, Philadelphia, and its Lady Chapel, 1909

Report of Harrison et al vs. St. Mark's Church, Philadelphia, 1877

Greiff, Constance M. John Notman, Architect, 1979

Reilly, Theo. M. A Memorial Biography of the Very Reverend Eugene Augustus Hoffman, 1904

Brett, Simon The Whitechapel Bell Foundry, 1977

Miller, A Thomas Visual Inspection of the bell tower, Saint Mark's Church

Hughes, W. A. Letter from W. A. Hughes of the Whitechapel Bell Foundry to Miss Linda Woodford, Bell Hanger dated 28th October 1982