82. Randolph County Courthouse Bell Purchased

Historians Will Buy Bell From Courthouse Clock

(Blog post from Mick.)

Winchester Journal Herald.
July 22, 1954

     Negotiations are underway for the purchase of the bell from the courthouse clock by the Randolph County Historical Society.
     Meeting Sunday at a picnic affair at the Frank Wysong home, south of Winchester, the group voted to buy the two-ton bell removed from the courthouse tower during the demolition work now in progress.
     The society has agreed to pay the Reiff Construction company of Bluffton, the firm which has the demolition contract, $100 for the 70-year-old bell and is considering purchase for another $250 of the clock's works.
     Should the works be bought, a temporary storage place will be found.
     Frank Morgan, Wallace Fields and Thomas Moorman have been named by the society to meet with the Randolph County commissioners to secure permission to mount the bell on a platform on the courthouse lawn.

Fall 2018

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Research notes from Thursa.

Fast facts about The Courthouse Bell: 

The bell was manufactured by M. C. Shane and Company, Baltimore, Maryland.  About 1884.
     In a search to see if the company was still around, or bells that were 'famous'... here is what I found. McShane Bell Foundry in Glen Burnie, Maryland if you want to do a Google search and check out more yourself.  If your searching or notes you have lead to more of the story to help update a notebook on the courthouse and the bell, send an email to rchsmuseum@gmail.com to arrange an appointment with a board member.

Removed from the courthouse tower in 1954 when the upper portion of the courthouse was removed.

In 1956, the bell was placed on the Courthouse lawn by the Randolph County Historical Society.

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Facebook group: Randolph County Indiana Historical and Genealogical Society

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