The Bells of St Veep
The following particulars of the bells of St Veep were kindly supplied by Mr William Hoskin, for 25 years churchwarden of St Veep.
St Cyricius Church Bells
Dedicated to St Veep on the Seventeenth day of June, in the year of our Lord on thousand eight hundred and seventy.
In the South of Cornwall, not far from the coast, there is hung in that ancient old tower which stands fifty-seven feet high, and its walls of six feet in width, a perfect peal of Six Virgin Bells, cast on the sixteenth day of June, in the stillness of the night, one thousand seven hundred and seventy, by Pennington Bell Founder of Bradford, in a meadow opposite the Churchyard gate, for the sum of seventeen pounds. Before that date there were four bells hung in the tower, the third bell being cracked, and the remaining three sadly out of key. The Vicar, the Reverend William Penwarne, the Churchwardens and Parishioners decided to recast them, with the addition of twohundredweight and a quarter metal. When the tenor bell was cast, the parishioners collected all the old silver they could and threw it in the mould to enrich its tone:- this bell, to its weight, cannot be beaten. The bells were all put into the furnace and cast into their moulds, and when they were cold, they were hung on a girder. Pennington tapped them with his hammer, and leaped for joy, and pronounced them a virgin peal. He said he was more than satisfied with himself, and said those splendid peal of bells could never be excelled: he had, he said, cast and re-cast hundreds of bells in Somerset, Devon and Cornwall, but never did he cast such a peal as this.
The key of those bells is in G, and the tenor bell weighs 10cwt. 1qtr. 3lbs. On the fourth bell is inscribed “John Burns, Churchwarden and Yeoman”, on the fifth bell “Richard Wymond, Churchwarden”, on the tenor bell is inscribed “William Penwarne, Vicar, AD 1770” and “I call the Quick to Church, and Dead to Grave.”
These melodious bells shall be rung on all Festive and Holy Days and every Sabbath Day to call God’s people to Divine Worship, and when our life on earth is o’er that grand and solemn old tenor bell shall call us to Eternal Rest.
Wm. Penwarne M.A.
Vicar,
1770
The bells need some maintenance – not the actual bells but the fabric surrounding the bells, things like the clappers. As a church we need to raise £20,000 to do the repairs. Any ideas on how to raise the money please give me a shout on this blog and if you want to contribute I can put you in contact with the churchwardens.
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