BELLS FROM THE CROYDON FOUNDRY:
(Gillett & Co, Gillett & Bland, Gillett & Johnston)

INTRODUCTION

The bell founders, Gillett and Bland (later becoming Gillett, Bland and Co. and Gillett & Johnston in 1884) were based in Croydon, Surrey. They cast bells for Kent between 1877 and 1953. Whilst the foundry is no longer casting bells (it still exists as a firm of clock makers) extensive records of their work exist which therefore permits an analysis of their share of the bellfounding business in Kent.

The records are stored at Croydon Library. An index of these records was produced by Alan A J Buswell and is also kept at the library. In this exercise, the author has been through all of the foundry records and headings in the index to ascertain exactly how many bells were sent to Kent. There are a number of bells that arrived in Kent 'second hand' and therefore do not appear in the records as Kent. These have also been included.

This exercise has also assisted in the work to double check the quality of the data collected for the index as errors had been introduced through the process of converting the spidery handwriting of the Gillett founders into print.

The links below lead to tables summarising all the bells supplied to Kent, giving an indication of their fate, where known, primarily through the author's own research. A Microsoft Excel version of the table may be downloaded from here in case the reader wishes to perform various sorts on the data.

Further work may still be done and the author would be grateful for any additional information that others may be able to provide (e.g. photographs of school bells, details of inscriptions, etc). Best thanks are due to Croydon Archives Library (and especially Chris Bennett the archivist), also to those who have assisted in the detective work to track down these bells.

Dickon Love

28th January 2007 (fieldwork by Dickon Love)
HMS KENT - Bell No. 2524 discovered hanging on display in County Hall, Maidstone. It therefore represents and addition to the list.

8th October, 2006 (fieldwork by Dickon Love)
UPSTREET, Grove Ferry Inn - Bell No. 1844 discovered hanging from the ceiling of this pub. It was originally marked as being cast for the John Roan School in Greenwich. This leaves the question of what bell is hanging from the cupola at the school and whether this bell ever went there.

4th December, 2005 (fieldwork by David Cawley)
RAMSGATE, Christ Church - Established that the two Gillett bells are still in the tower, despite the confusing references to these bells in other published works.

30th March, 2005 (fieldwork)
PENSHURST MISSION CHURCH - Now identified to be the precursor building to St Luke, CHIDDINGSTONE CAUSEWAY, where the bell now hangs.

29th March, 2005 (fieldwork)
BICKLEY, Stotfold - House discovered to still exist, and a turret clock has been discovered over it together with a cupola. Alas the cupola is empty so the fate of the bell is unknown.
OTFORD, St Michael's School - bell discovered to be there. Photographed.

13th January, 2005 (thanks to CJP's new research)
BLACKHEATH, St Mary RC - it emerges that these were installed in an oak frame for 6.
BROMLEY, Christ Church - now identified as actually St Luke's, Bromley Common.
FARNBOROUGH, St Giles - the 1907 bell was cast heavier than the former bell to be the tenor of a future ring of 6.
PLUMSTEAD, Royal Arsenal Co-op Society (unknown) - identified as the Lakedale Road Store, which is probably the same as the Brewery Road Store mentioned some years earlier.
Other amendments are made on the spreadsheet for Bickley, Plumstead Common, Wrotham.

3rd January, 2005
CHARLTON, Fossdene School - school photographed but no sign of the bell.
CHARLTON, Holborn College - former Maryon Park School photographed but no sign of the bell.

4th November, 2004
TESTON, Location Unknown - Bell identified as Barham Court clock bell.

27th October, 2004 (thanks to DLC)
CHERITON, All Saints - Bell confirmed as Gillett.
HOO, All Hallows - Bell confirmed as Gillett.
HUCKING, St Margaret - Bell confirmed as Gillett.
IGHTHAM, Unknown - It would appear that a Gillett profiled clock bell fitting this description hangs over the courtyard in Ightham Mote.
MARGATE, Pier - Fate of bell established.
RIDLEY, St Peter - Bell confirmed as Gillett.
TESTON, Unknown - Confirmed not to be in the church.
WESTGATE-on-SEA, United Reformed Church - Bell confirmed as Gillett.
WESTGATE-on-SEA, Corbett & Co - Bell identified as former school bell at Wellington House School, now incorporated into the treble at St Saviour's, Westgate.
WORTH,Ss Peter & Paul - More details on this mystery bell.