Sandwich St Peter

SANDWICH, St Peter

Photo RCO May 2004

	8 bells
	Tenor 15-2-19 in E flat
	Grid Ref. TR331581
	Canterbury District
	Frame: 1727 Knight or Catlin, 2 pits added 1779
	Retuning: Never subsequently retuned
	Upstairs Ringing Room
	Tower is unsafe and bells are derelict, except the tenor which is rung every day at 8 p.m. for the Curfew.
	PEALS

DETAILS OF THE BELLS

Bell	Weight	Diameter	Cast	Founder
1	4-2-27	27¹/2"	1779	William Mears
2	5-0-13	29¹/4"	1779	William Mears
3	5-3-15	31"	1779	William Mears
4	7-1-24	33³/4"	1779	William Mears
5	7-2-23	35⁵/8"	1779	William Mears
6	9-2-1	37³/8"	1779	William Mears
7	11-3-13	41³/4"	1779	William Mears
8	15-2-19	45³/8"	1779	William Mears

I MEAN TO MAKE IT UNDERSTOOD. THAT THO I’M LITTLE. YET I’M GOOD

W. MEARS & C^O FECIT 1779

(3 diamonds) TO HONOUR BOTH OF GOD AND KING. OUR VOIES SHALL IN CONSORT RING

W^W MEARS & C^O LONDON FECIT 1779

(5 diamonds)WHILST THUS WE JOIN IN CHEARFULL SOUND + MAY LOVE & LOYALTY ABOUND

W^M MEARS & C^O LONDON FECIT 1779

MUSIC IS MEDICINE TO THE MIND MEARS & C^O 1779

IN WEDLOCK BANDS ALL YE WHO JOYN WITH HANDS & HARTS UNITE SO SHALL

OUR TUNEFULL TONGUES COMBINE TO LAUD THE NUPTIALS RITE v MEARS & C^O FECIT (6 diamonds)

(18 diamonds) PEACE AND GOOD NEIGHBOURWOOD	v	W^M MEARS & C^O LONDON FECIT 1779
	v

YE RINGERS ALL THAT PRIZE YOUR HEALTH & HAPPINESS BE SOBER MERRY WISE & YOU’LL THE SAME POSSESS.

WM MEARS & C^O OF LONDON . FECIT 1779.

(Obliterated inscription) FORBES, 1779

THE REVD. MR. J: CONANT A:M: RECTOR. W: W: BRADLY W BRICE CH: WARDENS 1779

The diamonds refer to the number of diamonds appearing in the Whitechapel diamond border. They are co-joined without loops. All the raised underlined characters are actually raised characters with a single dot beneath them, apart from the "O" in "C^o" on the 5th which has 2 dots. There is no stop under the "M" of "W^M" on the 7th.

1546		A man was killed while ringing the 3rd.
1641		Tower described as cracked.
1663		Upper portion of the tower blew down in a gale.
1727		6 bells were purchased from Canterbury Cathedral. The tenor was recast by Samuel Knight and all 6, known as the "Oxfords" were hung in the tower.
1758		Fausset records 5 bells in the tower, 4 by Joseph Hatch dated 1625, and a tenor by Samuel Knight, dated 1727.
1779		The 6 bells were recast into 8 by William Mears.
1815		A new headstock was provided for the treble.
1823		The one and only peal on the bells was rung. This is recorded on a peal board in the ringing room.
1892		The 4th was repaired. A meeting of the KCACR was held here in this year.
1898		New clock and chimes fitted by Gillett & Johnston.
1913		Bells last rung, for a wedding when "dust seemed to fall" (local inf. per Mr J. Bowles, formerly Secretary of the RCF).
1932		Tenor quarter-turned, rehung and fitted with ball bearings by Mears & Stainbank at a cost of �33.15s.
1948		Church ceased to be a parish church and was used as the Chapel of Sir Roger Manwood's School.
1973	22nd Feb	Church declared redundant.
1974		The KCACR made proposals for rehanging the bells to the RCF. The tower was subsequently underpinned, the clock rebuilt, new steps put in - and the bells left in their dereliction.
1974	16th Oct	Redundancy Scheme Church vested in the Churches Conservation Trust.
1979		The Mayor of Sandwich, Cllr H. J. Sneller, offered to make St Peter's bells the object of his special Mayor's Appeal. Estimates for restoration were again sought but the work was vetoed by the church architect. The belfry was cleared of rubbish and fragments of old wheels, etc.


The tower rises above the Sandwich skyline.

The peal board in the tower for the one and only peal on the bells.

David Cawley rings the curfew (tenor) bell.	3 of the curfew ringers showing the new rope on the tenor, the peal board, the remains of the 4th rope, and the hat pegs.