Grid Reference:-
139/110938
Postcode:
B72 1TF
Bell Audio:-
None Available
Guild Affiliation:-
St Martins Guild
Peals Rung Here:-
Felstead Database
Sunday Ringing:-
0930 - 1000
1700 - 1730
Practice Night:-
Wednesday
2000 - 2100
History Of The Bells
Sutton is mentioned in the Domesday Book, but the present church originates from the 13th century. It has been altered several times since then, the most important to ringers being the addition of a tower in the 15th century.
Prior to the 1884 restoration here there was a ring of 6 cast by Thomas Mears in 1795, tenor 22cwt. These were the successors to the four bells and a saunce bell that was in the tower at the time of the 1552 inventory. These have become 6 by 1778 at the latest. Rudhalls supplied a ring of 6 in 1786, Tilley and Walters note that the Corporation voted 100 guineas for a new ring in 1784 and that a certain William Hughes was killed by a piece of timber which fell while the workmen were preparing to put up the bells. They therefore speculate that this ring was short lived. This speculation is accurate, as Mears provided a new ring less than 10 years after the Rudhall ring was installed. Two of these bells remain in the present ring.
In 1884 the bells, which the Erdington ringers found to be in a poor state of repair, were restored and augmented to eight by John Taylor & Co. They recast the back four, added two trebles, and rehung the bells in the old frame with a new top frame for the trebles. The wheels on 3 and 4 were replaced and the frame strengthened two years later when Whitechapel rehung the bells on ball bearings and strengthened the frame.
A new frame and fittings were supplied by Taylors, 1972. Prior to this restoration 23-1-17 was the accepted weight. The back two bells were cast with flat heads and the canons have been removed from the remainder.
The ringing room walls are colourfully painted!
(Most of the above information is quoted directly (with permission) from the research notes of Chris Pickford)
Details Of The Bells
1 John Taylor & Co, Loughborough 1884 5-1-09 29.75" 1224.0Hz (Eb-29c) 2 John Taylor & Co, Loughborough 1884 5-3-05 30.00" 1159.0Hz (D-23c) 3 Thomas Mears, Whitechapel 1795 7-0-22 33.875" 1033.0Hz (C-22c) 4 Thomas Mears, Whitechapel 1795 8-1-07 36.50" 921.0Hz (Bb-21c) 5 John Taylor & Co, Loughborough 1884 10-1-10 38.50" 821.0Hz (Ab-20c) 6 John Taylor & Co, Loughborough 1884 12-3-10 41.75" 775.0Hz (G-20c) 7 John Taylor & Co, Loughborough 1884 16-1-19 44.625" 690.0Hz (F-21c) 8 John Taylor & Co, Loughborough 1884 23-1-18 50.50" 619.0Hz (Eb-9c)
Details Of The Mears Bells
1 Thomas Mears, Whitechapel 1795 8cwt 34.00" 2 Thomas Mears, Whitechapel 1795 9½cwt 36.375" 3 Thomas Mears, Whitechapel 1795 11-0-11 39.75" 4 Thomas Mears, Whitechapel 1795 11-0-14 41.00" 5 Thomas Mears, Whitechapel 1795 15-1-21 45.25" 6 Thomas Mears, Whitechapel 1795 21-3-21 50.50"
Photo Gallery
None Available