Brighton, The Annunciation

The Annunciation, Brighton, has a single bell hung for swing chime in a south-facing tower.
The church was built in 1864 in a similar design to St Mary Magdalene, and apparently had a tower built by William Dacey.
There is no record of where this one was, but it could have been the tower like structure on Coleman's Street, but it's unlikely.
It's unclear if the church was supplied with a bell when it was built, but the present day bell suggests it did.
The present day tower was added by F. Cawthorn in 1892.

The Bells

Bell	Weight	Diameter	Nominal	Note	Founder	Cast	Canon	Hanging
1	c0-2-0 cwt	14.75"	2394 Hz	D	John Warner & Sons	1864	Yes	Swing Chime

Bell	Weight	Diameter	Length	Nominal	Note	Founder	Cast	Hanging
1		3.00"	62.00"			Harrington, Latham & Co	1892	Unhung
2		3.00"	65.50"			Harrington, Latham & Co	1892	Unhung
3		3.00"	69.38"			Harrington, Latham & Co	1892	Unhung
4		3.00"	73.00"			Harrington, Latham & Co	1892	Unhung
5		3.00"	74.00"			Harrington, Latham & Co	1892	Unhung

Recordings of the Bells

Inscriptions

Photographs

1 Bell in D; 5 Tubular Bells
The small bell in the current tower was supplied by John Warner & Sons in 1864.
Most of the words on the inscription are corroded but are still legible, LONDON being the most clearest.
Warners engraved the moulding wires at the top of the waist, and inscribed 3 heavy ones on the crown.
As usual for a Warner bell of this size, there are 2 at the junction between the soundbow and the waist, and the lip of the bell has a wide band around it too. This bell is not mentioned in Sussex Bell & Belfries, nor The Church Bells of Sussex.
In order to keep this page chronological, we will discuss how it is hung later.
It was cast in a sand mould with a cast-in crown staple.

Upon the erection of the new tower in 1892, a chime of 5 tubular bells were supplied by Harrington, Latham & Co, Coventry. The bells were chimed using an Ellacombe apparatus on the ground floor, which activated a hammer to strike the top of each tube. They were hung in a timber frame around 10' above the belfry floor, and suspended by rope on the north side of the frame.
At an unknown time, these tubes were stood down, and the small Warner bell was hung in place.
David Cawley visited in October 2008, and he gives:
"A small swing chiming bell of poor tone has arrived as a substitute for them, no details. Unsure of whether the five tubes are still there, no access, but manual with commemorative plaque remains in situ on ground floor." 101
4 of the tubular bells are propped up against the wall with one laying on the floor.
At present, no decent recording has been taken of these.

The Warner bell appears to have been rehung by the Whitechapel Bell Foundry, judging by the clapper and headstock.
The bell still has its cast in crown staple, and the top of the clapper has been made so that it loops around it.
It is chimed by a lever, swinging E to W on plain bearings, in reasonable condition.
Two small parallel wooden beams have been added to the tubular bell frame to form a 1.D frame.
The iron straps that connect it to the headstock have rusted over, and may require attention in the future.
A 28 rung ladder is required to reach the bell from the ground floor, and a 16 rung ladder to reach the belfry.

Visited: 20/07/2023. Great thanks to Father Anthony and Susan.

Recording of the bell:

How the bell is tuned in relation to the nominal, using Simpson's theory.

Key [measured in cents]:
-99 ~ -90 -89 ~ -80 -79 ~ -70 -69 ~ -60 -59 ~ -50 -49 ~ -40 -39 ~ -30 -29 ~ -20 -19 ~ -10 -9 ~ -0
0 ~ 9 10 ~ 19 20 ~ 29 30 ~ 39 40 ~ 49 50 ~ 59 60 ~ 69 70 ~ 79 80 ~ 89 90 ~ 99+