Preston, Former Church of St Augustine

St Augustine's has a single bell hung in an East facing, hard to access tower.
The church was built between 1894 - 1895 and served within the parish of Preston. During the build, it was intended to have a tall tower of "Somerset" style at the West end. However, this never got built. In 1903, a small belfry was erected on the North East corner of the church and a bell was added as a memorial to Julia Coppard.
In 2006, the church was declared redundant but it was later used again by the Pentecostal congregation. They soon left leaving the church redundant again. In 2015, it suffered from structural damage caused by the theft of lead. A year later, the church was converted into a business center including a cafe and also apartments. The bell still remains in the tower but is no longer used.

The Bell

Bell	Weight	Diameter	Nominal	Note	Founder	Date	Canon	Hanging
1	5-0-6 cwt	29.88"	1140 Hz	Db	John Taylor & Co	1903	Flat	Swing

Inscriptions

Photographs

1 Bell, 5-0-6 in Db
The bell was cast by John Taylor & Co, Loughborough, in 1903, and is no doubt Simpson tuned. Around the inscription band is a decorative floral band, with a dedication to Julia Coppard in the waist, and a line from Solomon 2:17. The bell was inscribed using 1" letters, and contains the foundry medallion. It was cast without canons, and is bolted to a metal headstock.
It is chimed by the means of a full wheel in a B frame. The rope was unfortunately cut in 2015, and sadly access to the turret is by the outside with a scaffolding.
Failing that, Elphick managed it with a 28, 20 & 14 rung ladders.

Visited: 11/11/2022

Inscriptions:
Elphick gives:

1	ↈↈↈↈↈↈↈↈↈↈↈↈↈↈↈↈↈↈ ◍ TO THE GLORY OF GOD AND IN MEMORY OF JULIA COPPARD WHO FELL ASLEEP 19 APRIL 1903 "UNTIL THE DAY BREAK, AND THE SHADOWS FLEE AWAY"