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Chimola - an alternative to a chime or mini tower chime

These are hemispheric bells that look like alarm bells or upside down cereal bowls.  They have a limited range and can fit in a small space.

The following paragraph comes from the TowerBells website:
Chimes of 4 to 20 hemispherical bells, the largest sometimes weighing more than 1200 pounds, are known to have been made by the following English foundries and Meneely of Watervliet, U.S.A.:
- Gillett & Bland made at least 2 of them, in 1877-78
- Gillett, Bland & Co. made 1 in 1878
- Taylor made at least 4 of them from 1864 to 1875
- Warner made a few of them from 1875 to 1904
- Whitechapel made dozens of them, as Mears (1848-50), C&G Mears (1851), Mears & Stainbank (1867-1932).
- Meneely of West Troy, NY made the only U.S. chimolas, 4 of them, between 1924 and 1928.

The seven sets in the U.S.:

CT  Old Greenwich, Boat House, Tods Point, 1901-CM-15  Markings appear to make it by Warner, works off circular drum, 2 hammers per bell, not rung together.

NJ  Newark, Blessed Sacrament -1927-WT-CM-16  They claim it never was there, but there are WT docs and a writeup that says they were loaded into a car for the trip  The entry is blurred.  Could this be a Blessed Sacrament in NYC?

NY  Brooklyn, St. Bartholomew's Church - 1928-WT-CM-11, elec, have WT docs.

NY  Brooklyn, St. Thomas Episcopal -1924-WT-CM-11, elec., active, have WT docs.

NY  Schenectady, Union College - WT-1925-CM-11, manual, active, have WT and Union College documentation.  Played daily during term.

PA  Bangor, Trinity Evangelical Lutheran - WT-1926-CM-11, have WT docs.
--- was acquired by Joe Connors, and manually played daily at the Sacandaga River/Reservoir in Fulton County, NY. --- More recently, he donated it to the Watervliet (NY) Historical Society, where it can be seen and played.

PA  Pittsburgh, First Baptist Church - 1866-CM-12,  Taylor,  Mears & Stainbank?

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Last modified by Carl Zimmerman:  17-Jul-2023
Last modified by Joe Connors:  11/20/12