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BOUGHTON ALUPH, All Saints
 
Formerly 5 bells
Tenor 13-2-10 in F sharp
Ashford District
Retuning: Never subsequently retuned
Formerly rung from the Chancel Crossing on the Ground Floor
Bells removed from the tower and scrapped in 1952

DETAILS OF THE BELLS

Bell

Weight

Diameter

Note

Cast

Founder

1

4½ cwt approx.

28½"

 C sharp

1653

William Hatch

2

5½ cwt approx.

29"

 B

1652

William Hatch

3

7¾ cwt approx.

35"

 A sharp

c.1510

William Culverden

4

8¾ cwt approx.

37"

 G sharp

1702

Richard Phelps

5

13-2-10

40½"

 F sharp

c.1540

William Oldfield

INSCRIPTIONS
1. william    hatch   made   me  RB  CW  1653
2.
william   hatch    made   me  EK  CW jhatch.jpg (1912 bytes)

1652
3.
Sancte Paule Ora Pro Nobis  ¡ ¡ x   Fig32.jpg (2586 bytes)
4. THO: SPEED CH: WARDEN 1702  R: PHELPS FECIT
5.
DVLCIS SISTO MELIS VOCOR CAMPANA GABRIELIS Fig35.jpg (1600 bytes)

€

 Fig35.jpg (1600 bytes)

HISTORY

1510

Bell cast by William Culverden.

c.1540

Tenor (of 4) cast by William Oldfield.

1552

Record of 4 bells in the tower.

1652-3

Bells augmented to 5 with two new bells from William Hatch. The old 3-bell frame was converted to accommodate the 2 new bells.

1702

4th (of 5) recast by Richard Phelps.

1887

Stahlschmidt reported the bells as being dilapidated and the treble being cracked.

1942

The church tower was damaged by a fire bomb.

1945

The belfry was reported to be in a terrible condition - the SW corner was badly burned by the bomb, the treble was broken at the lip (but still sounded fair) and the tenor was cracked.

1952

January

Bells controversially sold for scrap to Gillett & Johnston. Part of the tenor inscription band was saved by Ranald Clouston who later presented it to the Canterbury Heritage Centre for display. The metal was used for the St Nicholas Aberdeen Carillon.

1954

The frame was repaired, although no bells have hung in it ever since.

PLAN OF THE FRAME

Frame (as seen by David Cawley, 21st Oct, 1964.

Heads and Cills

Treble bearing into
south wall

Bearing never used

2nd Bearing into wall on south side (now removed)

East

 DLC 1964 West
The shaded area represents the cills reconstructed in 1954 with new timber.
Conjectural Plan of Frame and Tower with bells in situ - pre 1952
DLC 1964 Trebles resting on gudgeons let into timber in south wall, now removed.

There are rope holes in the ceiling of the ground floor indicating from where they would have been rung.

PHOTOGRAPHS
Photo DLC 23/11/02 View of the church from the south east.
View of the church from the east. Photo DLC 23/11/02
Photo DLC collection The view most people don't see - from the south side. This photo was taken in 1942 just prior to the incendiary damage to the tower. The tower was restored in 1954 but without the bells.
Photo Christopher J. Cooper, 2001 The door to the tower.
Photo Christopher J. Cooper, 2001 The frame, now devoid of its ancient bells.
Stahlschmidt described this as "a grand old belfry in a very dilapidated condition". Photo Christopher J. Cooper, 2001
Photo DLC collection This is a postcard of the inside of the church taken in c. 1910. It shows the vast ringing area under the central tower and three of the ropes.