St Nicholas Church bells restored to former glory

Oct 27 2009 by Neil McKay, The Journal

THE familiar peal of historic church bells will soon be heard again after months of silence.

All six bells from St Nicholas Church in Durham Market Place were removed and transported to expert London restorers in May.

Following almost five months’ intensive work bringing them back into working order at Whitechapel Bell Foundry, the bells will be ringing again within weeks. A near-£100,000 project has seen the complete overhaul of the copper and tin bells, five of which date from 1687, while the smallest, a treble, is Victorian.

They have been cleaned, through shot-blasting, and returned, while several fittings have been added, including the frame, wheels and pulleys.

Yesterday they were hoisted from the transporter to the top of scaffolding outside the church, before being placed into the tower and lifted into their final position.

Dorothy Nicholas, secretary of the St Nicholas Church Bell Restoration Project, said it could take a fortnight to put them back in place in the belfry.

“It is wonderful to see them back. The cost of restoring them was met by church members and by the local community.