Engine or school bell?

I  can't pretend to be a bell expert but the angle of the crank would make me think that itt was rung via a rope from inside a cab as opposed to a ground pull.  This will be interesting to follow. 

Any inscriptions on the bell, the housing, or inside it to maybe give a hint as to the manufacturer?

What is the throat diameter?

 

I don't see a clapper.

 

You need more facts.

 

The original stand or cradle is missing. The bell, the yoke, and the finial appear original. The crank is odd for a loco bell. It may have been replaced. if it's a cupola bell, the wheel or clapper with a rope eye is missing.

 

Details of the castings are the facts needed.

 

It is worth the trouble of moving it no matter what kind of bell that it is. if it's a 12" throat or larger $900-$2600.

This is an early locomotive bell, very early.  The bracket design gives it away as pre-1890 and possibly as early as the Civil War.  Rarer than a World War II locomotive bell.

Looks very similar to the bell on a locomotive I work on, which was built out of an 1860's Manchester 0-4-0.  I'm not sure if the bell on our locomotive is from the original, but it wouldn't surprise me if it was, or is at least from that era

 

 

 

OK, looking back at a picture, I guess the shape is a little different from the bell I was thinking about.  The decorative lines towards the bottom are similar, but that's about as far as the comparison could go.

Hi Jake,

Your picture seems to be typical of all locomotive bells I could find doing an internet search.  School bells on the other hand seem to not have a cast support base but a separate yoke that fits into side bearings.

 

Of course there are probably exceptions or the donor's bell may have been removed from its locomotive base and bearings applied.

I am still awaiting an answer from the museum curator if I can do an up close and personal inspection of the bell.

I'm no 'bell-ologist', for sure.   I'd approach an organization like this one for help....

 

Bell Link

 

These are the folks who'd have the expertise you're looking for....IMHO.

 

As an aside, though.....   That fancy roll-around stand the bell sits on looks VERY similar to a 'mascot' bell device that I saw at a football game years ago.  It was rolled onto the field for a game, and whenever the team scored, the cheerleading folks would ring the bell for the TOTAL score count!   The particular game I attended had the home team routing the opponents.  That bell-ringing just about drove the crowd 'dingy' by game's end!! 

 

It's really interesting how this forum's threads jog the cobwebs off the dark recesses of ye olde cranium!!

 

Meanwhile, back at the ranch....

 

KD

is the inside painted?