Harvard’s Memorial Church gets new bell

After a two-foot crack appeared in 2011, the old bell is finally replaced.

A new bell was installed yesterday in Memorial Church’s belfry.

The center of Harvard Yard will once again be filled with the sonorous clang of a large bell, after a new one was installed yesterday in Memorial Church’s belfry. In June 2011—two months after the bell company Chime Master Systems installed a new clapper—Memorial Church officials noticed that the previous bell “was making a funny sound,” and soon realized that it had cracked. After determining that the new clapper had caused the crack, the University sued the installers. The original 5,000-pound bell—donated in 1932 by University president emeritus A. Lawrence Lowell, class of 1877—was deemed no longer usable, and was replaced by an electronic speaker that rang out over Harvard Yard at 8:40 a.m., every hour on the hour from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., and during Commencement; after this year’s ceremony, the speaker was removed. The John Taylor Bell Foundry in the United Kingdom, the same company that cast the original bell in 1926, also produced the new bell.

Related topics

You might also like

Harvard Data Trained This AI Model

“Talkie” is a large language model trained on only pre-1931 public domain content from Harvard libraries.

Harvard Stem Cell Institute Names New Faculty Co-Director

Biology professor Lee Rubin is a leading expert on neurogenerative diseases.

George Washington’s Sash on Display at Peabody Museum Starting May 25

A famous American fashion statement helps bring Revolutionary history to life.

Most popular

Harvard Alumni and Faculty Win Six Pulitzer Prizes

Winners include Jill Lepore, Bess Wohl, Pablo Torre, and Hannah Natanson.

Harvard Faculty Approve a Cap on A Grades

Reforms to reduce grade inflation will take effect in the fall of 2027.

Ronny Chieng is Harvard’s Class Day Speaker

The comedian, actor, and The Daily Show correspondent will address the 2026 College graduating class on May 27.

Explore More From Current Issue

Four stylized magnifying glasses arranged in a gradient background with abstract patterns.

AI Hunts For Stolen Harvard Coins

A museum curator and a computer scientist track down ancient coins taken in a legendary heist.

Brick archway with a sandy base, surrounded by wooden planks and boxes in a dim space.

How the American Revolution Freed a Future Abolitionist

Darby Vassall, an enslaved child freed after the Battle of Bunker Hill, dedicated his life to fighting for liberty.

A woman with long hair leans on a table, looking out a large window with rain-streaked glass.

A Harvard Economist Probes the Affordable Housing Crisis

From understanding gender pay gaps to the housing crisis, Rebecca Diamond’s research aims to improve lives.