It rang in good times and bad, at sunrise and sunset. And if its metal could talk, it would recall the beginnings of Fort Worth and the settlers who forged what would become the city and county seat on a bluff facing the Trinity River.
No one really knows exactly how the 16-inch bell that was cast in London in 1782 made its way to North Texas, but its caretaker, Fort Worth Masonic Lodge No. 148, has kept it safe and an active part of the community since the 1850s.
Local historians believe that the bell, kept at the Masonic Temple on Henderson Street, is one of the oldest historic treasures left in Fort Worth.
"[Pioneer] J.C. Terrell wrote about the bell and who brought it here, and we have the bell itself. He [the bell] can't come with a better provenance," said Clara Ruddell, who works for the Fort Worth Convention and Visitors Bureau and is a local historian and member of the Tarrant County Historical Commission.
full story:
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcon...nicbell_21met.ART.State.Edition2.4bb270e.html
No one really knows exactly how the 16-inch bell that was cast in London in 1782 made its way to North Texas, but its caretaker, Fort Worth Masonic Lodge No. 148, has kept it safe and an active part of the community since the 1850s.
Local historians believe that the bell, kept at the Masonic Temple on Henderson Street, is one of the oldest historic treasures left in Fort Worth.
"[Pioneer] J.C. Terrell wrote about the bell and who brought it here, and we have the bell itself. He [the bell] can't come with a better provenance," said Clara Ruddell, who works for the Fort Worth Convention and Visitors Bureau and is a local historian and member of the Tarrant County Historical Commission.
full story:
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcon...nicbell_21met.ART.State.Edition2.4bb270e.html