Buckeye Bell Foundry Cinncinnati, Ohio (image)
info@historicsecondpresbyterian.org
| The G. W. Coffin Bell Foundry operated in Cincinnati, Ohio prior to
1837. In 1837, this foundry became known as the G.W. Coffin Bell
foundry. In
1889, the G.W. Coffin Bell foundry was sold to Vanduzen
& Tift, (also known as the Buckeye Bell Foundry) which had operated
from 1865 to 1894. In 1894 the foundry was sold to E.W. Vanduzen, who
operated the foundry until 1950. The Verdin Co. has a history of buying
up the records of closed bell foundries and clock manufacturers. The
Verdin Co. has historically serviced the bells & clocks of closed
companies. There is no record of Verdin buying Vanduzen. The Verdin Co.
historically has purchased bells domestically until 1950's to resell,
especially from Meneely. Since 1950, Verdin has had a contractural
relationship with the Petit & Fritsen Holland foundry. In 1998,
Verdin bought the rights to the Van Bergen Bell Foundry, Charleston,
S.C., acquiring the North American distributorship of the Piccard
Foundry France. Verdin is primarily a marketing and service company
today, importing bell & clock equipment from Europe. For the Ohio
Bicentennial, Verdin operated a portable bell foundry going from county
to county casting a bell for this event. The Coffin bell foundries are
historically reknown as THE foundry to purchase a bell for a river
boats, prior to the Civil War. Coffin bells are known for their highly
decorated bells and bell hardware, as your picture shows. Some Coffin
bells are rumored to have been cast with 20% silver, instead of the
normal bronze metal mix of 80% copper and 20%
tin. http://www.americanbell.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=510 Responses to my topic posting on AmericanBell.org "big bell" forum http://www.americanbell.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=965
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A similar Buckeye Bell cast in 1860 with same "cherubs" motif