Hot metal, horse manure and the constant ringing of bells ? sounds like heaven to William Parker Jr.
Parker is president of McShane?s Bell Foundry, a Glen Burnie-based bell manufacturer that constructs bells for churches, ships and universities. The company, run by Parker and his two sons, William III and Ryan, was originally founded in Ireland in 1856 by Henry McShane. Parker?s family bought the company in 1933 and still clings to the original bell-making methods.
“It?s all very time-consuming,” Parker said. “But obviously we all enjoy doing it.”
The amount of time to construct a bell depends on the size, as does the cost. Parker said a 1,500-pound bell takes three months to make.
“The largest bell we?ve ever constructed is the 7,000-pound bell kept in City Hall in Baltimore,” Parker said.
The bell, sold for $130,000, stands almost 6 feet high and 6 feet wide. Yearly income varies by the amount of bells made, he said. Most are sold by the pound, Parker said. For example, a 1,500-pound bell would cost $24,420. For the Parkers, bell making has become a traditional labor of love.
“We do it the old-fashioned way,” Parker said.
Old-fashioned ? and dirty. The workers mix horse manure and sand into patties to use as a binder, and apply the mixture as the bell rotates. The bell is dried with charcoal fire, and a second coat is applied. When the sand rises to the top, the bell is done.
“When we do the lettering,” Parker said, “We have to put it on upside down and backward.”
Despite their old-fashioned methods, the foundry is working at staying up-to-date. McShane?s has started to manufacture electrification systems, a feature that allows laptop computers to be programmed to ring the bells instead of a mechanical clock. Recently, the foundry installed a new computer system and repaired four 150-pound bells at Holy Cross Catholic Church.
“Our old [bell] system had been in place since the 1940s,” Father John Williamson said. “We have three parishes with bells and we will definitely use them for the rest of our work.”
More information
» McShane Bell Foundry
400 Arundel Corporation Road, Bldg. C
Glen Burnie
410-636-4390
www.mcshanebell.com
