George, South, Dutch Reformed Church

Abstract

This Nederduits Gereformeerde Kerk dates from 1950. The tower however is very narrow and all kinds of appliances for telecommunication make it physically impossible to see the outside of the bell. Thanks to pictures, we can still grasp the main decorations on the bell. There are two pairs of moulding wires below the shoulder, three above the knee and two on the lip. On the waist figures a small emblem of the founder and above it the text: CAST FOR WILL. W. KEAY & SON, CAPE TOWN. This is followed by 19 (emblem) 59. On the reverse side we find remnants of a paint that was put on the bell prior to its shipping to Cape Town. The emblem refers to members of the family Hughes that worked in the Whitechapel Foundry that was started in 1570. The family Mears got involved in 1844. The emblem is a circle in which figure three bells. A large bell stands in the middle of the seal and is surmounted by a crown. On the left of the bell stands AA/H (for Albert A. Hughes) in two layers, on the right WA/H (for William A. Hughes) also in two layers. Below the large bell stands DH (for Douglas Hughes) in between two smaller bells. The Hughes family got involved in the company in 1904. The three mentioned founders from the family worked together over the period 1950 until 1964. What we know about William Keay is that he specialized in diamonds and jewellery, tower clocks and bells. He calls himself a scientific watchmaker and clockmaker. He ordered hour bells for the clocks at other foundries. The many locations in the Western Cape that were helped during the period 1950-65 had their bells made at the Whitechapel Bell Foundry. In the sixties of last century, the agent switched to Petit & Edelbrock in Germany. Thanks to a mention in Die Fees Herout of the NG Kerk George-Suid we learn that the weight of the bell was 800 pounds and that it cost £405 in 1973.