Restoration Highlight--The New Bourdon Bell

The New Bourdon Bell

     The most exciting addition to the McGaffin Carillon is the new bourdon—the largest bell of the instrument. This bell weighs 4,290 pounds and measures 58.3 inches in diameter. It adds a low B♭ to the bass range of the carillon. As the largest bell, it has the honor of chiming the hours, twenty-four hours a day. Its deep tones bring an authoritative voice to the clock.

     This bell was a gift from the grandchildren of Alexander McGaffin. It is inscribed:

In Loving Memory of our Grandparents
Alexander and Anna D. McGaffin
and our mother
Elizabeth Ann McGaffin Ferries
Judith Ferries Smith
Susan Ferries Moore
Elizabeth Ferries

The New Bourdon is Lifted into the Tower with inches to spare!

     Alexander McGaffin was the pastor who shepherded the merger of the two congregations that formed The Euclid Avenue Presbyterian Church in 1907. The congregation chose this central location in what was then still a residential college town on the edge of Wade Park—Cleveland’s “Central Park.” The art museum was still a dream. University Hospitals was twenty years from being built. The University traffic circle, after which the area was eventually named, was less than ten years old.

     The church building committee struggled with both the budget and the Gothic design chosen for the sanctuary and the tower—which was almost not built. Dr. McGaffin was determined that the church would have a tower, and that it would one day hold bells. He secured funding and persuaded the committee of the tower’s importance to the church’s design and the broader community.

     However, it was not until 1968 that his dream of installing tower bells was realized—thanks to a bequest from Mrs. McGaffin and gifts from friends. The McGaffin Carillon was cast and installed.

     The grandchildren visited Cleveland for the first time during the carillon’s 50th anniversary celebrations in 2018, when the restored peal was dedicated. At that time, they committed to funding the new B♭ bell that was part of the planned renovation. The bell was cast in 2023.

The descendants of Alexander McGaffin and spouses during their 2018 visit

     We are pleased to have made this connection with the McGaffin family. A great-grandson, Douglas Jackson-Smith, has recently joined the board of directors of The Friends of the McGaffin Carillon.

Restoration Highlight--Community Engagement

Restoration Highlight

The highly anticipated restoration and renovation of the McGaffin Carillon is complete. We are deeply grateful to the more than 225 donors who made this possible. A list of donors is available on the Friends of the McGaffin Carillon website: https://www.ucbells.org/friends.

In this series of highlights, the Friends of the McGaffin Carillon would like to recognize some of the major gifts as well as notable upgrades to the instrument.

Community Engagement

The renovation process began in 2008 when Royal Eijsbouts visited the tower, evaluated the condition of the 40-year-old carillon, and made a proposal for its restoration and expansion. This proposal—updated along the way—became the basis for the recent work.

At the same time, the Church of the Covenant was undertaking a major restoration of the landmark building. This included replacing all the slate roofing from 1911, tuckpointing the stonework, and replacing decorative stone features that had been lost. The sanctuary also underwent significant restoration, including new flooring, refinished pews, replicated original light fixtures, and other enhancements to restore its historic finishes and improve acoustics for the new gallery organ gifted to the church.

Needless to say, securing funding for a carillon restoration costing more than half a million dollars was a challenge. A task force was formed to address the issue. Their recommendation was to engage the Greater Cleveland community, recognizing that the carillon was an underutilized unique public music venue.

Young Montessori School students had a picnic on the lawn during a lunchtime concert.

With the church’s blessing, the Friends of the McGaffin Carillon was established in 2015 as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit to share in the upkeep of the instrument and expand programming beyond Sundays and holidays. This allowed us to seek funding from public sources that could not provide direct support to a church.

We are thrilled with the results. Over the ten years of FMC’s existence, we have provided more than 50 concerts annually, welcomed soloists from North America and Europe, and brought thousands of listeners to experience the carillon—many of whom have toured the tower. With the current restoration, we now have one of the finest instruments anywhere.

Of the 261 donors who have supported the past ten years of activity and the recent renovation, 61% have no other connection to The Church of the Covenant. This group includes contributors such as state and county arts foundations, as well as early startup support from The Cleveland Foundation. The Church of the Covenant and its members have been especially generous, providing 63% of the total funding, while 37% has come from the Greater Cleveland community and beyond.

We look forward to continuing this spirit of community collaboration as we expand our concert programming to highlight the carillon’s capabilities and enrich the cultural life of the region.

Restoration Highlight--Behind the Scenes

Restoration Highlight

The highly anticipated restoration and renovation of the McGaffin Carillon is complete. We are deeply grateful to the more than 225 donors who made this possible. A list of donors is available on the Friends of the McGaffin Carillon website: https://www.ucbells.org/friends.

In this series of highlights, the Friends of the McGaffin Carillon would like to recognize some of the major gifts as well as notable upgrades to the instrument.

Behind the Scenes

Just as in carillon performances—where the performer is rarely seen—much of the carillon restoration work took place inside the tower or behind the scenes, out of public view. Board member and Project Coordinator, Patrick Macoska, documented the day-by-day work, including photos. Click the links to see these reports for a unique look at what it took to restore and install University Circle’s largest musical instrument.

August 2024. The remains of the disassembly, old transmission bars, conduit, and wires.

Last summer, technicians from Royal Eijsbouts arrived to dismantle the carillon and prepare the tower for the new bells and mechanism. Over nine days, they dismounted the bells and clappers and disassembled the clavier and playing mechanism. Twenty-four of the smallest bells were packed and shipped back to the Netherlands to accommodate the fabrication of new framework, clappers, and mechanism. The photo shows the pile of old mechanism that will be replaced.  Link to Disassembly Field Report.

May 2025. The crane is getting ready to lift the new bells into the tower.

In mid-May, workers returned and unpacked a twenty-foot open shipping container holding the bells and all the new equipment. It took four men, a crane, a lift, and three weeks to assemble the carillon—but by June 4, University Circle residents and visitors were once again hearing clock chimes and bell music. Link to Reinstallation Field Report.

What the reports don’t show is the extensive behind-the-scenes planning and coordination. A structural engineer confirmed the tower could support the increased weight of the new bells, which is 40% heavier than before. There were Zoom meetings and phone calls with the Netherlands to finalize the configuration and ensure the tower was ready. Locally, we arranged for the crane and lift, repainted the bell framework, coordinated electrical work for the new clock chimes, received the shipments, and paid the import fees. (Tuned bells, thankfully, are exempt from tariffs and import duties.)

Some work still remains in the tower. We plan to repaint the clavier level and update the lighting. We’ve saved artifacts from the original installation, which will eventually be displayed. But for now, we are excited to show off the restored and renovated McGaffin Carillon.

Restoration Highlight--The Automatic Play System

Restoration Highlight    

      The highly anticipated restoration and renovation of The McGaffin Carillon is complete. We are very thankful for the over 225 donors who have made this possible. A list of donors is on the Friends of the McGaffin Carillon website https://www.ucbells.org/friends . In these series of highlights The Friends of the McGaffin Carillon would like to honor some of the major gifts as well as some of the major upgrades to the installation.   

The Automatic Play System

     Along with the clock chimes, the original 1968 McGaffin Carillon included a mechanism that played tunes after the hour was struck at certain times of the day. This system used plastic rolls—similar to player piano rolls—and we had a tool that could create new rolls, one note at a time. It operated electric hammers that struck 27 of the bells. That system failed years ago.
      During the recent renovation, a new automatic play system was installed. It is a pneumatic system that physically plays the levers on the main clavier. The system is MIDI-controlled, allowing us to upload and program tunes using MIDI files. It currently controls 37 bells (three octaves) and plays a tune following the noon chime each day. Eventually, it will also play tunes after the chimes at 9:00 a.m., 6:00 p.m., and 10:00 p.m.

In the video, the clock chimes noon, followed by a Handel Gavotte played by the automatic system.

Restoration Highlight-The Cragin Peal

Restoration Highlight    

      The highly anticipated restoration and renovation of The McGaffin Carillon is complete. We are very thankful for the over 225 donors who have made this possible. A list of donors is on the Friends of the McGaffin Carillon website https://www.ucbells.org/friends . In these series of highlights The Friends of the McGaffin Carillon would like to honor some of the major gifts as well as some of the major upgrades to the installation.   

The Cragin Peal

     Part of the original installation of the bells in 1968 was the three-bell Cragin Peal. Three of the largest carillon bells were specially hung on yokes, powered by electric motors, with additional large clappers suspended inside the bells. As the bells swing, the clappers strike them, producing sound. This celebratory pealing is so loud it can be heard as far away as Cleveland Heights. The peal was given in memory of Gertrude Bardons Cragin by her husband, Raymond T. Cragin.

     For several decades, cracked gears and failing control mechanisms rendered the peal inoperative.

     The first phase of the full restoration occurred in 2018 with the restoration of the Cragin Peal. New clappers were cast, the bells were rehung, and new motors and a digital control system were installed. The restored peal was heard for the first time on June 8, 2018, in celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of the dedication of the McGaffin Carillon.

     In the photo from 2018, two technicians from Royal Eijsbouts work to repair one of the peal bells. I the video from 2018, the restored peal rings for the first time.