Massachusetts church to ring US’ oldest bell commemorating Jimmy Carter
St. Peter’s-San Pedro Episcopal Church in Salem, Massachusetts, houses the oldest church bell in the United States. Cast in 1740 in Gloucester, England, by Abel Rudhall, the bell has been tolled for the death of every U.S. president since the nation was founded in 1776. Inscription: “St. Peter’s in Salem New England AR 1740.” AR stands for Abel Rudhall. Photo: Nathan Ives
[Episcopal News Service] St. Peter’s-San Pedro Episcopal Church in Salem, Massachusetts, will honor former President Jimmy Carter today by tolling the United States’ oldest church bell 100 times at 5:20 p.m. Eastern as the late president’s remains are laid to rest at his home in Plains, Georgia.
St. Peter’s, Salem’s oldest Anglican church founded in 1733, has tolled its historic bell observing the death of every U.S. president since the nation was founded in 1776.
Vestry minutes from March 30, 1741, addressing St. Peter’s-San Pedro Episcopal Church’s 1741 bell. Inscription: “This day was chose by the Vestry that Capt. Benjamin Marsh be Moderator…
Memorandum. That Henry Coffin is Sexton of St. Peter’s Church in Salem. That his salary be eight pounds per Anum, he ringing the bell at five o’clock in the morning, and at eleven before noon & nine at night.” Photo: Nathan Ives
The timing of the bell toll will coincide with a U.S. Navy missing formation flyover at Carter’s home – where his wife, former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, is also buried – in honor of Carter’s naval service and time as commander in chief.
“We can’t all go and pay our respects at the Capitol Rotunda or Washington National Cathedral because we live so far away, but we can do this,” the Rev. Nathan Ives, rector of St. Peter’s, told Episcopal News Service. “It’s to honor a human life and their passage from life to death.”
The bell was cast in Gloucester, England, by Abel Rudhall, in 1740, for St. Peter’s, which was founded by Philip English, who along with his wife Mary English was one of more than 200 people who were accused of witchcraft during the Salem Witch Trials.
“Salem is a city that’s really rich in history in so many regards. There were the witch trials in 1692 and 1693 … but this connection through history with the bell of St. Peter’s is another, really, I think, important and exciting story about Salem’s history that I think more people really deserve to know about,” Salem Mayor Dominick Pangallo told ENS.
Pangallo will join Ives and St. Peter’s two wardens to climb up the church’s bell tower and toll the 500-pound bell by hand.
The 1740 bell woke Salem residents every day at 5 a.m., sent them to bed at 9 p.m. and called them to church on Sundays for 145 years before its duties were replaced by a 10-bell carillon in 1885. Since then, the carillon – now automated – rings daily for the Angelus prayer for Mary and plays “Lift Every Voice and Sing” and two additional hymns in English and Spanish. It also rings for three minutes every evening to continue to honor all essential workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The 1740 bell, however, sits to the side at limited swinging capacity and only rings for the death of a U.S. president and other special occasions.
Ives said he’s going through St. Peter’s archives to learn how the bell was tolled for the deaths of former Presidents John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, who both died hours apart from each other on July 4, 1826.
St. Peter’s-San Pedro Episcopal Church’s 1740 bell, far right, rang daily for 145 years before it was replaced by a 10-bell carillon in 1885. Photo: Nathan Ives
When former President George H.W. Bush died in 2018, St. Peter’s rang the bell 41 times to mark Bush being the 41st U.S. president. For Carter, however, the bell will ring 100 times in honor of Carter being the longest living president in history. He died Dec. 29 at the age of 100. His state funeral was held this morning at Washington National Cathedral, where Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe officiated.
“This bell is a really important part of our history, and I’m honored to have the opportunity to participate in ringing it again,” said Ives, who became St. Peter’s rector in 2018. “It’s certainly for a sad occasion, but President Carter was a remarkable individual, and his devotion to justice and service and peace has inspired generations of Americans.”
St. Peter’s is in the process of raising funds to fully restore the bell back to full swinging functionality by 2026 to celebrate the United States’ 250th birthday and the 400th anniversary of Salem’s founding.
-Shireen Korkzan is a reporter and assistant editor for Episcopal News Service. She can be reached at skorkzan@episcopalchurch.org.
