Historic bell finds new home at Edmonds museum

Published 9:37 pm Wednesday, June 24, 2015

EDMONDS — A bell from a school built in 1891 has been placed into a new bell tower that’s part of a new plaza being built at the Edmonds Historical Museum.

The bell once hung in an ornate tower at the Edmonds Graded School. The school was built in 1891 on land donated by city founder George Brackett.

The bell has been on museum property since 1977. It was held in place by wooden beams made of railroad ties which were showing signs of age, said Bill Lambert, president of the museum board.

After a renovation on the museum last year, the board decided the next project to take on was enhancing the grounds surrounding the building. The board wanted to create a space for small gatherings and outdoor historical displays, he said. “The question was: “What do we do with the bell?”

A local design firm was contacted to plan an open space and plaza surrounding the museum, which is housed in a former Carnegie Library building dating to 1910.

A new metal structure for the bell was installed last week and will be a major part of the plaza’s architecture, Lambert said.

Sharon Salyer: 425-339-3486; salyer@heraldnet.com.

Commemorative bricks for the new plaza being built at the Edmonds Historical Museum are now on sale, at prices ranging from $100 to $1,000. More information is available on the museum’s website at www.historicedmonds.org/heritage-bricks.