Bristol Rural Branch
Elberton (St John the Evangelist)

Name or Dedication: St John the Evangelist

Location: Elberton, Gloucestershire

Grid Reference: ST602882

Unringable; the bell was last rung full-circle in about 1989, but is now only swing-chimed (from the Chancel crossing) due to concerns about the safety of the frame. It is hung by its canons in an oak frame, on plain bearings with an oak headstock.

Elberton may have lost some of its bells at the time of the Reformation in 1550, although there is no evidence of any previous bells. The present frame however may be a later replacement, possibly dating from 1816 when the tower and spire were largely rebuilt.

Bells hung for full-circle ringing

Source: Bell data from Nick Bowden and Revd David L. Cawley; diameter from "The Church Bells of Gloucestershire" (Revd Henry Thomas Ellacombe, 1881). Inspected personally 16th October 2005. Further information from "The Flowing Tide" (K.B. Batchelor, 1980).

Where the exact weight of a bell is known, it is given in the traditional way using the British imperial units of Hundredweight, Quarters and Pounds (cwt-qtr-lb) in which there are 28 pounds in a quarter, four quarters in a hundredweight, and 20 hundredweight in a ton (one hundredweight is equal to approximately 50.8 kilograms). However, if only an approximate or calculated weight is known, it is given to the nearest quarter of a hundredweight.

A bell's diameter is measured across its mouth (open end) at the widest point and is given in inches (to the nearest quarter of an inch), one inch being equal to approximately 2.54 centimetres.

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