In 1616 Barton had acquired five bells, the heaviest of which weighed 11cwt. In 1793 two of the cracked bells were sold and the money used to replace crumbling window frames which were then glazed with the best Newcastle Crown glass.
It was in 1931 that the tower was struck in a severe storm; this appeared to be due to an explosive discharge rather than forked lightning. Debris fell through the North Aisle roof .
When Rev. William Hall arrived in 1934, he found the flint facing falling off and the tower in need of urgent repairs; it had had no general work done on it for over a hundred years, so he set about raising the £200 needed. An article that appeared in the EDP in October 1934 described the work and the fund raising.
Then in 1968 the next major restoration begins. It was a difficult task to remove the tenor bell, which was then taken to Taylor’s Foundry in Loughborough for maintenance and storage. When the bell floor was removed so was the rubbish collected over the years. This had been acting as a sponge absorbing the rain driving in and this was now able to pour straight down into the vestry. A newspaper article described the task of removing the bells.
In the early 1970s it was considered tactless to have the bells restored whilst applying for grants for structural repairs. But by 1982 the Hallam bequest enabled a six bell frame to be fitted ready for when bells could be found to join the old tenor.
Scaffolding on the south side of the tower during the 1934 works.
Click on image to view full size.
Then in 1984, The Lady Delia Peel Memorial appeal was launched and by 1985 there was enough to organise a rehanging of the ring of six bells. Four bells came from Snetterton through the Norfolk Churches Trust and one from Potter Heigham. All this work could not have been completed without the technical advice, tremendous dedication and hard work of the Norwich Diocesan Association of Bellringers, and in particular their technical advisor, Aubrey Forster.
At their dedication in September 1986, Aubrey was among those ringing the bells for the first time. Friday nights then became practice nights, and as there were no local ringers, Aubrey set about teaching some recruits. One of them was Ian Williamson, who became tower captain, responsible for keeping the bells and ropes in good order.
Rain continued to be a problem and eventually one of the wardens suggested using polycarbonate sheets inside the louvers: this proved most successful in keeping out the wet and the birds.
Another problem solved was that of how to hoist the flag without climbing the tower. To begin with it was hoisted outside the south side, but this damaged the flag as was hauled out over the parapet. Then a yachting expert suggested a spinnaker chute inserted through the floor of the tower roof, this was further modified with a netting sleeve on the bottom to stop the flag twisting round the halyard. This allowed the raising and lowering to be done in comfort from the tower floor. On Christmas Day 1990 the flagpole broke in a gale, luckily no one was hurt, but thereafter care was taken about wind speed and direction when hoisting. The flag used is a St. George’s flag with the Diocesan crest in the top corner.
