The Loughborough Bell Foundry
Taylor’s Bell Foundry has probably cast more large bells than any other Foundry in the history of bell founding – unlike other founders we have never farmed out our casting to other foundries, and all the large bells with the Taylor name on them have been cast here. More than 200 bells weighing between 2 […]
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Looking forward to welcoming visitors back to the Foundry in the not too distant future our viewing gallery in the casting hall has been enlarged to allow for the spacing between people to be increased in the short term and larger parties eventually when normality returns! The work has been paid for by a Government […]
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Every now and again we receive an order to cast a ship’s bell with a requirement for a highly polished surface that sailors continue to polish daily throughout its life. This one is in the final stages of preparation before being dispatched.
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Just dug up from underground, this photograph by Paul Grover shows our Foundry Master Anthony Stone with a replica Liberty Bell for export to the USA. The bell is a full sized replica, and weighs approximately 18 cwts. It was ordered by a private customer and will be shipped once fettling and tuning has been […]
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Taylor’s first carillon of 47 bells met a sad end during a period of financial hardship for the Foundry, with bells being either used in the furnace for their metal or being sold for use elsewhere. But every now and again original carillon bells come to light. The original 24 cwt bass bell was sold […]
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The flag of Historic England is flying from the Foundry tower as a gesture of thanks for a further large gift of emergency funding money which has enabled more work to be carried out on the buildings before the main scheme begins. This money, together with a significant grant from the government’s Cultural Recovery Fund, […]
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In previous centuries bells were always cast underground for reasons of safety. Ramming up earth around the bell mould added to its strength and protected the bell founder from the potential danger of death or serious injury should the bell case split during casting. From the mid 19th century bell moulds have been made inside […]
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As a part of an efficiency drive various new/refurbished engineering machinery is being purchased to speed up production. With the whole of the Foundry and its contents being Grade 2* Listed, various of our machines form part of the listing, and have to remain in situ. Modern machines work much faster, and this recently arrived […]
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After more than a decade of planning work is finally underway to restore our carillon tower and it is now completely scaffolded. The tower was built in 1904 to house the world’s first carillon ever to be harmonically tuned to equal temperament which Taylor’s had developed. Over the years more bells were added until it […]
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