Church find has familiar ring

It could have been a scene out of the Alfred Hitchcock movie The Birds:

Pigeons flying around wooden beams in almost "attack formation," about 18 inches of pigeon droppings on the floor and dozens of bird carcasses. All were inside a local church’s steeple when a lost treasure was found.

As if that scene were not scary enough, the only way to reach the section of the steeple that housed a 131-year-old bell was to climb a small wooden ladder.

The bell, last used almost 60 years ago, was unearthed last month in less-than-perfect condition in the steeple of Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church, 10th and Dickinson streets.

"I was so surprised when the bell was found," said the Rev. Gary Pacitti, church pastor. "Nobody knew it was up there."

The priest even did some detective work into how long the bell was buried under debris in the steeple.

"I was asking parishioners 80 years old and older if they remember hearing the bell when they were children," said Pacitti.

The brass bell, made in Germany and dated 1873, weighs in at almost a ton. It was found as repairs were being made to the Catholic church’s steeple, which had been damaged by roof leaks.

The renovation company, the Hooven Group, offered to restore the bell to its previous condition.

"We were so surprised," said Ted Hooven, whose company specializes in historical and church repairs. "It was like a jewel."

But it was one in desperate need of a shine. The crew scrubbed the bell with soap and brass cleaner, and the antique was then roped and tightened around holes in the ceiling that support it when it is rung. The original holes were plastered over decades ago.

Parish officials believe the bell might have disappeared from view after a long-ago storm weakened about 40 feet of the steeple, which then collapsed onto 10th Street. After the damage to the steeple was fixed, everything in it was sealed away — including the bell.

"The top of the steeple is now flat because of that storm," said Pacitti.

Another interesting fact about the bell is that its strikers are on the outside, unlike the Liberty Bell, for example, which has a single striker on the inside.

The church bell’s precarious location has presented a challenge to anyone who wants to see it close up, including a local news crew.

"It was hard work trying to get their camera up the ladder," Pacitti said.

Although few might be able to see the bell, the pastor is happy that after decades of silence, "the bell will ring once again."