Washington Memorial National Carillon
   National Patriots Bell Tower

*Location:

   Washington Memorial Chapel (Episcopal)
   Valley Forge National Historical Park
   Port Kennedy Road (PA Highway 23)
     near Quarry Road
   Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, USA
   LL: N 40.10468, W 75.43767

Site locator map

*Carillonist:

   Doug Gefvert   (C)
   413 Jean Drive
   King of Prussia, PA  19406-3908
   H: 610-265-1462   W: 610-265-5211
   E: dgefvert@verizon.net

   1953-85: Frank Péchin Law  (1918-1985)
   1985-99: Frank Della Penna   (C)

*Contact:

   Washington Memorial Chapel
   P.O. Box 98
   Valley Forge, PA  19481-0098
   T: 610-783-0120   F: 610-783-0330
   E: admin/@/wmchapel DOTorg

*Schedule:

   Sundays at 0930 and 1130;
   before National Society DAR State
   Services, and for special events;
   guest recitals Wed. 1930 Jul-Aug.
   Tower open daily 10-5.

*Remarks:

   Bells installed incrementally over
   many years; the first 14 formed the
   Star Spangled Banner National Peace
   Chime.  Original instrument
   reinstalled in present tower in 1953;
   A.Bigelow built new keyboard.
   6 basses below cabin;
   all bells hung on timber.
   Tower also houses The Justice Bell, a
   full-size replica of the Liberty Bell,
   cast in 1915 by Meneely/Troy.
   Graveyard holds remains of F.P.Law
   and his ancestors on both sides.

*Technical data:

   Traditional carillon of 58 bells
   Pitch of heaviest bell is A# in the bass octave
   Keyboard range:     A#G   /    A#A   
   Transposition is nil (concert pitch)
   There are no missing bass semitones
   There is a non-identical practice console
   The instrument was enlarged in 1963
     with  2 bells made by Paccard      
   Prior history:
     In 1953, the instrument was enlarged to 56 bells
       by Paccard     
       (28 bells were added in and/or remain from that work.)
     In 1931, the instrument was enlarged to 37 bells
       by Meneely/Wvlt
       (14 bells were added in and/or remain from that work.)
       Keyboard range was:     C C   /    ----  
       Transposition was down 2 semitone(s), i.e., from C to A#
     In 1926, the instrument was begun with 14 bells
       by Meneely/Wvlt
       (14 bells remain from that work.)
       Pitch of heaviest bell was C  in the middle octave
       There were two added semitones
   No auxiliary mechanisms known
   Tower details not available
   Year of latest technical information source is 1991

The home page of Washington Memorial Chapel has a drawing of the bell tower.  Other pages at this Website describe the carillon in detail (with pictures of the bells).

A photo of the tower and facade is part of a well-annotated set of photos about Valley Forge.
Photo of tower
Photo of building and tower
Photo of building and tower

Tale of a blogger's visit to Valley Forge, with a video and a few photos taken in the tower

A short article about the origin of the chapel at Valley Forge doesn't mention the bells, but does have a couple of photos of the tower.

Waymarking page

Also here is the Justice Bell, a copy of the Liberty Bell made by Meneely/Troy in 1915 to promote women's suffrage:

• photo of bell
• closeup of inscriptions
• Story of the bell, with an old photo
• Shorter version of the story, with a different old photo

Where the initial phase of this work lies in the sequence of output of the Meneely (Watervliet) bellfoundry.
Where the second phase of this work lies in the sequence of output of the Meneely (Watervliet) bellfoundry.
Where the third phase of this work lies in the sequence of output of the Paccard bellfoundry, in this region and in the world.
Where the final phase of this work lies in the sequence of output of the Paccard bellfoundry, in this region and in the world.

Ranking among all North American traditional carillons by weight.
Ranking among all North American traditional carillons by size (number of bells).
Ranking among all North American concert class carillons by year of completion.

Other concert carillons with similar keyboard ranges.

Index to all traditional carillons in PA.

Index to all tower bell instruments in PA.

   This page was built from the database on 14-Oct-24
   based on textual data last updated on 2018/09/10
   and on technical data last updated on 1992/12/31