Sally Woods Rucker Memorial

*Location:

   Christ Episcopal Church
   High Street W at Second Street NW
   Charlottesville, Virginia, USA
   LL: N 38.03305, W 78.48117

Site locator map

*Carillonist:

   Clair Robison

   1977-2011 Clair B. Holland  (1924-2017)

*Contact:

   Christ Episcopal Church
   120 West High Street
   Charlottesville, VA  22902
   (Office at 100 West Jefferson Street)
   T: 434-293-2347   F: 434-977-1227
   E: office/@/christchurchcville.org

*Schedule:

   Sundays 1030-1055

*Remarks:

   Bourdon can be swung or tolled by hand.
   Practice keyboard by Meeks & Watson
   in 2004 (-Z27:CD/CE), in playing room.
   2 bass semitones added by B.A.Sunderlin

*Technical data:

   Traditional carillon of 25 bells
   Pitch of heaviest bell is G  in the middle octave
   Keyboard range:     C C   /    C C   
   Transposition is up  7 semitone(s), i.e., from C to G 
   There are no missing bass semitones
   There is a practice console
   The instrument was enlarged in 2020
     with bells made by the maker cited in Remarks above
   Prior history:
     In 1947, the instrument was begun with 23 bells
       by Gillett & Johnston
       There were two missing bass semitones
   Auxiliary mechanisms: W1    
   Tower details: 
     Height of console:                 10 meters above ground
     Height of lowest level of bells:   14 meters above ground
     Height of highest level of bells:  18 meters above ground
     Belfry openness:  30%
   Year of latest technical information source is 2020

The church Website opens with a drawing of the front of the building, clearly showing the bell tower; it links to a fund-raising page about a project to add two bells to the carillon.  The Ministries & Programs page has a photo of the tower, and a link to the Music Ministry page, which does not mention the carillon.
On the new church Website, the carillon is mentioned on the Parish History page, though it is mis-spelled.
Church article (14&21 Oct 2020) about the installation of the new bass bells.

Where the initial phase of this work lies in the sequence of output of the Gillett & Johnston bellfoundry, in this region and in the world.
Where the initial phase of this work lies in the sequence of output of the Sunderlin 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 traditional carillons by year of completion.

Other small carillons with similar keyboard ranges.

Index to all traditional carillons in VA.

Index to all tower bell instruments in VA.

   This page was built from the database on 14-Oct-24
   based on textual data last updated on 2023/02/15
   and on technical data last updated on 2023/03/09