The bell was cast or was bought by the
Armstrong Fire Brigade in 1910 and was donated to the museum by the firefighters. In 1995 it was mounted by the sign for the
Armstrong-Spallumcheen Museum, along with a bronze plaque, at the corner of Pleasant Valley Road and Bridge Street.
Notice the wording and the spelling on the plaque. Not only were the words
Fire Bell concatenated but there is an
R missing from the word
CIRCA. Embarrassing, what?
The bell, a Number 32, was cast by the American Bell & Foundry Company of Northville, Michigan, established in 1899. In 1920 the firm was sold to an Ohio company and the name changed to the Bell Furnace & Manufacturing Company. In 1924 they began to phase out the manufacturing of bells, and by 1931 they no longer cast bells.