Old Salem Lutheran Church Bell - Tomball, TX - Bells on Waymarking.com

This large bronze bell -- now on display near the Salem Lutheran Church's Family Center building -- used to belong to the church's old 1880 building. A plaque below the bell reads:

"The Story of Salem's Bell

From the tall steeple of Salem's 1880 church, its cherished bell provided a familiar sound that could be heard nine miles away, and sometimes farther, as it called believers to prayer and praise and served as a messenger of both sadness and celebration.

Each Saturday at 6:00 p.m. the resounding chime rang out over the countryside as a reminder to prepare for the Lord's Day. One hour before Sunday morning services, it pealed again calling the community to worship. Death in the congregation was announced as the bell solemnly tolled the age of the deceased, one for each year of life. Joyous ringing ushered each new year. As war ceased and freedom reigned, the bell sang out in thanksgiving.

When a larger clapper was installed to expand its voice, the added weight cracked the huge bell. No longer useful, Salem's original single carillon was donated as scrap metal to America's World War II effort. In 1964, flames engulfed the historic 1880 structure, and Salem's second bell fell to the ground, breaking into pieces.

In commemoration of Salem's Sesquicentennial Year (July 2001-2002), the broken bell was reclaimed from its silent resting place in a cow pasture, restored, and returned to this site of honor. The tower surrounding it survived the 1995 fire that destroyed the 1967 church structure that stood only a few feet away.

Soli Deo Gloria - May 19, 2002"


The following is a brief history of the old church, per a Texas Historical marker located not too far from this site:

"A number of German immigrants who arrived in Galveston during the 1840s and 1850s settled in the Rose Hill community. The families of George Sherer, Henry Theiss, Jacob Theiss, and C. W. Winkler founded Salem Lutheran Church in 1852, with the Rev. Gottlieb Ebinger as their first pastor. They worshipped initially in private homes, then erected a church building at this site on land donated by C. W. Winkler in 1857. The congregation affiliated with the Missouri Synod in 1868. The following year, George Sherer gave his family cemetery, situated about one mile northeast of this location, as a church burial ground. The fellowship established a parochial school about 1870 and later built a schoolhouse on adjacent land given by Henry Theiss. In 1880 a frame edifice with steeple was constructed here to replace the original church. Until the 1930s, men customarily sat on the left side of the church and women on the right, and services were conducted in German. Additions to the cemetery in 1943 and 1954 increased its size to five acres, which members of the congregation tended on cleanup days scheduled twice a year. The old frame church was destroyed by fire in 1964 and replaced by a new edifice, dedicated Feb. 5, 1967."

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Date Logged Log   01/25/2015 Raven visited it