The bell story started at St. George's, Dorchester (below), 1735.

As the population of the colony grew, one of the original rural parishes was divided, creating the parish of St. George's around the thriving town of Dorchester, about 20 miles to the northwest of the city. The parish church was built in 1719 and enlarged in 1734; and in 1751, a handsome tower with octagonal belfry was added (the base of the tower is still standing). In that year a bell was ordered for Dorchester from the Abel Rudhall Bellfoundry in Gloucester. In 1753, a subscription was circulated successfully for a ring of bells, and a ring of four was acquired. This ring is the second ring of bells to have been set up in America. When the British came through during the Revolutionary War, they severely damaged the church building. Not long thereafter, the population dispersed, and all ringing must have ceased.

Of the four bells, the tenor was cracked while being used as a school bell. But the new church of St. Paul's in Charleston acquired the four bells in 1815; three of the bells were mounted in the tower. The cracked tenor was recast and given to St. John's Church, Winnsboro, South Carolina, where it was destroyed by Sherman in 1865. Two other bells were destroyed in the burning of Columbia in the same year. The fourth bell may still be sounding somewhere. So ends the story of the second ring of change ringing bells to be mounted in America.

The Church of St. Paul's was organized in 1810 to serve the population in Radcliffeborough, a suburb growing to the north of the city. The building, the largest Church in the area, was constructed from 1811 to 1816 in the traditional colonial style but with a surprising Gothic cap to the tower, added, it is supposed, when the plans for a tall steeple were abandoned. In the stage just below the Gothic parapet, three of the original bells of St. George's, Dorchester, were mounted in 1815 (as three rope holes in the floor still testify).

The Cathedral bell tower has been mute since the War Between the States (1862), when the bells were shipped to Columbia and melted down. After the War, the parish was never subsequently in a financial position to purchase a set of bells until in 1997, after discussions with Richard Parsons and Dan Beaman, the Dean of the Cathedral, the Rev'd William N. McKeachie, initiated a movement to secure from Keltek Trust in England the bells from the redundant parish of St. Paul's, Mirfield, in Eastthrope, Yorkshire. Contributions from the members of the cathedral parish in 1997 and 1998 allowed purchase of five bells. A sixth, a tenor, was donated by Keltek Trust. Additional gifts have competed a set of eight.

Bell 1) 509 pounds
Bell 2) 665 pounds
Bell 3) 792 pounds
Bell 4) 911 pounds
Bell 5) 1168 pounds
Bell 6) 1652 pounds

Two additional bells were newly cast for the Cathedral and match the existing six bells for an 8-bell ring.

Reinforcement and renovation of the tower began in March in preparation for the upcoming bells.

The bell frames arrived and were delivered to the Cathedral at 6:00 a.m. on Thursday of Holy Week, April 12, 2001. Coming Street was blocked off by police as a crane lifted the bell frames (6 tons) over the brick wall into the close.

On Sunday, May 13th Ruth and Bob Smith arrived from England. On Monday, May 14th they began overseeing the installation of the bell frames. That should take about a week. Except for a two hour delay the morning of the 15th waiting for the arrival of a piece of equipment, work seems to be going well.

In repointing the brick in the tower this week, moisture damage was found in the mule boards, so they will have to be replaced. This was an unexpected delay of progress. The damage was not obvious from the outside. Only after the bricks were removed could the damage be seen.

The bells arrived in Charleston and were stored at IBT. Demi Howard and Dominique Volpe had been to the storage area and had opened the crate of "pieces" of which there are many! The bells were a bit wet, so they made holes in the crates for air flow.

On Wednesday, May 23rd from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. the Smiths met with Cathedral parishioners, showing a video and answering questions. This was on the eve of the arrival of the bells to the Cathedral. The bells were scheduled to arrive at 7:00 a.m., but arrived early and were unloaded by 7:40 a.m. A crowd of 20-some and one dog watched a rather amazing performance of the crane. Five bells were placed on the right of the narthex and three to the left. A police car blocked off Coming Street for over an hour. When the bells were in and he went to move the police car, he had a dead battery and had to have a jump start. Excitement is building having seen the bells on location. The blessing of the bells will be Sunday, July 1st following the 10:00 a.m. worship service.

On the 4th of July the Smiths arrived from England for the hoisting of the bells. On July 5th the bells were hoisted into the tower. Three TV stations (Channels 2, 4, and 5) were present to cover the story along with the newspaper. The story was also aired on CNN and Public TV. The Smiths remained in Charleston to finish the hanging of the bells. The bells are to be heard (a test) Tuesday, July 10, 2001 at 6:00 p.m.