Greene County Courthouse
Courthouse Bell
The Bloomfield Courthouse bell has been stored in the attic above the Greene County Courthouse since the mid 1950s. The bell is 120 years old and weighs approximately 2,000 pounds. It is about 48 inches tall and over 42 inches round.
The bell was purchased from McShane Bell Foundry in Baltimore, Maryland, during the fourth courthouse construction project in Greene County. It was purchased from the company in 1886.
George Bunting designed the building that originally housed the old bell. The building he designed was built in 1885. His name, along with other county commissioners, is engraved on the bell.
In 1954, the courthouse was remodeled with the steeples on all four corners of the building being removed. The clock tower was remodeled first. The bell was located in the center of the top of the tower. It was then relocated and lowered to a wooden catwalk-like structure. It has been located there for the last 52 years.
In 2006, Jim Corey, the Greene County Building Corporation project manager, told the contractor to move the bell so it could be displayed on the ground for everyone to see. He asked the Strand Construction Company to build a structure for the bell that would allow it to be placed on the ground.
The bell was relocated to the grounds of the courthouse on Tuesday, January 9, 2007. It was carefully moved using a large crane by the workman from Weddle Brothers Construction of Bloomington. The bell was transferred from the clock tower to a concrete mount on the ground. It is located on the northeast side of the courthouse.
