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The Belmont University Tower and Carillon is located approximately 528 feet south of the Belmont Mansion on Belmont University's campus in Nashville, Tennessee.
Located on the former summer estate of Colonel Joseph Alexander Smith Acklen and Adelicia Hayes Franklin Acklen Cheatham, the Bell Tower was constructed around 1853 to be used as a water tower for the Belmont Mansion, and later, it was used as a signal tower by Union soliders during the Battle of Nashville in 1864. Union General T.J. Wood used the tower and adjacent mansion as his headquarters during the battle.
When a carillon of 23 bronze bells was installed in 1928, it became the first carillon in Tennessee and one of the first 25 carillons in North America. The original carillon was sold in 1951, and in 1986, a second carillon of 23 bells was installed. A gift of 19 more bells was given to the University by The Jack C. Massey Foundation and other friends of the carillon and installed in November 2002 by Meeks, Watson and Company. The addition of a low D-sharp bell completed the Carillon in 2005.
The largest bell weighs 1,188 pounds, and the smallest bell weighs 22 pounds. The total weight of the 42 bells is 7,477 pounds. The bells were cast by royal bellfounders Petit and Fritsen, Ltd. in Aarle-Rixtel, The Netherlands and later installed by the I.T. Verdin CompanyofCincinnati, Ohio.
The tower currently houses a total of 42 bells and is one of only five carillons in the state of Tennessee. The present carillon is played by Dr. Richard Shadinger, Professor of Music in Belmont University's School of Music. (More)
The Tower was designed by architects Adolphus Heiman and William Strickland, who also designed the Belmont Mansion from 1849-1853. It is the largest surviving antebellum water tower constructed for private use in the United States. Based on the Lighthouse at Alexandria, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, the brick water tower stands 105 feet tall and was originally surrounded by a moat and bridge at the tower entrance.
Inside the five-story tower lies a cast-iron staircase leading to the top of the carillon. The staircase is an exact replica of the one in the Green-Meldrim HouseinSavannah, Georgia. The tower was renovated into a prayer chapel in 1974, which is currently open to visitors day and night.
While the bronze bells are located behind a screen in the highest level of the tower, the bells are played in a room on the fourth level.
