Historic Dublin church bell finally rings again after 50 years of silence

For the first time in decades, the bell at First African Baptist Church rang out Sunday afternoon following an almost $20,000 restoration. 

The church, located at 405 Telfair St., held a Sunday afternoon celebration to mark the occasion, which was also a Georgia 250 event.

“I want to thank God for those who gave their money to be used so that this (restoration) went from a vision to a reality,” said Rev. Keith Anderson during Sunday’s program. “As of today, it is ringing again.” 

The plan is for the bell to ring every Sunday morning at 11. 

The restoration, which took place between March and July, happened after members of Leadership Georgia’s Class of 2026 visited the church during a church program called “One Day: Dublin’s Civil Rights Experience.”

Davis told the group that Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave his first public speech at the historic church in 1944. He also mentioned that getting the bell to ring again was on the church’s wishlist. That resonated with the group. 

About a week later, members  of the group reached out to the church to inform them they wanted to take this on as a project.

Jenna Riddle, a member of Leadership Georgia’s Class of 2026, talked about the group’s role in the bell restoration. The class wanted to do something in return for the hospitality they had received in Dublin, and knew that helping make the bell’s restoration a reality was the answer.

“We are honored to be a small part of the restoration of this historic bell in this historic place,” said Riddle, who grew up in Laurens County. “Our hope is that the dedication of this bell helps people see the power of listening, learning and building relationships with this community for years to come.” 

Anderson, along with Deaconess Laura Irvin and Deacons Earnest Wade and Jerry Davis, pulled the  rope hanging from the bell, which weighs approximately 3,000 lbs. 

“Hearing the bell ring brought joy into our hearts and souls for the first time in 45 to 50 years,” Davis said.

The bell did not ring out too loudly, but Davis said they were able to find out what happened when they showed a video of the event to Russ Richards, who helped in the restoration project.

“He realized that with all of us pulling on the rope at one time, and not letting it release like it is supposed to, that is why the bell did not sound as loud as it should have,” Davis said.

The bell is located above the main entrance of the sanctuary. The only way to get to the restored bell is by climbing up a ladder inside the church. 

When Davis moved back to Dublin, he was told about the bell and began researching it. He discovered that their bell was cast by the C.S. Bell Company in Hillsboro, Ohio. The bell assembly’s total weight is 3,150 pounds, making it the largest bell cast by the company.

In 1897, the 54-inch bell sold for $168.75. By 1934, the price was $375. Today the price of this bell would be between $3,000 to $5,000, Davis said.

Eventually, Davis said the church would like to have a timer to ring the bell at certain times. But since that is still a work in progress, he added that the main thing about Sunday’s celebration was having the bell ring out once again.

“We’d like to have the bell sound with different tones and people will be able to hear it,” Davis said. “To see all of the people turn out, it was such a wonderful occasion. I think people in the community were glad to hear the bell ringing again, which was like renewing history.” 

The First AB Church was built in 1867 and re-built in 1914. The bell was installed in December 1920. Davis said C1 Contracting Co. in Eastman and Chuck White’s Clock and Carillon Co. out of Sharpsburg, Ga., did the restoration. 

Davis thanked Richards, Miriam Lewis, with Visit DublinGA, Jason Faircloth,  Jenna Riddle, all with Leadership Georgia Class of 2026, Khadine Ritchie, with The Home Depot in Dublin, Seth Adams, with Britt, Peters & Associates, Inc., Dylan Connell, with C1 Construction, LLC, Chuck White, with White’s Clock & Carillon, Garbutt Construction Co., Dublin Construction Co. Inc., and all of the donors that contributed to the project.

Kaden Johnson, 12, a member of church,  welcomed everyone to the ceremony, saying that church bells used to bring people together. 

“They have called families to worship, celebrated joyful moments and reminded communities of God’s presence,” Johnson said. “Today, we celebrate the restoration of our historic church bell, so its voice can ring out once again for generations to come. … May its sound not only call people to church, but also lead hearts to Christ.”