The tower and bells are a permanent memorial to those who were killed, the identified and the unidentified, to those who were never found, the maimed, the blinded and to the thousands who lost everything they owned in the Halifax Explosion on December 6, 1917. The north end of Halifax was wiped out by the blast and the tsunami that followed. Nearly 2,000 people died, another 9,000 were maimed or blinded, and more than 25,000 were left without adequate shelter.
The site of the Halifax Explosion Memorial Bell Tower, donated to the city years ago by the Halifax Relief Commission, overlooks the Narrows where the collision of Imo and Mont Blanc took place. Placed almost parallel to the harbour, the memorial directs the viewers’ attention to the explosion site.
Its narrow, angular construction is 60' at the highest point, descends in a steep and jagged slope, with a cut through near the north end, and sits on a granite platform. The large section represents rebirth and the smaller sloped section represents the past. It originally was sited with landscaping up to the concrete. In 2017, a new plaza around the memorial was created to make the site fully accessible.
Several rectangular openings house the 14 bronze bells. The two-part memorial was constructed with monolithic hydro-stone. A material was used in rebuilding much of the city’s north end after the explosion. Copper sheathing was used for the inclined surface and to protect the bell enclosures. It took almost 14 hours to install the bells.
Grove Presbyterian Church stood on the northerly slope of Fort Needham, while Kaye Street Methodist stood on the southerly slope. Both churches and manses were destroyed in explosion. Two hundred and thirty-nine parishioners were killed, others blinded or maimed for life and few with roofs over their heads. Friends and relatives gave shelter as best they could in their damaged homes. Some were in refuge far from Halifax. A number were in the local prison cells and many more were in the overcrowded hospitals.
For over three months the hospitality of other churches was accepted, but on March 17, the Tarpaper Church, a temporary structure built with Methodist and Presbyterian funds, was used for combined worship for the two congregations. Both ministers worked and were busy helping the victims of the explosion. The depleted congregations fit well together and they created a new building, the Kaye-Grove Church, to complete the union. In June, 1920, the union was official and the name changed to the United Memorial Church.
A chime of ten bronze bells were presented to the church by Barbara Orr in memory of her family. Her parents and four siblings were killed in the explosion. The memorial bells ranged in size from the largest at 1800 pounds and 43 inches in diameter, to the smallest at 175 pounds and 20.5 inches in diameter, for a total weight of 6150 pounds. They were purchased through her uncle from the Meneely Company, a firm in New York. The carillon of ten bells was played by Barbara at the dedication ceremony in 1921.
By the mid-1960s, the weight of the bells and their vibrations caused structural damage to the church tower and it was unsafe to play the bells. In 1975, they were remove and kept under canvas on the church lawn until 1983.
On July 4, 1983, a meeting was held to discuss the future of the bells. The Halifax Explosion Memorial Bells Committee was formed and the bells were moved for storage and refurbishing. Funds were provided by personal and corporate donations, as well as, provincial and federal grants.
A competition for a bell tower was held and the winning design was by Keith Graham of the Core Design Group. The first sod was turned by Barbara on June 1, 1984, and the dedication ceremony was held on June 9, 1985. Barbara played the carillon again at the ceremony. The bells were electrified and could be played from a room in the bottom of the memorial or by a remote set in the Kaye Street United Church. In 1990, the additional four bells were donated by Mr. Russell Isenor.
