Historical information

This bell was used to begin and end recess and lunch breaks at Strathmore Williamstown Grammar School. It was introduced by Mabel Martha Molland, Principal (1914 - 1963) and was in use at the Williamstown campus until the installation of an electronic bell system in the early 2010s. It is known at the school as 'Miss Molland's Bell' and was featured in The Old School Tie exhibition at the Old Treasury Museum in 1999. The exhibition label for the bell read, 'This bell has been used to summon students to class for as long as anyone can remember, although it is reported that in Mr. Gerity's time (1897-1914) classes were "signalled by Gerity appearing at the door and waving an enormous white handkerchief the size of a bed sheet" (Reported in Johnson, J. 1987, The Westbourne and Williamstown Grammar Schools, pg. 37)'. The bell has historic significance as it originated with Mabel Molland, Principal (1914 - 1963), a very prominent figure in the history of the school and has been handled and used by countless students, assigned the coveted task of ringing the bell, over many years.

Physical description

Brass bell with a turned wood handle. The are five parallel grooves near the top of the handle and two near the middle. The bell has two parallel grooves around the fluted sound rim. The clapper is attached, with a twisted piece of 1mm diameter single strand wire, to a d-ring inside the head of the bell.