First Baptist Church bell tower, Revere Bell restoration project gets $100K state grant

The restoration project for Meadville's First Baptist Church bell tower and historic Revere Bell has been awarded a $100,000 grant from the Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission.

The award is one of 48 approved from 101 applications across Pennsylvania and part of $2.58 million in Keystone Historic Preservation grants announced this week.

The amounts range from $5,000 to $25,000 for projects grants; and $5,000 to $100,000 for construction projects like at First Baptist Church. All grants require a 50/50 cash match and were awarded through a competitive selection process.

The bell tower restoration and preservation of the church's historic Revere Bell is estimated to cost $230,000, according to Paul Oppenlander, a trustee of First Baptist Church and project manager for the restoration.

"It's a good feeling because you have a lot of ups and downs on a project like this," Oppenlander said of the award. "To have a big up like this of $100,000 is really a shot in the arm. It feels good."

It's the second significant grant announced for the project in recent days.

Earlier this week, it was announced the church received $10,000 from the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution Historic Preservation Grants program, which also is a competitive grant program.

The First Baptist Church's bell was cast in the early 1830s in the Paul Revere Foundry, the Revere of Revolutionary War fame.

An assessment of the bell last year by experts of the Verdin Company of Cincinnati, a world-renowned manufacturer of cast bronze bells, found it needs restoration and preservation, Oppenlander said.

At Verdin's recommendation, ringing of the bell was halted and plans for restoration started. The project includes sandblasting and buffing the bell and replacing its clapper, bell wheel, yoke and bell stand, plus restoration of the bell tower itself.

The bell, which weighs an estimated 750 pounds will be removed around late July or early August and transported to Verdin for restoration, Oppenlander said. The bell's restoration will take about four to six months to complete, he said.

In the late spring of 2024, restoration of the bell tower itself will be done and take about four to six weeks to complete, Oppenlander said.

However, the restored Revere Bell won't be installed the refurbished tower right away, Oppenlander said.

"When it comes back, we’ll put it on public display for two or three years to show it off," he said. "It's so people can put their hands on the bell and ring it here."

Having the bell on display should help with fundraising efforts, too, according to Oppenlander.

"To me, it's a once-in-a-life opportunity to touch history. How many can actually come out and say ‘I touched a Paul Revere bell?’" he said. "Typically, you can hear it, but you never see it. There's a lot more to Paul Revere than just his midnight ride."

With the state grant announcement, First Baptist now has about half the total money needed for the project with $120,753.15 committed.

"This is part of the upkeep of the church," Oppenlander said of the project. "We’re confident between public donations and the church itself, we’ll get there."

The church also will continue to work with Debbie Corll of Meadville, its grant consultant who wrote the state grant application, on other potential funding opportunities, Oppenlander said.

• To make a donation: Visit the First Baptist Church Facebook page, fbcmeadvillepennsylvania, or call the church at (814) 724-3384.

Keith Gushard can be reached at (814) 724-6370 or by email at [email protected].

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