This is an exceptional early piece that has folk art iron brackets that secure this bronze dinner bell onto a thick wooden board and on the bell there is in raised lettering on the bell, ‘San Gabriel’. We acquired this bell here in south central Nebraska, and we were told that this piece was purchased from a person who had been a missionary. I do not have any documentation if this bell was originally on a mission church or if it had an association with the San Gabriel wordage on the bell. At the widest point the bracket measures 30″ wide. The diameter of the bell on the bottom is 12″, and the bell is 12″ high. From the bottom of the bell to the top of the wooden beam is 20 1/2″ high. The bell has an appealing chime when it is rung, and the folk art styled iron brackets are a fun addition to this piece. If only this bell could tell us the complete story of where it has been! What a fun piece to add to your collection!
That bell was made by Mrs ASC Forbes probably sometime in the 20’s-40’s. Forbes was an early California historian, photographer, officer in Woman’s Club in CA, and designer/maker of the famous El Camino Real bells marking highway 1 in CA. She was the first woman in North America to own a foundry and is listed in the Los Angeles directories as “bellmaker”. Her business was called California Bell Company. In addition to large bells, she made small souvenir bells that were sold at gifts stores at the various California missions.
