Meeks, Watson & Company has been casting single bells and sets of bells for harmonically-tuned peals and carillons since 1991. Billed as America’s most experienced carillon designer and builder, the foundry specializes in crafting musical instruments of exceptional quality, as well as tuning historical bells from early American foundries. Meeks, Watson & Company offers:
- Single Bells
- Chimes & Carillons
- Consoles
- Frames & Fittings
- Tuning
- Maintenance & Inspections
- Historic Recreations
- Restorations
- Recasting
Located less than an hour’s drive southeast of Cincinnati in a fully-equipped industrial shop, the foundry may be reached at:
Meeks, Watson & Company
10402 West Fork Rd.
Georgetown, OH 45121
(937) 378-2355
MWBells.com
Recreating historic profiles and sounds
Meeks, Watson & Company is an industry leader in designing and casting bells with custom profiles to match those of both historical and present-day bellmakers. Whether to extend an existing chime or carillon, or to replace individual bells of poor tonal quality from a set, the foundry can match aural and visual profiles from designs and foundries that may no longer exist.
Sometimes, this is to repair bells lost through disaster, like a fire, where a sound profile recognized across generations falls silent. Meeks, Watson & Company analyzes any existing bells or bell fragments, while pouring over historical records, to recreate the exact timbre and character of the missing bells. Other times, the foundry is called upon to tune historical bells, especially those in chimes from early American bell founders.
The blending of old and new bells, and bells of different founders, to form a complete and tonally-consistent musical instrument takes incredible precision and acoustical dedication. By tuning individual bells and recasting others, and by installing just the right clappers and mechanical action geometry, the foundry is keeping alive the sounds of centuries past.
Cover image: Joshua Meeks, Bill Meeks, and Adam Clifton of Meeks, Watson & Company stand in front of bells cast for Iowa State University on October 23, 2019. Courtesy: Iowa State University Department of Music and Theatre.
