The ring of the Westminster Chime melody vibrating out from the Chapel every quarter hour is a consistent sound in the background of most Bowdoin students’ daily lives. This chime can easily fade into the background, but when it is disrupted, people notice.

Over winter break, members of the College community noticed that the chimes, located in the South Tower of the Chapel, are not singing their usual tune. The highest note in the Westminster Chime is currently not ringing. Concert, Budget and Equipment Manager Delmar Small attributed this issue to a problem with the solenoid that rings the bell.

“I suspect it’s the solenoid, because they’re up there, exposed to the elements. It’s really kind of open,” Small said. “Snow can blow in there, and ice can form. It’s cold and windy, and they have hard work to do.”

After becoming aware of this issue, the College first checked the circuitry which automates the bells’ ringing. When this inspection didn’t locate any issues, Small explained that the College contacted a contractor who works for the company that originally installed the bells.

“When a bell stops working like that, first our in-house electricians look at the circuitry a little bit, do some testing and sometimes they can locate the problem,” Small said. “The electricians haven’t found the problem there, so it’s most likely to be in the tower itself. So we hired a contractor who works for the company that installed the bells and maintains them, but I don’t know if a repair date has been scheduled yet.”