‘A wasteful end’: Missing N.B. church bell found in pieces

(Sarah Plowman / CTV News)

A 200-year-old bell that went missing from a New Brunswick church has been found, but it’s not the ending parishioners were hoping for.

A brass bell at St. Peter’s Anglican Church in Fredericton, which weighed between 300 and 400 pounds, was stolen from the church yard earlier this week.

“Sadly, the police just let us know that pieces of the bell have been found locally off a street just up the road. Smashed by a sledgehammer and left in a ditch. A wasteful end indeed,” said Father Ross Hebb, the former minister at St. Peter’s Anglican Church.

The Fredericton Police Force has confirmed part of the bell was found Friday afternoon, thanks to a tip from the public.

“The recovered portion has been secured,” reads an update from the Fredericton Police Force. “Several other pieces of the bell remain outstanding at this time.”

Police released an image of a black four-door Ford F-150 truck they say was involved in the theft. Nearby surveillance cameras captured the truck in the area around 2:14 a.m. Monday. The licence plate number is unknown.

Thieves left a trail of damage when they drove over flood lights, a signpost and shrubs.

“Obviously didn’t care about destroying things to get to the bell,” said Ruth Roussy, who lives next door and notes the church is the centrepiece of her neighbourhood.

“The congregation here, they take such good care of this church. They care for it like their own homes and, and for this to happen ... very discouraging.”

Hebb explained it’s believed the bell was made in England in 1820 for the original Christ Church in Fredericton that was built in the late 1700s. He said when that church was torn down and replaced with a new cathedral, the bell ended up at St. Peter’s. It had been outside for more than 50 years.

“It’s part of our collective heritage and culture,” said Hebb.

St. Peter’s is historically significant to the area. Built in the 1830s by the local Black community, white and Black parishioners worshipped there together at a time when segregation was the norm.

“This church has been up and open continuously,” said Hebb. “And that makes it the oldest church of any denomination in continuous use in the greater Fredericton area.”

The Fredericton Police Force is asking anyone with information about the incident to contact them at [phone]. Anonymous tips can be submitted to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477) or online at www.crimenb.ca.

For more New Brunswick news, visit our dedicated provincial page.