Denny Bell expected to return to cupola by July

Years ago, seagulls used it as a toilet. This year, after eight years in a humidity-controlled, high-security protection at the Physical Plant, Denny Bell will return to the top of Denny Hall. This time, its guardians say, its new home will be cocooned from the elements.

"It was the guano, those seagulls all over it," said Brewster Denny, who rang the bell in the building's cupola in 1961.

It was more than guano that kept the Civil War relic out of the cupola. Upon closer inspection of the bell's external structure in 1995, Colin Sandwith, metallurgy expert and assistant professor in mechanical engineering, became alarmed.

"I told Charlie Ness (the now-retired director of the Physical Plant), 'You've got to get this bell out of here, now. It's going to fall down the roof.'"

Years of rain, wind and bird excrement had degraded the bell's ferrous-copper composition, corroding its cap, top yoke and skin. Sandwith, who has inspected fleet sonar systems and marine corrosion for the Navy, compiled a detailed report in 1995. Along with explicit instructions to keep the bell away from the elements, the report recommended cleaning, testing and treatment.

"What you still don't know," Sandwith said, "is what's inside the bell. You can't see the density, uniformity, defects, cracks, deposits."

Non-destructive testing (NDT) will determine the unknown. Sandwith recommended NDT in the form of X-ray or ultrasound to examine the bell's internal structure. A technician will also investigate significant changes in the bell's tone.

Finally, for treatment, the bell will either be protected with a metallic coating or painting. The "tiny, tiny difference," Sandwith said, is that painting is more resistant and easier to maintain.

"We've come to the conclusion that the best thing to do is put the bell back into the tower," said Rick Cheney, director of maintenance and alterations at the plant. Before he, Sandwith and other faculty members met Jan. 31 to decide on the bell, two factors -- politics and economics -- kept the bell hidden.

Since 1995, Cheney said, funding had been a major obstacle to implementing the project.

"I spoke with Mr. Cheney the other day, and reminded him of the money my family donated to the school," Denny said. The $14 million, put into the original campus' 10 acres of land, was the largest private donation ever made to any public university, he added.

"Of course, it's a very complicated issue, with a hundred other projects that need money," Denny said. "They're going to plan a hundred different ways to save the bell, which is the object of my petition. And I think it's an important one."

In spite of the donations, funding any architectural, artistic or facility on campus poses the question of how to cut the fiscal pie.

"You've got to look at 14 million square feet, 700 acres and more than 200 buildings on campus," said Meredith Brothers, Cheney's assistant. "It's complicated, but I think what everyone wants is that we do what is best for the bell."

In contrast, according to Sandwith, the technical issues are very simple. What's not simple, he said, is "knowing if the bell is in good, quality, defect-free condition."

The decision to bring Denny Bell back to its home came after much brainstorming. One idea was to place the bell in a shatterproof glass case inside Denny Hall. Another, Brothers said, was relocation to another campus building. Kurt Kiefer, campus arts administrator, said there was considerable discussion of how to best compromise the visual display with the audio stimulus.

"The question UW has to ask is, which is more important? As far as I understand, one major issue is whether the bell is in good condition," Kiefer said. "Second issue is whether the steeple is in good condition."

According to Cheney, cupola renovation is the project's final phase. Save for a few minor adjustments for earthquake-resistance, the bulk of the renovation goes into the bell itself. He hopes the project will be completed by July.

"We're more toward completion than the beginning," Cheney said. "But we're not specifically concerned with the time frame. What's important is that this is done correctly."