- The Meneely Bell Foundry was started in 1826 by Andrew
Meneely in West Troy (now Watervliet), New York.
- A second Meneely bell company was formed in 1870 by relatives in Troy, New York.
- Andrew Meneely was an apprentice to Julius Hanks, who started the nation's first bell foundry in 1808 in West Troy.
- Meneely bells rang for President Franklin Roosevelt's and President John Kennedy's funerals, and for President Lyndon Johnson's inauguration.
- The replacement for the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia, as well as many church bells in that city, were Meneely bells. Nearly every church bell in Troy, New York is a Meneely bell.
- Other Meneely bells include bells at Cornell University,
the Metropolitan Life building in New York City, and the West Point
military academy. Overall, the Meneely companies produced about 65,000
bells.
- The Meneely companies eventually closed in 1952 owing to metal shortages and the increasing popularity of electronic bells and chimes.
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