Many students may have noticed that SVSU’s iconic Julia Stacey Edwards Bell Tower has suddenly gone silent for the past few months. Some may be glad for the quiet as the bell tower did ring every half hour until eleven p.m. But others are saddened by the bell tower’s silence.
Like me.
Sure, the bells had scared me a couple of times in the early Fall 2023 semester, but I eventually grew to love them. Like the Valley Vanguard’s Editor in Chief, the bells also helped me in knowing that I was not running late to class. Besides the convenience, I also find it very historically significant to SVSU.
The tower itself has four large bronze bells that were originally cast in the Netherlands. The bells are stationary but are fixed to electro-magnetic clappers that ring the bells electronically.
The bell tower was dedicated on October 17th, 1998, to Julia Stacey Edwards, the wife of William Edwards who chaired the committee that raised the funds needed to purchase the first plot of land for SVSU. The bell tower is also constructed on the same spot where William proposed to Julia.
William Edwards died in 2007 with Julia joining him just two years later in 2009. But the bells have rung in beautiful symbolism of William’s love for his wife even after their deaths.
Until now.
The bell tower’s silence, I find, is a great disrespect to William and Julia’s memory and to what William wanted to leave behind in the university he helped start. Sure, maybe the university just hasn’t been able to get someone to fix it, but I find that highly unlikely.
The bell tower has been silent for months, months that included Winter Break, which was an opportune time to fix the bell tower while campus was empty. Perhaps it can’t be done in the cold weather that occurred during the break, so it was pushed back. But this past week, we’ve had relatively nice weather in the mid to high forties which was also a good time to do the repair. If the bell tower is broken at all.
SVSU has made no official announcements about the bell tower being broken or turned off. I sincerely hope that SVSU leadership fixes any problems with the bell tower and restores it to its former glory. The bell tower’s significance makes our university even more special and keeps William and Julia’s legacy alive.
Carlie Smith 
Danielle Carlisi
The Edwards Bell Tower tolling has been corrected. It appears the hour and half hour tolling stroke may have been interrupted by a power failure. The control panel was examined and reset to resume the bell toll. If anyone has any further concerns, regarding the tower, please feel free to reach out to Campus Facilities. Thanks.