It seems that in most other cities I’ve been in, most recently San Francisco, if you’re anywhere near a church you will hear the bells striking the hours. But not in L.A.
Why is this? Was it considered noise pollution? Considering what is allowed–I am currently at home amidst the cacaphony of people racing engines around the nearby motorcycle shop and a high school football game next door–how could anyone have found bells to be a nuisance?
Actually, there is one exception I’m aware of. At UCLA the carillon does strike each hour, but other than that I’ve
never heard it in L.A.
I have always wondered this myself, considering I live only about 100 yards from a church. The only times I’ve ever heard the bells ring are either Sunday morning or after a wedding (and I would have to actually be outside to hear them, because even then, they are not very loud).
I’m thinking that perhaps that many of the churches don’t strike the hours is because many of them don’t even have “real” bell towers, since they are built rather recently. It may be of a mindset, now, that everyone has a clock and/or watch, and striking the hours are not as necessary as they once were.
I’ve lived in Arlington, Va./Richmond, Va./Durham, NC/Akron, OH. I have never heard church bells strike the hour that I can remember. This is over the period 1950-2000.
Maybe you just got lucky in San Francisco(I hesitated typing that sentence).
I live just right by a church, and I can always hear the bells.
It’s quite nice, actually.
Let’s make it more specific…
javaman How do you know that no church bells strike the hour in LA? Have you personally been to each church on the hour to verify this?
Guin You live “right by a church”. Does that church have bells that strike the hour? Or are you just enjoying the bells as they play religious songs, etc? do they strike the hour?
No, it just chimes out the hours, on Sundays.
First the dong, dong dong…then the ding dong ding dong dong ding ding…etc etc…
See, when I was little, we just always happened to live within walking distance of a church, and since it’s a sound I’ve been hearing all my life, it’s comforting.
Silly, I know.
And hey, don’t knock it. It just sounds pretty, I think.