The Bell

THE BELL MONUMENT

Dedicated April 25, 2003

The Plaque:

The Bell :

The bell came from the Lewis and Clark Bridge over the Columbia River at Longview, Washington. The bell was used to aid river navigation in the fog. It was sounded by an exterior, electronic hammer or clapper. Over the years, the force of the clapper striking the bell broke out sections of the bell.

The bell was salvaged by Konrad Schweiger in 1996 in a job by Advanced American Diving Service, Inc. (AADS) for the Washington State Department of Transportation. The job entailed rehabilitating the fender system around two large piers and included removing the bell from one of the abandoned piers. The bell was stored at the AADS yard for a number of years until the staff decided to incorporate it into a monument to the founders of AADS, Konrad Schweiger and Kent Cochran. The idea of using the bell in a monument was originally envisioned by Konrad Schweiger, who died unexpectedly on April 11, 2002. Kent Cochran retired from the Company in 1999.

The bell was made in 1895 at the Buckeye Bell Foundry by W.W. Vanduzen Co. of Cincinnati, Ohio, one of the seven largest producers of bronze bells in the U.S. The Buckeye Bell Foundry, now closed, was established in 1837 by George Washington Coffin. The Vanduzen Company also made a bell in 1905 for the Lewis & Clark Centennial Exposition in Portland. Our bell is made of bronze and measures 391/2" in diameter at the mouth, putting it in the church and fire bell category.

"If iron and steel bells were the Fords,' bronze bells were the Cadillacs.' A well-made bronze bell will hold its 'hum note' for up to a minute after being struck because bronze is more dense than iron. The name of the firm that cast a bronze bell will normally be cast into the side of the bell itself, rather than on the yoke. The two molds used to make a bronze bell must be destroyed in the casting process, while molds for iron bells are used over and over. This results in more labor cost in a bronze bell, and the metal itself is considerably more expensive. Because of this high cost, most small rural church congregations could only afford a steel or iron bell. The bronze bells are more typically found in larger cities and towns. There is practically no limit to the size a bronze bell can be cast. The world's largest is the Czar Kolokol outside the Kremlin in Moscow , Russia at 27 feet in diameter. The Peace Bell in Newport , Kentucky is 12 feet in diameter at a weight of 60,000 pounds. Large bronze bells are often cast with much bias relief ornamentation."

From Big Bells by Neil Goeppinger,
February 4, 2003, American Bell Association
International, Inc., Indianapolis, IN

The Base:

The base was designed and manufactured by Dale Moss of Advanced American Construction, Inc. The base was painted by Don Rhyne Painting of Boring, Oregon. The blue-green color was the same as Konrad Schweiger's prized, restored, 1966 Ford Fairlane. The monument is located at Advanced American Construction, Inc. offices in Portland, Oregon.

Konrad L. Schweiger of Estacada, Oregon passed away unexpectedly Thursday, April 11, 2002, at age 56.

Konrad Schweiger was born November 8, 1945, in Klamath Falls, Oregon. After attending the Oregon Institute of Technology, Konrad moved to Portland in 1966 and worked as a sheet metal worker and welder with Northwest Marine and Ironworks. His real love was diving, and, in 1972, Konrad went to work for Commercial Divers of Vancouver as Construction Superintendent and Lead Diver. From 1976 to 1980, he was Diving Supervisor with Fred Devine Diving and Salvage, Inc. of Portland. In 1980, Konrad and Bill Shires began All Coast Commercial Divers in Coos Bay, where Konrad was decorated with the Carnegie Medal of Honor and the Marine Medal of Honor.

After returning to Portland and building moorages and flotation systems for houses, he joined Kent Cochran and established Advanced American Diving Service, Inc. in 1983. Advanced American Diving Service, Inc., now Advanced American Construction, Inc., is a marine construction and consulting business serving government and industry in the Northwest. Projects included the Lower Granite Lock and Dam, East Bank Esplanade, Waddell Dam, Terminal 2 at Port of Vancouver, and Stewart Mountain Dam.

Konrad is survived by his wife, Cynthia Jean Schweiger; father, Louis V. Schweiger; sister, Jean Denham; daughter-in-law, Andrea Schweiger; brother-in-law John Lindmeier; nieces Tracy and Kelly; and, nephew Troy. Konrad and Cindy lost their son, Forrest, in a construction accident at age 26 in 1999. Konrad's many friends, his partners and employees at Advanced American Construction, Inc. will also miss Konrad.