After about two decades of silence, Lake Forest College President Emeritus Eugene Hotchkiss spearheaded an effort to purchase a top-of-the-line digital carillon so the chiming of bells could be heard throughout campus every hour on the hour throughout the workday as well as on special occasions like Matriculation. 

The music is projected through four speakers that were installed in the bell tower last November. 

“It’s part of campus spirit,” says Hotchkiss, who long has appreciated the academic tradition of bells on college campuses.

Hotchkiss serves as the executor to the estate of Rosemary Cowler, a beloved professor of English at the College from 1955-1995. He decided that her estate would be an appropriate way to fund the project.

“I thought if anyone would want bells on this campus it would be Professor Cowler because she appreciated tradition,” Hotchkiss said.

He reached out to the legatees of the estate, Cowler’s four cousins, Janice Bingham, Janet L. Grepke, Amy Lynne Rogers, and Daniel David Rogers, with his idea. All agreed to support the investment in her memory. A few others chipped in, too.

A bell-shaped plaque now hangs in the foyer of the Chapel in recognition of their donation toward the Cowler Carillon.

A product of the bell and clock manufacturer Verdin, the new carillon offers a variety of pre-programmed tunes. Songs also can be programmed into the system using a keyboard-like device.

Erik Larson, associate director/senior system administrator
of library and information technology manages the carillon. He performed and programmed the alma mater song to play for Senior Honors Convocation in May.

He says the digital system sounds better and is more reliable than the previous carillon. Another plus is that it’s on the College’s network, “so I can program the bells from my office if necessary.”

The College’s first carillon was installed in the late 1970s/early 1980s as a gift from Mrs. Elliot Donnelley in honor of Hotchkiss. It stopped working after about 20 years of use, shortly after Hotchkiss retired. Being based on old technology, it no longer was mechanically supported and, therefore, was not repairable, said Director of Facilities Management Dave Siebert.

The College is enjoying finding new uses for the carillon. It played during the memorial service of Leslie Chapman ’79, who served as the College’s vice president for business affairs. Interestingly, she also was the one who managed the old carillon. In June, the bells rang for the first time for a wedding ceremony.

Over time, perhaps the bells will ring with every Forester football win and during the holidays, just as they did in Hotchkiss’s days as College president.

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