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University buildings and grounds

Morehead-Patterson Bell Tower

In Chapel Hill. 5 dated events, 1930–1931.

Map tiles © OpenStreetMap contributors. Site locations from the N.C. State Historic Preservation Office survey, Open Orange, Orange County GIS, OpenStreetMap and a few other published sources named on each site’s page; town and community pins show approximate locations.

People in its history

People named in events about this site, ordered by number of mentions. Each example links to an entry with a source citation.

Sites linked through the same people

In the chronology

  1. Chime and clock are ordered for the Morehead-Patterson tower John Motley Morehead arranged with the Meneely Bell Company of Troy, New York, for a chime of twelve bells modeled on the one at West Point, and the contract for the tower clock was let to the Howard Clock Company. McKim, Mead and White were drawing the plans, with dedication set for Thanksgiving Day 1931. People: Rufus Lenoir Patterson, Harold S. Dyer The Chapel Hill Weekly, December 12, 1930, p. 1
  2. The University lets the contract for the Morehead-Patterson Memorial Tower The contract for the bell tower given by John Motley Morehead and Rufus L. Patterson went to T. C. Thompson and Brothers, who were to begin digging the foundations on February 16 on a line with South Building and the Library, near Kenan Stadium. By February 27 excavation was under way; with the work on the Graham Memorial it was paying about 30 men $500 to $1,000 a week, which the Weekly said had cheered the town. People: Rufus Lenoir Patterson The Chapel Hill Weekly, February 13, 1931, p. 1
  3. Chester Meneely tests the new Morehead-Patterson chime as the village hears its bells Chester Meneely of the Troy, New York, bell founders spent the day adjusting the twelve-bell chime in the new Morehead-Patterson Memorial Tower, and the village heard the bells as he pressed the levers of the console. No tunes were to be played until the dedication on Thanksgiving Day. People: Harold S. Dyer The Chapel Hill Weekly, September 18, 1931, p. 1
  4. The clock in the Morehead-Patterson bell tower begins striking the hours The clock in the new Morehead-Patterson bell tower began striking the hours day and night, and the strokes could be heard all over the village. The Weekly reported that some residents wanted the night strokes stopped. The Chapel Hill Weekly, October 2, 1931, p. 1
  5. The Morehead-Patterson Bell Tower is dedicated at UNC The bell tower given by John Motley Morehead III and Rufus Lenoir Patterson II was dedicated to the university on Thanksgiving Day, November 26, 1931, with Governor O. Max Gardner giving the dedication address. Morehead had proposed a tower to President Harry Woodburn Chase in the 1920s and been turned down on three sites. People: Harry Woodburn Chase, O. Max Gardner Documenting the American South, Commemorative Landscapes of North Carolina: Morehead-Patterson Bell Tower, UNC (Chapel Hill) · Also: Chapel Hill Weekly, November 27, 1931, p. 1

Open these in the chronology →

Indexed works

The index has no works about Morehead-Patterson Bell Tower itself yet. The surveys and maps below cover where it stands. Search the index for Morehead-Patterson Bell Tower, or tell us about a book or record we have missed.

Surveys and maps of the area

Not about Morehead-Patterson Bell Tower alone: the architectural surveys that cover its town or the county, and maps drawn while it stood. Several of the surveys can be read free online at NC Digital Collections.

The Town and Gown Architecture of Chapel Hill, North Carolina: 1795-1975

Little-Stokes, Margaret Ruth · 2006

Margaret Ruth Little-Stokes's survey of Chapel Hill's town and campus buildings from 1795 to 1975, published by the Preservation Society of Chapel Hill in 2006. Chapters run from the first campus buildings through David Swain's romantic campus to midcentury modernism, followed by area surveys of the campus, east and west Chapel Hill, downtown, Northside and the suburbs.

Included because: A survey or map of the town or county where the site stands.

NC Cardinal UNC Duke NC State Durham Chapel Hill PL Library of Congress CH Historical Society

The town and gown architecture of Chapel Hill, 1795-1975

Little, M. Ruth · 2004 · Preservation Society of Chapel Hill

M. Ruth Little's 2004 architectural history of Chapel Hill and the university campus from 1795 to 1975, written for the Preservation Society of Chapel Hill. A 99-page survey with a bibliography.

Included because: A survey or map of the town or county where the site stands.

NC Cardinal NC Digital Collections DPLA

NC Digital Collections record courtesy of the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.

Chapel Hill historic sites survey : final report.

Gatza, M. B. · 1992 · Chapel Hill Planning Department

M. B. Gatza's final report of the 1992 Chapel Hill historic sites survey for the town Planning Department, with contributions by Beverly C. Kawalec and Catherine Bishir. It covers historic buildings and districts in Chapel Hill in 80 pages.

Included because: A survey or map of the town or county where the site stands.

NC Cardinal NC Digital Collections DPLA

NC Digital Collections record courtesy of the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.

Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Chapel Hill, Orange County, North Carolina.

1925

Sanborn Map Company fire insurance map of Chapel Hill, June 1925, on eleven sheets, with Carrboro also drawn. Sanborn maps recorded the outline, construction and use of each building for fire insurers, so the set shows both towns block by block in the mid 1920s.

Included because: A survey or map of the town or county where the site stands.

Library of Congress Digital Collections

Map of Chapel Hill & vicinity.

1933

Street and property map of Chapel Hill and the surrounding country, revised to 1 January 1933 and printed in the town. Topics include streets, real property and the historical geography of Chapel Hill along with maps of the University of North Carolina in its 1793 to 1962 period. A useful sheet for tracing lot lines and street names as they stood at the start of the 1930s.

Included because: A survey or map of the town or county where the site stands.

UNC

Found a book OCPL doesn’t own? You can often borrow it through interlibrary loan at OCPL.

Start at OCPL

    Where to look on the shelf

    These books don’t necessarily mention Morehead-Patterson Bell Tower, but they cover where it stands, its kind of building and the land, family and burial records behind it, and they are where a search for a place like this usually goes next. All are at OCPL, most in the Wall Collection.

    Histories of the town and county

    • Rebecca Wall Collection · NC 975.656 STO Chapel Hill: A Pictorial History Stolpen, Steven · 1978

      Steven Stolpen's pictorial history of Chapel Hill, one of the Donning Company's photographic town histories, published in Norfolk, Virginia in 1978. Photographs and portraits carry the story of the town and the university, including references to Thomas Wolfe's years as a student at Carolina. 156 pages with illustrations.

    • Foundational · 975.656 RYAN Orange County Trio: Hillsborough, Chapel Hill, and Carrboro, North Carolina, Histories and Tour Guides Ryan, Elizabeth Shreve · 2004

      Elizabeth Shreve Ryan's combined histories and tour guides for Hillsborough, Chapel Hill and Carrboro, the three towns of Orange County, with the University of North Carolina treated alongside Chapel Hill. Each town gets a narrative history and a tour of its streets and buildings. Published by Chapel Hill Press in 2004, 369 pages with illustrations and maps.

    Buildings and surveys

    • Foundational · NC 720.975 BIS A Guide to the Historic Architecture of Piedmont North Carolina Bishir, Catherine W. · 2003

      Catherine W. Bishir and Michael T. Southern's field guide to the historic buildings of the North Carolina Piedmont, arranged county by county from Wake and Franklin in the east to Mecklenburg and Gaston in the west. The Orange County section takes in Hillsborough, Chapel Hill and Carrboro along with the rural county, with entries on individual buildings and maps for finding them. Published 2003, 596 pages with illustrations and maps.

    • Foundational · NC 917.56 HIS Historic Buildings and Landmarks of Chapel Hill, N.C Chapel Hill Historical Society · 1973

      A pocket-sized guide to the historic buildings and landmarks of Chapel Hill, prepared by the Chapel Hill Historical Society and printed by Creative Printers in 1973. Forty pages with illustrations and maps, 14 by 22 cm. Topics include architecture, historic buildings and historic districts in Chapel Hill, and the guide is useful for a walking tour of the older parts of town.

    Research sources

    Sources cited in this site’s history, National Register documents, and places to get research help. Research guide: Investigate a school or community institution.

    Historic sites, markers, and maps

    Records of the time 7

    Show all 7

    Collections and databases

    Local help 5

    Nearby

    Two mice reading back to back against a leaf, with the hand-lettered words Friends of the Orange County Public Library
    Illustration by Caldecott Medalist Matthew Cordell, gifted to the Friends 2026