THE HISTORY OF
“BELL”
Prior to the 1994 District 19 Convention, then Assistant President/Directing General Chairman, Norbert Muell approached the Officers and Members of Local Lodge 478, Chicago, Illinois and inquired as to the possibility of obtaining a locomotive bell for the District. The Members of Local Lodge 478, being resourceful and eager to accommodate the request, set about finding a bell which was deserving of the only Railroad District in the IAM.
After time a bell was located, albeit attached to a circa 1940 Baldwin Switch Engine from which it was removed and made ready for presentation at the next District Convention. The Bell was presented and dedicated at the 1994 convention and thereafter proclaimed as the official District 19 Bell. Since its dedication the Bell has opened every District 19 Convention and every Grand Lodge Convention to date. Once it was introduced at the 1996 Grand Lodge Convention it soon became known as the “Beloved Bell”.
One cannot report on the history of the Bell without also mentioning the dark circumstances surrounding the Bell. It has been the victim of kidnapping and acts of terrorism at every Grand Lodge Convention since its existence. For reasons only known to the criminals committing these crimes, the Bell has been held for ransom on every occasion, requiring the delegates of the convention to dig deep into their pockets and expend much ink in their checkbooks in the interest of returning what has become the symbol of the IAM&AW. We shudder to think what might have happened was it not for the generosity of the delegates in these troubling times.
To fully appreciate the symbolism of the Bell, everyone must be aware of the beginning of the IAM in a locomotive pit in a roundhouse in Atlanta, GA. The Organization’s roots started in the rail industry and to this day remain there. Thus it is fitting that the Bell be a part of the tradition of District 19 and of the IAM&AW as a whole. When the Bell rings, it signals the opening of a convention and is symbolic of the loud and strong voice of the members of the IAM for the interest of dignity and justice in the work place. District 19 is proud of its tradition and everything the “Beloved Bell” stands for.
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THIS BELL WAS REDEDICATED AS THE “NORBERT M. MUELL MEMORIAL BELL OF DISTRICT 19” BY THE OFFICERS , GENERAL CHAIRMAN & MEMBERS OF I.A.M. & A.W. DISTRICT LODGE #19 AT THEIR 5TH QUADRENNIAL CONVENTION
PROPOSED BY A. J. HAYES LOCAL LODGE # 478
CHICAGO. |
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