Servant's Bell

[Lime]

But there only seems to be one bell....

?
Then there must have been some form of annunciator otherwise how would the servants know which room to go to?

 

[Penners]

But there only seems to be one bell....

?
Then there must have been some form of annunciator otherwise how would the servants know which room to go to?

Surely thebell for each room was labelled, wasn't it? In the case of the boxed-in annunciators, there was often a small disc that swung back and forth behind a little round window - one for each room.

 

[Penners]

My only (weak) excuse is my lack of familiarity with tassels. In fact, I think my last encounter with them was some decades ago, when a young lady called Gloria showed me how she could....

You know how much we like photos on the forum . . .

Regrettably, I was far too enthralled to think of taking photographs.

 

[AMc]

But there only seems to be one bell....

?
Then there must have been some form of annunciator otherwise how would the servants know which room to go to?

Surely in a reasonably small house the servants had a pretty good idea of where m'lady would be at any particular time?

When they are listening to their ipods or slaying Nazi Zombie Warriors on the X-Box a human voice several floors away has no chance of getting through.

A quick flip of the relevant ring main circuit breaker?

Failing that we have wireless doorbells which have plug-in mains powered bells - they also have flashing strobe lights for the hard of hearing (deliberately or not).
These ones...
http://www.mrdoorbell.com/Friedland-Doorman-Twin-75m-Wireless-Plug-in-Door-Bell-Chime-Kit-with-Flashing-Strobe-WFPC877M-p-16221.html

 

[Nigel Watts]

A quick flip of the relevant ring main circuit breaker?

I fear my uncommunicative 16 year old would shut down all channels of communication if I were to make him lose his X-Box game mid-stream! As a last resort not a bad idea though.

Failing that we have wireless doorbells which have plug-in mains powered bells - they also have flashing strobe lights for the hard of hearing (deliberately or not).
These ones...
http://www.mrdoorbell.com/Friedland-Doo ... 16221.html

The strobe light idea is pure genius!

 

[Feltwell]

My only (weak) excuse is my lack of familiarity with tassels. In fact, I think my last encounter with them was some decades ago, when a young lady called Gloria showed me how she could....

You know how much we like photos on the forum . . .

Regrettably, I was far too enthralled to think of taking photographs.

You're OK Penners - some pictures of Gloria have survived, to remind you of old times.... :wink:

http://pappd.com/celeb/4339/melvyn-hayes/

 

[JoceAndChris]

:lol:

In response to the notion of a complex bell system alerting the servant where she should go - no - not here. It is just a cottage, albeit one where the kitchen is out of earshot - I have a large dinner bell for Chris. The rooms with bells are on the ground floor and lead on the one from the other.

Now thinking the bell system is early 20thC and may have gone up at the same time as numbers were screwed on the doors. It's thought that BC provided billets in the 1st WW.

I've also seen the names of the inhabitants during the 30s on the Electoral Roll - I recommend you do this! Most interesting. There are different female names each year alongside Charlotte Burroughs - who was the owner. I can imagine it would be hard to get a maid to stay here. Freezing in winter, no water in summer, no electricity, and walking up a steep hill from town with post and groceries.

The previous owner fixed the business of no electricity and no road here ( in the 80s!) - now we just have to fix the water and the freezing bit. There's a borehole plan for the water for next year but the fixing of the freezingness is unresolved.

 

[Lime]

IMO mechanical bell systems were installed almost exclusively before 1900, not after.
Electric (battery) bell systems are far more likely to have been installed from thereon.
If bells were fitted during WW1 for billeting I doubt they'd be of the mechanical kind.

If there are two bellpulls in each room it is possible that there were two bells installed.
They would probably have been positioned in different areas of the house.

 

[Penners]

I fear my uncommunicative 16 year old would shut down all channels of communication if I were to make him lose his X-Box game mid-stream

In my school of parenting, that would be the strongest possible reason to pull the plug!

 

[Penners]

You're OK Penners - some pictures of Gloria have survived, to remind you of old times

That picture is so far from the Glorious truth that it doesn't even upset me. :wink:

 

[Feltwell]

Upset? No intention to do that Penners old chap, no intention at all.

 

[CatherineB]

We'd been thinking of the Friedland cordless bells for our house, too, once we move in. While yelling from ground to top floor in this house is merely antisocial to the neighbours, I fear for my vocal chords in the new house.

Any advance on these, for innovative ways to summon one's offspring for dinner/bath/piano practice/etc?!

 

[LadyArowana]

We'd been thinking of the Friedland cordless bells for our house, too, once we move in. While yelling from ground to top floor in this house is merely antisocial to the neighbours, I fear for my vocal chords in the new house.

Any advance on these, for innovative ways to summon one's offspring for dinner/bath/piano practice/etc?!

Blackberry or i.Pad works with husbands, your results may vary with younger family members though.

 

[CatherineB]

They are 8. They are not getting their own phones just yet! And DH leaves his on the sideboard. Mine is not a phone, it is the family Angry Birds machine :?

 

[worms]

Blackberry or i.Pad works with husbands, your results may vary with younger family members though.

At the late teen stage, MSN, Skype or Facebook seem to get the quickest results!

 

[philpjuk100]

Yours however look very much as if they had something hanging down which had to be pulled, but why are there two in one room? Your photo shows that there are holes in the plate shelf - were these for the wires/cords perhaps?
.

Maybe if injured veterans were billeted there there may have been a pull above two bed heads either side of the fireplace. Reminds me of going on an outward bound course at what had been a girls school when "nowt but a lad" there was a bell push by each bed with an engraved plate which said"press if you require a mistress during the night"!

 

[Penners]

the family Angry Birds machine

I have NO idea what you're talking about (and I suspect I should be grateful for that).

 

[LadyArowana]

the family Angry Birds machine

I have NO idea what you're talking about (and I suspect I should be grateful for that).

It's a game where you fire different sorts of "birds" at green piggies or marmosets or other things in various configurations. Some birds drop bombs, some split into more birds when you touch them. I tried the free version and decided the paid for one ( about a dollar ) was not worth the price of admission. Unlikely as it may seem my husband thinks it's huge fun and would have paid 5 dollars to upgrade. Guaranteed to entertain grandchildren, and not bad for the back, so why not have a go. http://www.rovio.com/index.php?page=angry-birds

 

[Flyfisher]

. . . there was a bell push by each bed with an engraved plate which said"press if you require a mistress during the night"!

Sounds ideal for country house weekends. :wink:

 

[Penners]

It's a game where you fire different sorts of "birds" at green piggies or marmosets or other things in various configurations. Some birds drop bombs, some split into more birds when you touch them. I tried the free version and decided the paid for one ( about a dollar ) was not worth the price of admission. Unlikely as it may seem my husband thinks it's huge fun and would have paid 5 dollars to upgrade.

Beggin' yer pardon, Yer Ladyship, but Yer Ladyship may have misunderstood what I said.

I said I had no idea what 'Angry Birds' was all about. You seem to have misconstrued this to mean that I wanted to know.