Columbus Bell in Millville, NJ? Believe it or Not!
Have you heard the story of the Columbus Bell at the Millville Historical Society? Captain Elias Newell purchased the bell while shipwrecked on San Andreas in the 1880s and brought it back to Millville with him. Legend has it that the bell was a gift to Columbus from Queen Isabella, taken from the Moorish Palace Alhambra during reconquests. The legend says that Columbus gave it to a church in Cartagena, Colombia on his fourth visit to the new world. It is said that the bell hung in the church for 200 years before pirates ransacked the town and took the bell with them to San Andreas, where Newell bought it. We do know that the bell hung in the belfry of an AME church in Haleyville, NJ from 1886 to 1947 before it was donated to our Historical Society. Do you believe the legend of the Columbus Bell? Come check it out! Research ongoing.
