Two bells were unveiled in Centre County on Friday, Nov. 21. The first bell dedication ceremony was at Curtin Village and the Eagle Iron Works near Howard.

During the Curtin Village ceremony, America250PA Engagement Coordinator Andre Castillo said, “These fiberglass bells may not ring, but they are far from silent. Each one tells a story about community, creativity and pride.”

Roland Curtin Foundation President Sue Hannigan told ceremony attendees that the bells being unveiled today represents and honors the iron industry of Centre County.

“The Centre Furnace Mansion in State College represents the first iron furnace plantation in the county, and Eagle Iron Works was the last charcoal iron production facility in Centre County,” Hannigan said.

TAMMY COAKLEY/THE EXPRESS Elody Gyekis, is shown next to the fiberglass bell that she painted for the Bells Across PA Initiative. The bell represents the iron industry at Curtin Village and Eagle Iron Works near Howard.

“It makes it really special to have them both be dedicated on the same day,” Hannigan said of the two bells being unveiled on Nov. 21.

The second bell in Centre County, painted by artist Jeff Mathison, was also being dedicated during an afternoon ceremony at the Centre Furnace Mansion site.

Centre County Commissioners Mark Higgins, Amber Concepcion and Steve Dershem were in attendance and helped to lift the drape from the bell at Curtin Village. The bell rests on a wooden base on the flat lawn to the rear of the Curtin Mansion.

Commissioner Concepcion said, “The locations for these bells are particularly meaningful because they honor specific places and spaces that have played crucial roles in the development of this country.”

“These bells tell a story of Centre County in which the impact of work here extended far beyond our own communities. In this, they will remind future visitors that the work we do at the local level can have far-reaching significance in shaping our region, state and nation,” Concepcion added.

TAMMY COAKLEY/THE EXPRESS Centre County Commissioner Chair Mark Higgins, Amber Concepcion and Steve Dershem pose with Michael Kinney, of Beech Creek, during the Bells Across PA unveiling at Curtin Village on Nov. 21, 2025. Kinney, who goes by the alias, “Keystone Lincoln,” bears a remarkable resemblance to Abraham Lincoln.

During the dedication ceremony, Phil Ruth mentioned the different ways that bells were used in the Curtin Village plantation hey-days.

Bells on two one-room school houses for the plantation children were rung to begin school or to call the children in from recess. The original log church at Curtin didn’t have a steeple or belfry, but years later (around 1892) a steeple and belfry were added. The bell sounded from the church welcoming those to services, at weddings and possibly even to celebrate the ending of wars.

“Bells were on posts outside the plantation’s farmhouses that were used by the cooks to call the workers in at meal times. Bells, probably made of brass, on the steam locomotives signaled the arrivals and departures of the trains at the Curtin Station,” said Ruth.

Even today, hanging from the rafters in the furnace complex, called the Casting House, you will find a bell that the founders used during his work.

“All of those bells, with the exception of the locomotives, were made of cast iron, no doubt cast right here at Eagle Iron Works,” said Ruth. “This fiberglass replica here is the fanciest of them all,” Ruth said, referring to the newest bell that was being unveiled.

The bell at Curtin Village was painted by Elody Gyekis who told of her vision surrounding the creative artwork on the bell.

Gyekis said her artwork was “quite a challenge,” as she explained her complex design.

On the bell, Gyekis paid tribute to those who felled the trees and created the lumber for use at the site and those who worked with the fires and poured the ore into molds.

Scenes on the bell show a cart being pulled by donkeys hauling charcoal and iron ore up the ramp to the charging house, a horse and cart hauling pig iron and a worker at the fiery forge.

A canal boat that would take the finished products out into civilization is shown on the bell being pulled by mules.

During the Curtin Village bell unveiling, a gentleman of historical importance was in attendance. Michael Kinney, of Beech Creek, bears a remarkable physical resemblance to Abraham Lincoln. Kinney, who goes by the alias, ‘Keystone Lincoln’, said “the bell celebrates what founded our country and also honors the industrial heritage of Centre County.”

Kinney praised the talents of the bell’s artist, saying “Elody’s artistry is truly inspiring!”

The Bells Across PA Initiative is expected to see a total of 108 bells being unveiled across the state. Each bell will help to signify the historical influence these sites across Pennsylvania have had on shaping our country and the local industries of their time.

In addition to the two bells recently unveiled, two more bells will be installed and dedicated on Dec. 19 — one at the Bellefonte Train Station and another at a location in downtown Philipsburg.