Chimes Tower

Built in 1904, the Chimes Tower was originally a water tower for pumping water from the lake. The chimes consisted of 12 bells, donated by Col. A.J. Blethen, Seattle Times publisher. They were enclosed in the tower in 1914 and faithfully played by UW music graduate, George Bailey, who was blind. He played from a repertoire of over a thousand songs during the years 1917-1949, when the tower burned down.

Blethen Bells

There was some controversy over accepting the gift of the bells from Blethen, because he was known to be a little unscrupulous in some of his business dealings. The students protested against accepting the gift, so Blethen offered to take them back, but the regents wouldn't hear of it. The storm blew over and the bells pealed out their melodies until they were destroyed by the fire. (Gates, p. 136)

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