When a firefighter walked quietly into the Custer Observatory on Sunday, placing a blackened bell on the table that had been salvaged from the wreckage of the First Universalist Church of Southold, he was bringing a longtime tradition full circle.
Members of the Southold Fire Department noted this week that their very own bell, which stands proudly outside the firehouse on Main Road, was dedicated to the fire department by the Universalist Church in 1889. The bell, a plaque reads, was “dedicated to the members of the Southold Fire Department who have devotedly served this community. Noble deeds that are concealed are most esteemed. This bell was donated by the Universalist Church in 1889.”
After the devastating fire that left the church, built in 1860, a pile of rubble, firefighters were able to save the bell and a sign, which the congregation had at their gathering Sunday, where all mourned their tragic loss.
