Originally for the Kemmerer Gazette, June 2008, edited and cut
Appearing here full-length as written:An Heirloom Bell Returns
By Karla Toomer
An heirloom, impossible to put a price tag on, was returned to the rural Wyoming town of Cokeville on Monday the 16th of June. The original bell that hung in the bell tower in the two-story Cokeville Grade school from 1905-1959 was returned via Roger and Janene Pugmire of nearby St. Charles, Idaho.
The bell had been in the possession of the Hoffman family for nearly fifty years, on a farm in Benson, Utah, since being removed from Cokeville. The Pugmire’s nephew and niece, Ron and Lori Ann Hoffman, recently sold the farm and inquired of them if they knew anyone in Cokeville who would be interested in the bells return. (Janene briefly attended grade school in Cokeville and the Pugmire’s have relatives in Cokeville still). Unfortunately for Janene, an avid bell collector herself who volunteered to take the bell if it wasn’t wanted, the bell was very much wanted.
The bell, manufactured by The O.S. Bell Company, was accepted jointly by the principal of the Cokeville Schools, Keith Harris, and Cokeville Historical Society President Charlotte Freeman. The Cokeville schools will house the bell as long as they care to have it. Gifting to the historical society as well as the school ensures that the bell will remain in Cokeville. Harris said, “Thank you. What makes Cokeville, Cokeville isn’t just what we’re doing today. It’s what happened in the past, combined with what’s continuing in the present that makes Cokeville the special place it is. This is a great reminder of the past.”
Roger, an historian and previous member of historical societies, stated, “The thing is, you don’t find things like (the bell) very often. So many items and histories are completely lost. Once they’re gone, there’s no way to get them back.” Gone unless you have a dash of luck and generous donors, that is.
So how did that big old bell that not only rang for school sessions to begin and end, but also signaled firemen to fires and rang out town curfews, end up in Benson, Utah? According to the Pugmires, a teacher named Louise Fyme was given the bell by Principal Johnson. (Louise later married Alton Hoffman, and thus the Hoffman farm connection). Principal Johnson’s wife’s name was Evelyn. Last name? Fyme. She was a sister to Louise. And now you know…
This story is the back page of Vol 1 Issue 2 of "The Promise" newsletter sent out July 2008 to members of the Cokeville Historical Society. Others information in the newsletter was: officer email addresses, picture of the bell and the recipients, picture of Alex Dayton and his parents, dues schedule...
