The W. Wilbert and Meryl Welch Clock Tower has been around for over a year, but it is capable of more than one would think.

“It can do just about everything,” Chris Lowe, director of campus services, said.

The clock tower is made by The Verdin Company.  “They have a long history.  They have been making bells since 1842,” Lowe said.  “They are an extremely well-respected company.”

Marc Fowler, senior vice president for operations and chief financial officer, said that the clock for the clock tower is not actually located in the tower itself.

“The faces are just mechanical arms driven by little motors,” he said.  “The clock itself is an electronic unit in Bolthouse [Hall].”  There are four motors, one for each face. 

It may sound like bells, but there are no actual bells, there is a carillon located in Bolthouse as well that plays the music.  A carillon is a set of bells, in this case it is the part of the tower that makes sound.

If they were to buy a full octave of bells it would cost around $350,000.

The carillon within the clock tower has there are about 750 different song options that can be played.  Songs come in groups called books, and these books have a variety of songs in them. 

These books are changed at different times of the year.  For the dedication of the clock tower the “Gospel Hymns 1” book was played.  At Christmas time, a Christmas songs book was selected, and at Easter time the book was changed again.

It is not very hard to change books, Lowe said.  “It’s like sitting at your laptop.  There’s just a few buttons.”  One can also set the time and music they want to play.

The clock tower is programmed to play five hymns just before 10 a.m.  “We do that so the playing of the hymns doesn’t interrupt the chiming of the hour,” Fowler said.  These five fit in a seven to eight minute period, and then a couple minutes later the clock chimes 10 a.m. 

The sounds of the clock tower are programmed as well to stop by 10 p.m each day.  Lowe said they do this “so we don’t keep the students up all night.”  It comes back on at 8 a.m. 

The tower has remote control, just like a television, so that it can be manually triggered at any time to start playing music.

CDs can also be loaded in to the carillon and played, and a keyboard can be hooked up as well so that the tower can be used like a giant speaker.  “You could play it live,” Lowe said.

The tower also has an interesting outer component.

On the Southeast corner of the clock tower, there is a WOOD TV 8 weather camera.  Paul Baker, executive vice president for advancement, talked to WOOD TV and suggested the idea.  One can go online at www.woodtv.com and see the weather from the CU clock tower starting soon.

“It’s really made a mark for Cornerstone,” Lowe said of the clock tower.  He has received calls during power outages from people off campus wondering why it was not working.  He also believes it has been a good thing to honor Welch.

“The man has been just instrumental to Cornerstone,” Lowe said.  He said having it work well is a way to honor Welch’s family.