Highland Park United Methodist Church

Links to Carillon Inventories
GCNA	Tower Bells	Bok Tower Gardens

The church was dedicated in 1926 and Mr. and Mrs. William Burt Tucker donated a a 10-tube Deagan chime that was installed in the new tower and dedicated in February 1927..

The Deagan chime stopped working around 1960 and Alicia Porter Washam and her brother Rufus (Buddy) Porter considered funding its reactivation, but decided instead to donate a 48-bell Paccard carillon in memory of their parents Loula Lee Porter, Ralph A. Porter, and Lena Kay Porter. The new carillon was dedicated on December 16, 1984.

References
1927 "Hymns Played on Highland Park Church Chimes Regale Community," Dallas Morning News, August 3, 1927, Page 13.

1943 Loula Lee Peterson Porter (14 Jan 1884 - 15 Jul 1943) grave

1970 Ralph Alison Porter (26 Nov 1880 - 4 Jan 1970) grave

1974 Lena L. Porter (1887 - 1974) grave

1990 "The Porter Memorial Carillon," by Philip E. Baker, Bulletin of the Guild of Carillonneurs in North America 39:57-59 (1990)

1991 Branches of the Living Vine: A Seventy-Five Year History of the Highland Park United Methodist Church 1916-1991
Page 81: Porter Memorial Carillon
Picture of bells ready to install.
A decade later, in 1984, the Porter Memorial Carillon was given to the church by Rufus C. “Buddy” Porter and his sister, Alicia Washam, in loving memory of their parents, Loula Lee Porter, Ralph A.Porter and Lena Kay Porter. One of the finest carillons anywhere in the world, this instrument in our bell tower was cast by the Paccard Foundry in Annecy, France, the premier foundry for these bells for the last two centuries. Our instrument contains 48 bells, with the largest bell weighing just over two and a half tons, and the smallest being 26 pounds. The instrument is played from a manual and pedal clavier in the room just below the bell chamber, which members can visit in order to watch the bells being played. There is also a practice clavier in a second room, just below this one.

1996 Carillon: the evolution of a concert instrument in North America, by Karel and Linda Keldermans | also here |
Page 218:
Plans for the eventual installation of a carillon were included when the Highland Park United Methodist Church was built in the 1920s.
A set of 10 bells from Deagan Tower Chimes was installed in 1926, in the tower given by Mr. and Mrs. William Burt Tucker. When the chime was silent after 1960, the sound of bells was missed by members of the congregation. In 1982, Alicia Porter Washam and Rufus Porter considered funding the reactivation of the bells. After consultation with Philip Baker, they decided to give a carillon of 48 Paccard bells in memory of their parents, Loula Lee Porter, Ralph A. Porter, and Lena Kay Porter. When the bells arrived in the fall of 1984, the 12 largest ones were displayed on the church lawn, where their inscriptions could be read. A special service, "The Blessing of the Bells" occurred on November 11, 1984. The Porter Carillon was first heard in conjunction with an evening service on December 16, 1984.:

2000 Alicia Katherine Porter Washam (27 Jun 1916 - 23 Dec 2000) grave

2007 Rufus C. "Buddy" Porter 1919-2007

2021 The people of the tower: The secret musicians of HPUMC, August 3, 2021