“It is not known how it was acquired; some say it was a gift, others say it was stolen from the Abbey of Beauchief, Derbyshire, or from Peterborough. The origin of its name, too, has been a subject of dispute. Stukeley considered it possible that it had been consecrated to St. Thomas of Canterbury. Others think it took its name from that of the old bell of Christ Church, Oxford, which bore the curious inscription, _In Thomae laude, resono Bim Bom sine fraude_. It should be remembered that Oxford was in the diocese of Lincoln in olden days, and that several Bishops of Lincoln were chancellors of Oxford. Wherever the first ‘Great Tom’ came from, it was recast in the minster yard by two bell founders from Nottingham and Leicester early in the Seventeenth Century, when the weight was increased from 8,743 pounds to 9,894½ pounds. ‘The bell was cast and hung upp and upon Sonday the xxvij of this month [January, 1611] ronge owte and all safe and well.’ It was tolled until 1802, when it was found that this process shook the tower too much. The following extract from the _Stamford Mercury_ of the 6th August, 1802, is given by North in his ‘Church Bells of Lincolnshire’:--‘Great Tom o’ Lincoln is to be rung no more! The full swing of four tons and a half is found to injure the tower where he hangs. He has therefore been chained and riveted down; so that instead of the full mouthful he has been used to send forth, he is enjoined in future merely to wag his tongue.’ Towards the end of the year 1827 experienced ears detected that something was wrong, and by Christmas it became plainly evident that the bell was cracked. It was finally decided to have it recast in a larger size. For this purpose it was broken to pieces with its own clapper, and sent to London. To provide the extra metal, the six Lady Bells were unfortunately sacrificed. The cathedral thus lost the distinction of being the only one in the kingdom possessed of two rings of bells. ‘Great Tom’ was recast by Thomas Mears at the Whitechapel Bell foundry on the 15th November, 1834. It was taken by road to Lincoln, drawn by eight horses, and raised to its new position in the central tower. Two new quarter bells, cast at the same time, were also hung in this tower. The number of quarter bells was increased in 1880 to four.”--(A. F. K.) The six “Lady Bells,” referred to above, hung in this central tower (see page 294). When they were removed in 1834 it was seen that four were dated 1593; one, 1633; and one, 1737.