Dreamland Bell Moves to Brooklyn Borough Hall

Photograph of Captain Gene Ritter and BP Marty Markowitz by Kathryn Kirk

Yesterday the Dreamland Bell was received at a welcoming ceremony at Brooklyn Borough Hall; after spending a few weeks at the Coney Island History Project, it will now be temporarily on display inside the Joralemon entrance for two weeks. The NY Times reports that "there are plans being discussed for a tour of other city buildings, including City Hall and the New York Aquarium."

The bell spent nearly 100 years under water after its home on the 1,200-foot-long iron pier in Coney Island set fire and disappeared in the ocean. It now must be kept wet to help preserve it, so when you stop by you'll see water pumping over it.

Professional diver Gene Ritter was the one who discovered and retrieved the bell, and historian Charles Denson told the paper: “There are so many scavengers who would steal something like this and sell. Some people think the bell is worth up to $1 million, as it’s so old and so representative of Coney Island’s history.” The bell used to announce the arrivals and departures of steamships from Brooklyn and Manhattan.

Ritter says the artifacts he finds will always stay in Brooklyn, and belong to the people—he even "maintains a network of local spies who inform him when any activity is spotted on the water near the site" so no one tries to steal whatever is left of Dreamland underwater.