Bell pull end pivot

A copper alloy end pivot or crank from a bell pull system. An incomplete wire extents from each side of the pivot. The wire would have led to a mechanical bell at one end and a bell pull at the opposite end forming a house bell system. House bells, also known as a servants bell, allowed residents to call for help. This object was excavated by Museum of Liverpool Archaeology and community volunteers during the Piermaster's Green Community Dig. The project investigated the homes of Dock Masters, Pier Masters and their families. Numbers 7, 8 and 10 Albert Parade were built by the Mersey Docks and Harbour Board in 1852 to accomidate staff for the Albert and Canning Docks. The houses were hit by an incendiary bomb during the Second World War. Numbers 7, 8 and 10 Albert Parade were large homes and the presence of attic rooms noted on the architectural plans along with a ‘washer woman’ referenced within an oral history, demonstrate that help was sought to run them. This is seen archaeologically with the copper alloy bell pull bracket excavated from Trench IV.