Civil War-era bell passed down by family is back home in Appomattox

After almost 50 years spent in the basement of Ora McCoy’s Appomattox, Va., home, a family bell passed down through five generations has found a new life ringing in history along the East Coast. Originally unearthed for the commemoration of the 150th anniversary of General Robert E. Lee’s surrender at Appomattox Court House in 2015, the bell found its way to other park ceremonies. McCoy’s great-grandparents, Daniel and Phoebe Scruggs, once lived as slaves on the Scruggs family farm in Appomattox. They have owned the bell since the Civil War, passing it from hand to hand until it found its way to McCoy. In September, after a stint at the Fort Monroe National Monument, the bell came home. • Article