MURPHYSBORO, Ill. (WSIL) -- A bell linked to an old church has been stolen and the community wants it returned.
A family living near Mount Joy Cemetery in Murphysboro, built in 1869 and now long gone, discovered the bell missing on Christmas Eve, according to Karla Jensen.
Jensen, a lifelong resident, says the bell's ring brought back memories of her childhood when she played with her grandmother's farm bell.
"It was just a simpler time and the bell really represented my family's history," Jensen said. "Half of Jackson county is related to the people [in the cemetery] who started this community."
One of those families, the Emhoffs, dedicated the bell to the church in 1886 according to an inscription on the bell in a photo provided to News 3.
The Emoffs are now offering a $1,000 reward for its return.
The cemetery's caretaker, Robert Heiple, remembers when the church and its school were still around.
"I'm 77 and I used to even come out here to bible school," Heiple said.
Heiple believes the bell was stolen by a group of people.
"That brass bell would weigh 300 at least 400 lbs and three guys could probably pick it up and put it in the back of a truck," Heiple said.
One resident said a report has been filed with the Jackson County Sheriff's Office. News 3 is waiting for information on the case from the sheriff's office.
Jensen hopes the bell is returned and not sold for scrap.
"It's absolutely disgusting to imagine that happening," Jensen said. "[The bell] was here to represent what we had already lost. The church and the school. Family members, loved ones. And now we don't have that bell."
