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Main Facts.

Main Facts. Big Ben is located in London, England. It celebrates its 150 th anniversary in 2009. It was built in the year of 1859 and was fully functional on May 31 st 1859. . Specs. The clock tower is 316 feet tall. Which is almost 4 times smaller than the Empire State Building.

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Main Facts.

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  1. Main Facts. • Big Ben is located in London, England. • It celebrates its 150th anniversary in 2009. • It was built in the year of 1859 and was fully functional on May 31st1859.

  2. Specs. • The clock tower is 316 feet tall. Which is almost 4 times smaller than the Empire State Building. • There are 334 steps leading to the belfry and 393 steps to the lantern(the AyrtonLight). • There are a total of 11 floors. • The clock’s minute hands weigh 100kg and are 4.2m long. The distance traveled by minute hands per year is equivalent that of 190km. They are made of copper. • The hour hands weigh 300kg and are 2.7m long. They’re made out of gun metal.

  3. Specs.(continued.) • The pendulum inside the tower weighs 203kg and is made out of concentric tubes of steel and zinc. • There are 3 clock weights and in total they all weigh nearly 2.5 tons. • The main bell, also know as The Great Bell, weighs 13.7 tons. It is 2.2m tall and is 2.7m in diameter. The hammer inside of it weighs a total of 200kg. • There are 4 other smaller bells within the tower. Each bell weighs from 1.1 tons to 4 tons.

  4. The Great Bell.

  5. History. • In 1834 a devastating fire nearly destroyed all of Westminster Palace. Ideas and designs for a reconstructed palace were accepted from local architects. Out of 97 submitted ideas, they chose the one of Sir Charles Barry. However, in his original design there was no clock tower. He later added it to the design in 1836. • The initial construction began in September 1843.

  6. History.(continued.) • The clock tower was built inside outwards. The supplies used to construct the tower were, cast iron girders, Yorkshire Anston stone and Cornish granite, iron roofing plates, and caen stone. • After falling five years behind schedule the tower was finally complete in 1859. It took 16 years to build.

  7. Clock Construction & History. • Edward John Dent was appointed to build Edmund Beckett Denison’s clock design in 1852. Dent died in 1853, so his stepson carried on with the construction. The clock was finally completed in 1854 and cost 3,877.74 dollars to construct. The clock wasn’t installed into the actual tower until 1859. At first, the clock hands were too heavy and wouldn’t operate under all the weight. • The clock has yet to stop ticking. It is the worlds most accurate clock and London and the whole world follow the time on the clock.

  8. Clock Pictures(:

  9. Bell Construction and History. • The Clock Tower’s bell is called the Great Bell though it is better known by the name “Big Ben”. There are many theories for how it got its name and who it is named after. • The first bell was cast by Warners of Norton near Stockton-on-Tees. It was transported to London and was hung in New Palace Yard. It was tested once a day, and on October 17, 1857 a 1.2m crack appeared. • The second bell was cast on April 10, 1858. It passed all the tests and was hung in the belfry in October 1858. It first rang on July 11, 1859. It soon silenced when it cracked in September 1859. The bell remained silent for 4 years, and was later repaired in 1863.

  10. Events. • Throughout the year many events are held at Big Ben. • Such as, New Year Eve firework display. • http://donovans1.wikispaces.com/Big+Benproject.

  11. Tours and Such. • There are tours of the tower. Unfortunately, tours are only available to UK residents only and only if you are 11 years or older. • The tours usually last 75 minutes. A tour guide will show them all the tower and outline the history of the bell, tower, and clock. • The tours are free, but require reservations months ahead of time since only 16 people are allowed on each tour.

  12. Bibliograhy. • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_ben • http://www.britainexpress.com/London/Big_Ben.htm • http://www.aviewoncities.com/london/bigben.htm • http://www.aboutbritain.com/BigBen.htm • http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3036/2587352961_55f32b4e7d.jpg • http://www.parliament.uk/about/history/big_ben.cfm • http://lifestyle.iloveindia.com/lounge/facts-about-big-ben-3458.html • http://www.parliament.uk/visiting/visitingandtours/bigben.cfm • http://www.bigben.parliament.uk/ixbin/indexplus?record=ART142 • http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_are_the_dimensions_of_Big_Ben • http://www.bigben.parliament.uk/ixbin/indexplus?record=ART144 • http://www.bigben.parliament.uk/ixbin/indexplus?record=ART145

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