Stetson University Alumni Launch $1M Challenge to Complete Historic Hulley Tower Project

DELAND, Florida, Jan. 13, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — A group of Stetson University alumni is issuing a $1 million challenge to raise the remaining funds needed to historically reconstruct Hulley Tower on the DeLand campus and install a new 52-bell carillon.

Hulley Tower is recognized on the National Register of Historic Places for its statewide significance. The project received a $500,000 state preservation grant, which was recommended by the Florida Legislature and awarded by Gov. Ron DeSantis last June.

With the recent $1 million challenge, fundraising is now at $5.5 million toward a $6.7 million goal. The alumni hope to reach the goal soon and break ground in late February.

At 116 feet tall, the historic landmark stood on campus from 1934 to 2005, and its eleven bronze bells rang out daily across the university and the DeLand community.

After sustaining damage in the 2004 hurricane season, the tower had to be dismantled. The stone base continues to serve as a mausoleum for Stetson’s second president, Lincoln Hulley, PhD, who originally built the tower, and his wife Eloise.

The original eleven bells were named the Eloise Chimes in her honor. After the tower was dismantled, some bells were donated to community organizations while others were installed at locations across campus.

Hulley Tower is one of the few historic freestanding bell towers on an American university campus with a mausoleum base. The reconstruction is expected to take about nine months.

To learn more, visit Stand Up Hulley and support this grassroots, alumni-led effort.

About Stetson University
Founded in 1883, Stetson University is the oldest private university in Central Florida. Stetson focuses on intense learning experiences in a supportive community that allows students to develop their voice in a connected, inclusive environment. Stetson ranks No. 7 on U.S. News & World Report’s 2025 list of Best Regional Universities (South) and was selected for The Princeton Review’s Best 390 Colleges for 2025.

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• Hulley Tower rendering

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