Stetson University to Dedicate and Reopen Hulley Tower Feb. 7, Unveiling New 52-Bell Carillon
Rebuilt landmark returns as a memorial honoring three students killed in the 1979 Innsbruck avalanche
DELAND, Fla., Jan. 26, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- With a renewed commitment to honoring three Stetson students killed in the 1979 Innsbruck avalanche, Stetson University will celebrate the dedication and grand opening of the rebuilt Hulley Tower on Saturday, Feb. 7. The milestone marks the culmination of an alumni-led, $6.7 million grassroots fundraising campaign to restore one of the university’s most iconic landmarks to campus and the DeLand community and to return its voice with the first official ringing of a new 52-bell carillon.
“Hulley Tower is part of the heart and history of Stetson, a place that connects generations and calls our community together,” said Stetson University President Christopher F. Roellke, PhD. “When these bells ring across DeLand once again, they will carry both celebration and remembrance, honoring the Hatters we’ve lost and inspiring all who gather here for years to come.”
The Hulley Tower Day of Celebration will include several events throughout the day, leading into the dedication ceremony and evening festivities. The events are by invite only but all are open to media coverage.
- 8 a.m. – On-campus fun run (meet at the front steps of the Carlton Union Building).
- 3:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. – Hulley Tower Dedication Ceremony (Brockway Plaza at Hulley Tower), including a 3:30 p.m. caisson-style processional bringing the Hulleys back for reinterment in the mausoleum in horse-drawn carriages; the dedication program begins at 4 p.m. Please be seated/in place by 3:30 p.m.
- 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. – Evening reception (Edmunds Historical Memorial, Brockway Plaza and Mimi’s Firepit).
Originally built in 1934, Hulley Tower rose 116 feet above campus until multiple hurricanes in 2004 severely damaged the structure. The tower was dismantled to its stone base in 2005, leaving only the mausoleum for former Stetson President Lincoln Hulley and his wife, Eloise.
The rebuilt tower features a 52-bell carillon replacing the original 11 “Eloise chimes,” which once signaled the start and end of the academic day and rang during DeLand parades and community celebrations. Cast at the Grassmayr Bell Foundry in Innsbruck, Austria, the new bells were installed by crane during a multiday lift in early December, restoring the tower’s “voice” for the first time in two decades. Some of the historic chimes are being incorporated into the reconstruction, while others remain on campus and throughout the city as reminders of the original tower’s legacy.
Hulley Tower’s reconstruction also serves as a memorial. An avalanche in Innsbruck in 1979 claimed the lives of Stetson students Scotty Fenlon, Dennis Long and Katy Resnik during a study-abroad trip. Friends and classmates from that era helped lead the effort to rebuild the tower as a tribute to them and to all students who died while enrolled at Stetson.
In addition to honoring the Innsbruck trio, Hulley Tower will include a Veterans Bell, sponsored by Sparton DeLeon Springs, LLC, as a tribute to military veterans and their service to the nation.
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 University is ranked among the Best Universities in the South by U.S. News & World Report and has been recognized as one of the Best Colleges in America for 2026 by The Wall Street Journal and The Princeton Review.
Cory Lancaster Stetson University 386-822-7214 clancaster@stetson.edu
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