Never heard of fog bells? They came before foghorns. Like foghorns, bells were used in foggy conditions to warn of navigational hazards such as rocky coastlines or shoals. They were installed along with lighthouses on land and on lightships (they serve as lighthouses in water that is too deep for lighthouse construction). They were also used on seagoing ships to avoid collisions with other ships during fog. Bells were used in the United States (Beavertail, Rhode Island) as early as 1829 until it was recognized that the lower frequency sound from foghorns traveled longer distances in foggy conditions than the sound from bells. Foghorns came in to common use about 1900; fog bells served as backups to foghorns for a while but were phased out completely by about 1920. This is a story of three fog bells in Falmouth.