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Eight Bells

The practice of using bells stems from the days of the sailing ships. Sailors couldn't afford to have their own time pieces and relied on the ship's bells to tell time. The ship's boy kept time by using a half-hour glass. Each time the sand ran out, he would turn the glass over and ring the appropriate number of bells. Each ship “watch” is four hours, or eight bells, in length.

The tradition of Eight Bells pays respect to deceased mariners and signifies that a sailor's “watch” is over.

Submissions for Eight Bells

If you learn of the passing of a MMA classmate, associate, friend or family member, please contact the Office of Alumni Relations so that we may include the information in our Eight Bells listings. Send obituaries or their digital links to alumni@mma.edu.

  • Robert E. Walsh ’60

    Deceased date: July 26, 2012
    HARPSWELL - Ret. Lt. of the Cumberland County Sheriff's Department Robert E. Walsh, 72, of Mountain Road, died Thursday, July 26, 2012 at his home. He was born…read more

  • Cheever J. Lyden ’44

    Deceased date: July 16, 2012

    PORTLAND -- Dr. Cheever J. Lyden, 90, of Berkeley Street, died on Monday, July 16, 2012, surrounded by his wife and loving family at the Monarch Center in Saco, after a short illness.

    Cheever was …read more

  • Arthur Goss ’77

    Deceased date: July 4, 2012
    Arthur J Goss passed away at his camp in Maine unexpectedly June 4, 2012 at the age of 56. Long time resident of South Berwick Maine, he had recently moved to Naples Florida. Arthur graduated Maine Maritime Academy class of 1977. He last sailed a…read more

  • James Merrill Parker Canfield ’82

    Deceased date: June 20, 2012

    Beloved father, husband, and son, 52

    James Canfield of Scotch Plains, NJ, passed away at his home with his family by his side on Wednesday June 20, 2012.

    Relatives …read more

  • Thomas R. Perkins Jr. ’96

    Deceased date: May 3, 2012
    Key Largo, FL - Thomas R. Perkins, Jr. (Tommy) age 58, died on Wednesday, May 30th at his home in Key Largo, Florida. He was born in Boston, Massachusetts on August 28, 1953. He grew up in Rhinebeck, NY and Hyde Park, NY, graduating in 1971 from Our La…read more

  • Andrew Martin ’75

    Deceased date: April 22, 2012

    ROCKLAND — Andrew “Andy” Martin, 59, died Sunday, April 22, 2012, surrounded by his family at Maine Medical Center in Portland.

    Andy grew up on the "farm" on the Martin Road, known today as …read more

  • Cmdr. Herbert K. Ellingwood ’44

    Deceased date: April 1, 2012
    Herb Ellingwood, of Satellite Beach, passed away on April 1, 2012. He was born May 8, 1924, in Rockland, Maine, to the late Dr. William and Ruth Ellingwood. Herb was a veteran of WW II and the Korean War. He retired from a career in commercial banking …read more

  • Robert R. Gardenier ’53

    Deceased date: March 18, 2012

    Robert R. Gardenier, 79, who retired from Naval Sea Systems Command in 1985 at the rank of captain, died March 18 at his home in Alexandria after a heart attack.

    The death was confirmed by his dau…read more

  • Miles R. Sawyer ’43-2

    Deceased date: March 4, 2012
    PINELLAS PARK – Miles R. Sawyer, age 92, of Seminole, FL, (formerly of Rockland, Maine), passed away on March 4, 2012, in Pinellas Park, FL. Born June 14, 1919 in Rockland, Maine; attended Maine Maritime Academy, class of 1943-2; officer in the Merch…read more

  • John W. Eden ’47

    Deceased date: February 11, 2012
    John William Eden of Washington, D.C., Lake Wales, Florida and Edgartown, Massachusetts passed away on Saturday, February 11, 2012 at the age of 84 from Parkinson's disease. Born in Cleveland, Ohio to Charlton Granville Eden and Helen McKlintock Eden, …read more