The Westborough church had been looking to sell the bell since the church members voted to dissolve in July 2007, citing dwindling membership and ballooning costs.
For several years, the town tried to scrape together enough money to make sure the bell stayed in Westborough, but the effort failed.
“It is sad to lose that heritage,’’ said 84-year-old Jacqueline Tidman, who served as Westborough’s historian for 34 years. “It’s a magnificent bell.’’
But the 876-pound iron bell, which Westborough town fathers purchased for $2.69 in 1801 from Revere’s foundry, might acquire even more historical significance in its new home.
It is one of the oldest Revere bells in existence — older than the bell at the Paul Revere House. It is returning to the birthplace of the 1773 Boston Tea Party.
And once there, it will be linked to the Old South Meeting House’s 1766 tower clock, one of the oldest operating tower clocks in the country.
The bell is scheduled to arrive tomorrow in Boston, where it will become the third Revere bell on the Freedom Trail, joining those at the Revere House and King’s Chapel.
After polishing it and restoring the original yoke — the frame that holds the bell in place — the Old South Meeting House plans to display the bell throughout the summer and then install it in the restored tower by September.
Residents of Westborough will receive free admission to the exhibit this summer, Old South Meeting House executive director Emily Curran said.
The Old South Meeting House had not owned a bell since 1876.
“What’s so special about this is that it’ll still be in use and people will still enjoy it,’’ Curran said. “We’re very mindful of preserving the history of the bell.’’
When the Old South Meeting House heard of the Westborough bell, its staff cast aside plans to order a new bell and struck a deal with the church.
Curran declined to disclose the price, but the auction house Skinners, of Boston, had valued the bell at close to $1 million. But Curran said the price was much less than that earlier appraisal.
