(Gridley, CA) – After missing for almost three years, the iconic Manzanita Elementary School bell, that had welcomed students to class since 1868, is back in Gridley!

It was stolen in November of 2021. Surveillance video showed the thieves walking toward the bell with tools, removing the several hundred pound bell from its brick platform, loading it up into the trunk of a car and driving off. The thieves were never found, however, last week according to Action News, ”a local community member” contacted the school and reported that they “knew where the bell could be found.”

it was reportedly a collaborative effort according to the TV station, involving both the Butte & Yuba County Sheriff’s offices, as well as the Sutter County DA’s office, who removed and returned the bell, from a residence on Hopper Road.

No arrests were made.