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The Little Brass Bell was introduced to the North Central College vs. Wheaton College football series in 1946. The story of the Little Brass Bell is a historic one.

First appearing in New York in the early 1800s, the bell made its way to the area in 1839 when a New England family traveled west and settled in DuPage County. “The Bell” eventually became part of a political battle between Naperville and Wheaton over the location of the DuPage County Courthouse. In 1857, Wheaton began a successful 10-year campaign to claim leadership of the county. However, Naperville refused to turn the county court records over to its new rival.

According to the DuPage County Guide, Wheaton retaliated with a raid of the courthouse at 4 a.m. one July morning. Naperville resident Herom H. Cody was awakened in his house across the street to witness men carrying armfuls of documents. The men in question were able to flee before the local church bell could sound an alarm. The Little Brass Bell was among the items taken.

Years later, the bell fell into the hands of a local farmer living between the two cities. Both of his sons wanted to attend college. It was decided that the son who won a coin toss would attend North Central, while the other would head off to Wheaton. Not long after, the farmer died. The son attending North Central inherited the Little Brass Bell in the division of the estate.

Ultimately, the prize became a symbol of campus loyalty, leaving politics behind. As can be imagined on college campuses, “The Bell” became the target of night raids and collegiate hi jinks, moving back and forth between Naperville and Wheaton until the North Central brother decided to hide the prize. It remained hidden until its rediscovery in the attic of a Naperville home in the early 1940s.

In 1946, “The Bell” was anointed the trophy of the annual football battle between North Central and Wheaton Colleges, where it remains a symbol of history and rivalry between the two institutions.
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Battle for the Little Brass Bell - All-Time Series Scores

2024	North Central 55, Wheaton 27			1986	Wheaton 31, North Central 9
2023	North Central 54, Wheaton 35			1985	Wheaton 29, North Central 21
2022	North Central 33, Wheaton 20			1984	Wheaton 35, North Central 0
2021	North Central 20, Wheaton 7			1983	Wheaton 34, North Central 30
2019	Wheaton 35, North Central 21			1982	North Central 27, Wheaton 22
2018	Wheaton 52, North Central 30			1981	North Central 27, Wheaton 13
2017	Wheaton 42, North Central 50			1980	North Central 28, Wheaton 27
2016	North Central 35, Wheaton 25			1979	North Central 34, Wheaton 10
2015	Wheaton 17, North Central 9			1978	North Central 27, Wheaton 12
2014	Wheaton 34, North Central 31			1977	North Central 25, Wheaton 20
2013	North Central 35, Wheaton 16			1976	Wheaton 32, North Central 22
2012	Wheaton 35, North Central 21			1975	Wheaton 23, North Central 19
2011	North Central 33, Wheaton 7			1974	Wheaton 20, North Central 13
2010	North Central 28, Wheaton 6			1973	Wheaton 20, North Central 13
2009	North Central 27, Wheaton 7			1972	Wheaton 30, North Central 12
2008	North Central 44, Wheaton 21			1971	Wheaton 31, North Central 16
2007	Wheaton 28, North Central 24			1970	Wheaton 42, North Central 12
2006	Wheaton 31, North Central 19			1967	Wheaton 15, North Central 14
2005	North Central 35, Wheaton 26			1966	North Central 16, Wheaton 13
2004	Wheaton 17, North Central 7			1964	North Central 13, Wheaton 0
2003	Wheaton 37, North Central 23			1963	Wheaton 13, North Central 0
2002	Wheaton 41, North Central 7			1962	Wheaton 37, North Central 13
2001	Wheaton 42, North Central 17			1961	Wheaton 20, North Central 7
2000	Wheaton 38, North Central 10			1960	North Central 7, Wheaton 6
1999	Wheaton 49, North Central 13			1959	North Central 7, Wheaton 7
1998	Wheaton 28, North Central 3			1958	Wheaton 33, North Central 6
1997	North Central 20, Wheaton 7			1957	Wheaton 9, North Central 6
1996	Wheaton 30, North Central 19			1956	Wheaton 52, North Central 7
1995	Wheaton 34, North Central 16			1955	Wheaton 12, North Central 6
1994	Wheaton 39, North Central 10			1954	Wheaton 2, North Central 0
1993	Wheaton 56, North Central 12			1953	Wheaton 53, North Central 0
1992	Wheaton 33, North Central 6			1952	Wheaton 21, North Central 0
1991	Wheaton 36, North Central 0			1951	Wheaton 26, North Central 7
1990	Wheaton 38, North Central 7			1950	Wheaton 49, North Central 14
1989	Wheaton 28, North Central 0			1949	Wheaton 14, North Central 0
1988	Wheaton 31, North Central 6			1948	Wheaton 14, North Central 0
1987	North Central 10, Wheaton 6			1947	North Central 7, Wheaton 6
				1946	North Central 7, Wheaton 0