By 1900, a tall bell tower with clock towers rose above the eastern wall, designed by A. A. Latkov, who had been the architect of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra since the late 19th century. He likely also designed other buildings of the Smolensk Zosimov Monastery. In the 20th century, the monastery wall and bell tower suffered more than other buildings of the monastery. Only the two lower tiers of the bell tower remain, the eastern part of the fence and the fence of the economic yard are completely destroyed. The book by the holy martyr Seraphim Chichagov mentions how it all looked during the heyday of the Zosimov Monastery: "A stone fence 300 fathoms long surrounds the hilly bank of the Molochka River, previously deserted and abandoned. Towers rise at the corners of the fence with cozy small cells for monks. To the east of the fence stands a three-story bell tower 16 fathoms high with bells weighing 713 poods 33 pounds. The large bell weighing 510 poods hangs on the second tier, the others on the upper one. Two towers adjoin the bell tower: one contains cells, the other, the monastery shop for selling icons, crosses, and edifying books. Under the bell tower are the gates." Today, the bell tower, once a magnificent structure, looks quite sad.

During the war, under the pretext that the bell tower exposed the military unit located on the monastery grounds since 1925, the two upper tiers were destroyed, and the wall was dismantled for bricks. For a long time, the remaining part of the building housed a water tower, from which water constantly overflowed outside, flowing down the walls and undermining the foundation. In winter, the water froze, turning the bell tower into a giant icicle, which year after year destroyed the brickwork. Even today, above the gates of the bell tower, one can read the words: "Proletarians of all countries unite under the red banner of labor," a sad reminder of the godless times. Currently, the bell tower has not yet been returned to the monastery.