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What are some facts about the Liberty Bell?
What was the purpose of the Liberty Bell?
Why is the Liberty Bell a symbol of freedom?
Why was the Liberty Bell rung in 1776?
- The Liberty Bell pre-dates the Revolution. The Pennsylvania Assembly had the Liberty Bell made in 1751 to mark the 50-year anniversary of William Penn's 1701 Charter of Privileges, which served as Pennsylvania's original Constitution.
- What is written on the Bell? The following Bible verse is on the Bell: “Proclaim Liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof." Also included is information about the Pennsylvania Assembly and the Bell’s maker.
- No one knows today when the Bell was cracked. The crack is a big subject of debate among historians. One theory is the Bell got its first crack in 1752 when it was tested upon its arrival in Philadelphia.
- The last big crack happened on Washington’s Birthday. The Liberty Bell cracked up, literally, in February 1846, when it was rung on President’s Day, celebrated on Washington’s birthday, and then stopped ringing because of damage from a major crack.
Jul 3, 2022 · The inscription of liberty on the State House bell (now known as the Liberty Bell) went unnoticed during the Revolutionary War. After the war, abolitionists seeking to end slavery in America were inspired by the bell's message.
- The Liberty Bell weighs 2,080 pounds. The yoke weighs about 100 pounds.
- From lip to crown, the Bell measures three feet. The circumference around the crown measures six feet, 11 inches, and the circumference around the lip measures 12 feet.
- The Liberty Bell is composed of approximately 70 percent copper, 25 percent tin, and traces of lead, zinc, arsenic, gold, and silver. The Bell is suspended from what is believed to be its original yoke, made of American elm.
- The cost of the original Bell, including insurance and shipping was £150, 13 shillings, and eight pence ($225.50) in 1752. The recasting cost slightly more than £36 ($54) in 1753.
- It Cracked Almost immediately.
- It Rang to Mark The Stamp Act’s Repeal ...
- But It Probably Didn’T Ring on Independence Day.
- It Has A Biblical Inscription.
- It Became An Abolitionist Symbol.
- The Crack Was Widened on Purpose.
- There’S A Second, Worse Crack That’S Barely visible.
- It Toured The country.
- It’S Still Tapped occasionally.
- You Can Hear What It Probably Sounded like.
The first crack that silenced the Liberty Bell has been largely forgotten. In 1751, Speaker of the Pennsylvania Assembly Isaac Norris commissioned a bell for the tower of the Pennsylvania State House (a.k.a. Independence Hall). But that first version wasn’t around for long: It cracked on the very first test ring. The bell was melted down, recast, a...
The State House bell typically signaled the start of Pennsylvania Assembly meetings or the reading of the news, but it also marked significant events. In 1756, it rang out in protest of the British Parliament’s passage of the Stamp Act, and in 1766 it recognized the tax’s repeal.
According to legend, a boy visited an old man in the State House bell tower on July 4, 1776 with an important message: The Declaration of Independence had just been signed. The story goes that the elderly tower keeper rang the bell that day to signal the news, but this likely never happened. The signing of the Declaration wasn’t publicly celebrated...
The inscriptionwrapped around the top of the bell reads: “Proclaim LIBERTY Throughout All the Land Unto All the Inhabitants thereof.” The quote is from Leviticus 25:10 in the Bible, and it’s part of instructions to the Israelites to return property and free slaves every 50 years.
As the anti-slavery movement gained steam in the 19th century, these words developed a deeper meaning. Abolitionists saw the cause they were fighting for reflected in the inscription. The bell became a symbol of freedom for all people, and in 1835 the publication The Anti-Slavery Recordreferred to it as the Liberty Bell in print for the first time.
The Liberty Bell’s crack makes it instantly recognizable, but if it had been left alone it wouldn’t look nearly as dramatic. After ringing for decades, a thin crack formed in the bell in the 1840s. Metalworkers “repaired” the fissure in 1846 by widening it and inserting bolts at both ends. This way, the split metal wouldn’t bang together when rung,...
The repair job didn’t end up doing the bell much good. When the bell was rung on George Washington’s birthday in 1846, a second crack formed across the crown, extending from the abbreviation for “Philadelphia” up to the word “Liberty.” It’s just a hairline fracture, barely visible next to the widened crack, but it forced the bell into retirement.
The new crack meant the Liberty Bell was unable to serve its original purpose, but it was still put to good use. The bell traveled to expositions and fairsacross the country from the late 19th century to the early 20th century, making stops in small towns and major cities. Some of the more influential figures to catch it on tour included Thomas Edi...
The Liberty Bell hasn’t been rung since it formed its fateful crack in 1846, but it has been lightly tapped many times since then. During World War II, it was tapped to mark D-Day, V-E Day, and V-J Day. Today it’s an annual traditionfor a group of young descendants of the signers of the Declaration of Independence to tap the bell 13 times on July 4...
Even though no one alive today has heard the Liberty Bell ring, we still have a good idea of what it sounded like. In 1999, graduate students at Pennsylvania State University recreated the bell as a computer model. With this digital replica they were able to calculate the specific vibrations the bell would have made when struck. They even made this...
- Michele Debczak
Nov 24, 2020 · The Liberty Bell is one of the most important symbols of freedom and liberty in the US. It’s mounted in Independence Hall, Philadelphia. History of the Liberty Bell. Cast in London’s East End, the Liberty Bell arrived at Independence Hall – then called the Pennsylvania State House – in 1753 where it was hung.
- Sarah Roller
The Liberty Bell is one of history's most famous symbols of freedom and justice. Read about bell's creation, the crack and its adoption by the abolitionist movement as a symbol in their campaign to end the injustice of slavery.
May 18, 2018 · The bell, known as the Liberty Bell, was to commemorate the fifty-year anniversary of William Penn 's 1701 Charter of Privileges, the state's original constitution. Penn wrote of the freedoms and rights valued by people all over the world.
