The Liberty Bell is an all-bronze bell located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where it arrived on 1 September 1752. For Americans, this bell is one of the greatest symbols, if not 'The Symbol', of the American Revolution and the struggle for independence against the British.
This bell, perhaps not so well known to those who are not interested in American history, has enormous symbolic significance, as on 4 July 1776, its ringing rallied the citizens of Philadelphia for the reading of the Declaration of Independence. Previously, it had sounded to announce the opening of the First Continental Congress in 1774 and after the Battle of Lexington and Concord in 1775.
Symbolic also was the last time it played, at the funeral of General George Washigton, the first President of the United States and commander of American forces during the Revolution.
Di Tony the Misfit on Flickr - [1], CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=11201
The Liberty Bell is an all-bronze bell located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where it arrived on 1 September 1752. For Americans, this bell is one of the greatest symbols, if not 'The Symbol', of the American Revolution and the struggle for independence against the British. This bell, perhaps not so well known to those who are not interested in American history, has enormous symbolic significance, as on 4 July 1776, its ringing rallied the citizens of Philadelphia for the reading of the Declaration of Independence. Previously, it had sounded to announce the opening of the First Continental Congress in 1774 and after the Battle of Lexington and Concord in 1775.
The Liberty Bell, also called the Liberty Bell, was cast in 1752 in London, England, by the Whitechapel Bell Foundry. Its original name was the Pennsylvania Provincial Assembly Bell, but it got its current name from abolitionists who considered it a symbol of the struggle for freedom.
Its weight is more or less 950 kg with a clapper of about 20 kg. It was once installed in the tower of Independence Hall, one of 20 American sites to be listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. In 1876, on the centenary of independence, it gave way to a Centennial Bell. Today the bell, with its famous crack, is displayed along the street inside the Liberty Bell Center.
In addition to ringing for the reading of the Declaration of Independence in 1776, it also rang in 1774, on the occasion of the First Continental Congress, a milestone in the history of the United States. On this occasion, representatives from 12 of the original 13 colonies (Georgia did not send a spokesman) had to discuss what action to take in reaction to the Intolerable Acts ordered by the British Parliament.
Over the years, the Liberty Bell has made several travelling trips to the United States. One of the most famous trips was in 1915 when the bell visited the San Francisco Exposition to celebrate the opening of the Panama Canal.
The bell is also famous for its crack. The crack had formed since its first use, and by the time it reached the New World it was already very visible. Therefore, it had to be cast and made from scratch: two American blacksmiths, John Pass and John Stow, were responsible for the Liberty Bell.