> CONTACT: Phil Sheridan, INHP
>
> \(215\) 597-0060
>
> phil_sheridan@nps.gov
>
> Cara Schneider, GPTMC

\(215\) 599-0789

> [***cara@gptmc.com***](mailto:rebekah@gptmc.com)

# **[FACT SHEET]{.underline}**

## *Liberty Bell Timeline*

**1752** The Pennsylvania Assembly orders a 2,000-pound bell from the
**Whitechapel Foundry** in England to place in its new State House (now
Independence Hall) steeple. They request that the bell have the
inscription "Proclaim Liberty throughout all the Land unto all the
Inhabitants thereof."

**Early 1753** The bell created by Whitechapel Foundry arrives in
Philadelphia. Because of its brittleness, it cracks when it is first
rung. The bell is recast in Philadelphia by **Pass and Stow,** a local
maker of pots and pans. They add one and a half ounces of copper per
pound of the original bell. The inscription on the bell remains the
same.

**April 1753** The **newly recast Pass and Stow bell** is rung. Made
with too much copper, the bell does not resonate properly. Pass and Stow
recast the bell again.

**June 11, 1753** The Pass and Stow bell, still bearing the original
inscription and weighing 2,080 pounds, is raised into the **State House
steeple.** The Assemblymen dislike the sound of the bell and order
another bell from the Whitechapel Foundry.

**1754** The **new Whitechapel bell** arrives from England. The
assemblymen do not like its sound any better than the Pass and Stow bell
already in the steeple. The men decide to place the new Whitechapel bell
in the attic of the State House to chime the hours on the west wall
clock. The Pass and Stow bell, with its "Proclaim Liberty..."
inscription remains in the steeple and calls the Assembly to meet.

**1760's** The original Pass and Stow bell calls assemblies to meetings
to debate the **Sugar, Stamp and Townshend Acts** and other
Parliamentary actions, which trigger revolution.

**July 8, 1776** Historians once assumed that the State House bell was
rung in celebration after the ***Declaration of Independence*** was read
aloud for the first time in the State House yard on July 8. It is
probable, however, that the deteriorated steeple was in such poor
condition that ringing the bell was impossible. No city bells rang to
celebrate Independence on July 4, 1776. On that date, the Second
Continental Congress ordered the revised Declaration to be printed and
sent to the colonial legislatures, British officials and the American
army. Although its text appeared in a few newspapers on\
July 6, 1776, the document was not read aloud to the Philadelphia public
until\
July 8, 1776.

-more-

Page 2/Liberty Bell Timeline

**September 23, 1777** The State House bell is taken from Philadelphia,
along with other bells from the

> city, to Allentown, Pennsylvania, and hidden in **Zion High,** now
> Reformed Lutheran Church, which stands today with a historical marker
> indicating its role in the Liberty Bell's journey. The colonists
> removed the bells so the British would not confiscate them.
>
> **June 1778** The British leave Philadelphia and the **city's bells
> return.** The Liberty Bell is put back in the steeple while the clock
> bell is returned to the attic.

**1816** The **City of Philadelphia** buys the State House, along with
its bells and its yard for \$70,000 in order to prevent the state from
dividing the yard into small lots and selling them and the building.

**December 1828** A new bell is purchased for the State House steeple.
The Pass and Stow "Proclaim Liberty..." bell is lowered to the third
floor of the **State House** tower for storage.

> **1835** The earliest known reference to the bell as the "Bell of
> Liberty" is made by **abolitionists.** These antislavery advocates
> adopted the Bell as their symbol because of its inscription and the
> Bell's association with Independence Hall, where the *Declaration* had
> been created.

**1837** A guidebook includes a reference to the Bell. The book refers
to the "old State House bell," making it an official tourist attraction.
An issue of ***Liberty,*** an abolitionist publication from New York,
uses a rendition of the Bell as a symbol and stresses the inclusiveness
of its inscription.

> **1838** A pamphlet produced by a Boston abolitionist group includes a
> poem about the Bell entitled **"The Liberty Bell."** By November, the
> Bell is nationally known as "The Liberty Bell."
>
> **1841-1845** Sometime during this four-year time period the **Bell
> cracks.** No records recovered thus far provide an indisputable date
> for when the crack occurred.
>
> **February 1846** The crack is found and repaired using a
> **stop-drilling method.** This method removes metal from the two sides
> of a crack in order to prevent them from rubbing against one another.
> Rivets are then inserted into the crack to stabilize it. This
> treatment produces the Bell's wide vertical crack that can still be
> seen today.
>
> **February 23, 1846** While ringing in observance of **George
> Washington's birthday,** the Bell cracks further, and the repair is
> deemed unsuccessful. This hairline fracture is not fixable and the
> Bell cannot be rung again.
>
> **January 2, 1849** American writer George Lippard writes an article
> in the ***Saturday Courier* *Magazine*** that grossly exaggerates the
> Bell's role in the writing of the *Declaration of Independence.*
> Lippard recounts the story of an aged bellman who waits in the tower
> of Independence Hall to ring the Bell when the Continental Congress
> declares independence. This fictional story, however, does much more
> to publicize the Bell among the public than the facts ever had.

-more-

Page 3/Liberty Bell Timeline

**1885** The Bell becomes a symbol of freedom and liberty when it
travels on a special railroad car to New Orleans for the **World's
Industrial and Cotton Centennial Exposition.** The Bell stops in 14
cities along the way.

**1895-1915** The **Bell travels** to Chicago, Atlanta, Charleston,
Boston, St. Louis and San Francisco, stopping along the way for
thousands of passerbys to see. The tour was intended to show off the
Bell to people who presumably would never be able to visit Philadelphia.

**February 11, 1915** The Bell is **tapped with a mallet** and its sound
is amplified electronically and used as the inaugural sound that began
transcontinental telephone service.

**Spring 1915** A replica of the Bell, dubbed the "Justice Bell," is
used by members of the **women's suffrage movement** to rally support,
first for amending the *Pennsylvania Constitution* and then the *United
States Constitution.*

**1917-1918** The Bell tours Philadelphia during the **World War I
Liberty Loan drives.**

**1926** The nation's **Sesqui-Centennial** celebration is held in
Philadelphia. At the entrance to the exposition grounds is a giant
replica of the Liberty Bell.

**June 6, 1944** The Bell is tapped with a rubber mallet during a
national radio program to symbolize liberty and freedom on the day of
the **Normandy invasion.**

**March 12, 1965** Twenty-five **civil rights protestors** participate
in a sit-in around the Bell in Independence Hall. They are attempting to
draw attention to the need for the federal government to protect the
rights of African Americans in Selma, Alabama.

**January 1, 1976** To start the celebration of the **bicentennial of
America's independence,** the Bell is moved from Independence Hall to
the new pavilion built for it on Independence Mall.

**1988** The **Philadelphia Liberty Medal** is created to honor people
who have worked to secure liberty and freedom in the world and to
commemorate the bicentennial of the United States Constitution*.* The
medal itself bears the image of the Bell and is presented each Fourth of
July. It has been awarded to Sandra Day O\'Conor, 2003; Colin Powell,
2002; Kofi Annan, 2001; Dr. James Watson/Dr. Francis Crick (joint
prize), 2000; Kim Dae Jung, 1999; George J. Mitchell, 1998; CNN
International, 1997; King Hussein 1/Shimon Peres (joint prize), 1996;
Sadako Ogata, 1995; Václav Havel, 1994; F.W. de Klerk/Nelson Mandela
(joint prize), 1993; Thurgood Marshall, 1992; Oscar Arias/Médicins sans
Frontières (joint prize), (1991); Jimmy Carter, 1990; and\
Lech Walesa, 1989.

**April 1, 1996** The fast food chain **Taco Bell** publishes
advertisements in eight newspapers claiming to have purchased the Bell,
which they renamed "The Taco Liberty Bell." The stunt was merely a hoax
in honor of April Fool's Day.

**April 6, 2001** Mitchell Guilliatt, a self-described \"wanderer\" from
Nebraska, strikes the Bell with an eight-pound hammer several times
while proclaiming religious statements. He is apprehended immediately
and later sentenced to serve nine months in a correctional center and
pay a \$7,093 fine to go toward the cost of Bell **repairs.** The dents
created by the hammer blows were filled in with an inert plastic and
colored to match the Bell's undamaged surface. These fills are easily
removable and cause no permanent change to the Bell's surface.

-more-

Page 4/Liberty Bell Timeline

> **Fall 2001** In the aftermath of the **September 11, 2001** terrorist
> attacks, security around the Bell and Independence Hall is increased.
>
> **Spring 2002** Construction begins on the Bell's new home, the
> **Liberty Bell Center.** Controversy about how much the new center
> will address the irony of slavery in the "cradle of liberty" surrounds
> the construction. The issues are brought to light because part of the
> center will stand on the nation's first White House, where George
> Washington lived with his slaves.

Part of the National Park Service, Independence National Historical Park
preserves sites associated with the American Revolution, including
Independence Hall, the Liberty Bell and other historic sites that tell
the story of the early days of the nation. Covering 45 acres in Old City
Philadelphia, the park has 20 buildings open to the public. For park
information, call (215) 597-8974 or go to www.nps.gov/inde.

For more information about travel to Philadelphia, visit www.gophila.com
or call the new Independence Visitor Center, located in Independence
National Historical Park, at (800) 537-7676.

\# \# \#

Note to Editors: For story angles and photographic images of
Philadelphia and its surrounding countryside, visit
www.gophila.com/pressroom.