The Liberty Bell

When I was a child the bell was located in the stairwell in Independence Hall (see photo “attached” – photographer unknown copyright Armstrong Roberts postcards) and my Girl Scout troop went to see it. It was moved, in 1976, to a glass pavilion at 5th & Market. On occasion I took friends to see it there when they were in town. In 2003 it was moved, slowly, inch by inch and with extensive news coverage, to the “Liberty Bell Center” at 6th and Chestnut. It is interesting that it is now adjacent to the location where George Washington housed his slaves. This is particularly poignant since the nickname “Liberty Bell” was credited to it when it became a symbol of the abolitionist movement in the 1830’s. “Proclaim Liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof.” Leviticus 25:10, Holy Bible. I guess the Liberty Bell should be seen as representative of the goal of liberty and equality for all, the attainment of which has been and remains an ongoing process and movement.

I took my children here in 2004. We did a whirlwind tour of Philly, Washington DC, and Baltimore for vacation that year. It’s exciting for them to actually visit the places they learn about in school. Seeing and experiencing is so much better than just reading about things. Now during movies (for example) I hear “Mom we’ve been there!” Helps with thier Geography skills, too! Learning and having fun…Hmmm What a concept!

dude… its a bell… and its broken.
now if it were fixed.. i’d think about it.
if i could ring it, i’d be on a plane right now!

Definitely cool to see, but the park ranger lecture about the bell was a little boring.

Don’t go expecting like, a life changing experience or anything.
It was made in Whitechapel, East London! Yay.

the liberty bell is really tiny. there’s no point.

I know it’s historical, but it’s a bell with a crack in it. I saw it, then I left.

Not worth visiting in itself but combined with the rest of phillys history is a great additional stop.

i’m a big history buff (especially american history), so i wish i could say that i really, TRULY enjoyed visiting this famous historic site, but the sad fact of the matter is… i didn’t. it was pretty dull. still, i guess it’s worth seeing once just to say you’ve been there.

... I guess it has some history, but its actually pretty un-impressive.