On this day in history: The Liberty Bell comes to Seattle

Article and photo from the Washington State History Museum

On this day in Washington (July 14, 1915), Washingtonians welcomed the arrival of the Liberty Bell with a “veritable thunder storm of cheers and yells” and “clanking cow bells.” America’s symbol of liberty was on a nationwide tour, including stops in Everett, Seattle and Tacoma.

The Pennsylvania Provincial Assembly ordered the bell from a British manufacturer in 1751. It bears the inscription from Leviticus 25:10, "Proclaim LIBERTY throughout all the Land unto all the Inhabitants thereof.” 

It was rung to celebrate Independence Day, the birthdays of U.S. presidents and founders. In the ensuing decades, it inspired movements such as women’s suffrage and the Civil Rights movement.

Weighing about 2,000 pounds, the bell was cracked and repaired multiple times. It was rung for the last time on George Washington’s birthday in 1846. Damaged beyond repair, it was taken out of service and is now on display at the Liberty Bell Center in Philadelphia.

Post written courtesy of David J Jepsen - Historian
Image from WSHS collection: Liberty Bell, Seattle - July 14, 1915. Catalog ID: 2006.116.141.