(side 1)
The Liberty Bell was commissioned November 1, 1751, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of William Penn's Charter of Privileges for his Pennsylvania colony. The radical charter granted religious liberty to persecuted faiths, including Quakers,Jews, Catholic and others, thus establishing America's tradition of religious freedom.
The Bell cracked when first tested. Two local foundry men recast The Bell and it began service in 1753 tooling special events. In the Revolutionary War, The Bell tolled to announce the Battle of Lexington and Concord and the first public reading go The Declaration of Independence on July 8, 1776. It cracked again July 8, 1835, during the funeral procession of Chief Justice John Marshall. It was repaired but cracked again 1846 when it rang for George Washington's birthday. It has not been rung since. It was not called "The Liberty Bell" until 1839 when William Lloyd Garrison's anti-slavery publication, "The Liberator" published a poem about the Bell. This use by advocates of the anti-slavery movement made The Bell a new symbol of freedom.
The Liberty Bell's association with The American Revolution, its use to toll important events in history, its symbolic use in the anti-slavery movement, and its Biblical inscription "Proclaim LIBERTY throughout
all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof." Leviticus 25:10 have made it among the most cherished and revered symbols of America freedom.
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(side 2)
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