Events, Education & Exhibits

The Liberty Bell Museum has Closed

Image by Andrea Hamilton from Pixabay.

Let Freedom Ring!

February through April 1, 2023

The Pennsylvania State House Bell, now known as the Liberty Bell, is one of the most famous and instantly recognizable bells in the world. The Liberty Bell Museum explores the myths and facts surround this iconic symbol of freedom in our new exhibit, “Let  Freedom Ring!.”  This exhibit answers the most-asked questions about the bell, explains the roles of the city Allentown and Zion’s Church in the bell’s history, and how it became a symbol of the civil and women’s rights movements of the 19th and 20th Centuries. In addition, there are dozens of Liberty Bell replicas on display, spanning nearly 150 years.

This Week in History

March 22, 1765: Parliament passed the Stamp Act, the first direct British tax on the American colonies.  This Act imposed a tax on all paper documents in the colonies, including playing cards.

March 23, 1919: Benito Mussolini founded the Fascist Party. It was Italy’s ruling party from 1922 until Mussolini was deposed in 1943.    

March 24, 1765: Parliament passed the Quartering Act, requiring the American colonies to provide food and shelter for British troops stationed there.

March 25, 1911: A fast-spreading fire in the Triangle Shirtwaist Company in New York City killed 145 garment workers. Most of the victims, mainly Jewish and Italian immigrant women in their teens and 20s, were trapped in the building because of faulty or missing safety equipment and locked doors. The tragedy put a national spotlight on the dangerous conditions and the rights of workers in the New York garment industry.

March 26, 1979: Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin and Egyptian President Anwar Sadat signed a peace treaty, ending 30 years of warfare between their countries.

March 27, 1794: President George Washington signed the Naval Act of 1794, which established a permanent U.S. Navy to protect commercial ships from attack.

March 28, 1979: The Three Mile Island nuclear power plant near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania nearly suffered a meltdown when its reactor core overheated and released radioactive steam into the atmosphere. The incident created a great deal of debate over the safety of nuclear energy.

March 29, 1790: John Tyler, the 10th U.S. President, was born in Virginia.  He was the first Vice-President to become President after the death of the sitting President, William Henry Harrison. Tyler also holds the presidential record for having the most children – 15!

March 30, 1981: Only two months after his inauguration, President Ronald Reagan was shot in the chest by John Hinkley, Jr., outside of a Washington, D.C., hotel.  Reagan survived the assassination attempt, as did his press secretary, James Brady, who was shot in the head.

Sponsors of the Liberty Bell Museum

Revolutionary Supporters

Amaranth Foundation

Karen ElChaar

Honorary First Defenders – Allentown Chapter

Patriot Supporters

Dennis and Nanci Blankowitsch

David Hoffman

Steve Leaser

Ruth Marcon

Doris and Ralph Todd

Colonist Supporters

Chris Bauder

Sara Jane and Geoff Brace

J.S. Burkholder Funeral Home Inc.

Cathy and Bill Campbell

Shirley A Christman

Sandra J. Dorney

Jean L. Engler

Tim Flores

James Follweiler

Joanne Hartshorne

Bill and Jane Marks

Jim Martin, District Attorney

S Jane Merkel

Edwards Business Systems

Michael and Rosanne Pickett

Annie Prince

Mr. and Mrs. William Remo, Jr.

MMS Advancement Associates

Robert Stevens

Frank and Susan Strouse

Ann Wertman

Bruce Wilson Contracting

Zator Law

Gloria Zimmerman

Liberty Bell Museum Virtual Tour 1