Liberty Bell Replica - Truman Presidential Library and Museum

Originally dedicated in Independence, Missouri, in a 1950 ceremony that included then-President Harry S. Truman, this replica of Philadelphia's Liberty Bell was part of a plan by the Treasury Department to encourage investments in savings bonds. Using the slogan "Save for Your Independence," the federal government created fifty-seven replica Liberty Bells and dedicated one in every state and territory as part of the United States Savings Bonds Independence Drive conducted from May 15 to July 4, 1950. The dimensions and color are identical to the original Liberty Bell, although the crack in that bell which famously developed while riding in honor of George Washington's birthday, is not part of the replica. In addition to the bells dedicated within each state, territory, and Washington DC, there were also bells created for the city of Independence in honor of Harry Truman and one dedicated in Amnecy, France, where the bells were cast. The Truman Presidential Library and Museum was dedicated on July 6, 1957, and this bell was dedicated almost exactly two years later as part of a special July 4th celebration.

On November 6th, 1950, the mayor of Annecy-le-Vieux, France Georges Volland came to Missouri to dedicate this 2,500-pound replica Liberty Bell. This special honor was part of a recognition of President Harry S. Truman's wartime and postwar leadership and was also influenced by the town name of Independence- a place that leaders of the effort to create these replicas believed was apt for a Liberty Bell replica. As a result of this bell's creation for the people of Independence, there are two Liberty Bell replicas in Missouri, with the other being between the state capitol building and the Missouri River in Jefferson City.

This bell in Independence, MO, is one of 57 (this bell bears the number 54) replicas placed around the United States. This bell was moved to the Truman Presidential Library and Museum two years after its 1957 dedication.

Easter, A.W. “Dedication of the Liberty Bell Replica in Independence, Missouri.” Dedication of the Liberty Bell Replica in Independence, Missouri | Harry S. Truman, www.trumanlibrary.gov/photograph-records/2005-91. Accessed 20 July 2023. 

“Liberty Bell Replica Marker Historical Marker.” Historical Marker, 2 May 2022, www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=44349. 

Lynch, Fred. “Liberty Bell Replica Arrives.” seMissourian.Com, 11 Feb. 2013, www.semissourian.com/blogs/flynch/entry/50748.