Skip to main content
Menu Close Menu

Historic Columbia

Donate
  • FAQs
Upcoming Events

Navigation

  • Tours
    • House Tours
      • Robert Mills House and Gardens
      • Hampton-Preston Mansion and Gardens
      • Mann-Simons Site
      • The Museum of the Reconstruction Era
      • Modjeska Monteith Simkins House
      • Hours and Pricing
    • Garden Tours
      • Garden Database
    • Offsite Tours
      • Walking Tours
    • African American History Tours
    • Online Tours
  • Education
    • Field Trips
      • House Tours
    • Traveling Trunk
    • Summer Camp
    • Adult Education
  • Preservation
    • Current Projects and Initiatives
      • Bull Street Campus 
      • Columbia's Green Book Sites
      • Veterans Administration Regional Office
      • Women’s Club of Columbia
    • Preservation Awards
    • Resources for the Public
      • For Property Owners
      • For Neighborhoods
      • Take Action!
    • LGBTQ Columbia
  • Support
    • Corporate Support
    • Donate
    • Membership
    • Volunteer
    • Partners and Donors
  • Rent a Venue
    • Gardens of the Hampton-Preston Mansion
    • Seibels House and Garden
    • Robert Mills Carriage House and Gardens
    • Gardens of the Woodrow Wilson Family Home
    • Weddings
    • Recommended Vendors
    • Contact Us
  • About
    • Blog
    • Board Members
    • Careers
    • Contact Us
    • Gift Shop at Robert Mills
      • Online Store
    • Local History
      • Columbia Jewish Heritage Initiative
    • Newsletter
    • Staff Directory

Donate

Liberty Bell Replica

Arrived in Columbia June 4, 1950

Northeast side of State House
Installed July 4, 1950
Bell designed by American Smelting and Refining Company, Miami Copper Company, Phelps Dodge Corporation, The American Metal Company Ltd., Kennecott Copper Corporation, Anaconda Copper Mining Company 
Installation built by Robert Sumwalt
Installation designed by Carroll Johnson

Current location
Installed 1973

  • Liberty Bell replica, November 1970

    Liberty Bell replica, November 1970. Image courtesy Russell Maxey Photograph Collection, Richland Library

  • Advertisement for the truck designed by Ford Motor Company

    Advertisement for the truck designed by Ford Motor Company. Reprinted from The State, June 4, 1950.

In 1950, the U.S. Treasury Department distributed full-scale replicas of the Liberty Bell (the famous crack is painted) to the country’s forty-eight states as part of its marketing campaign for Independence Savings Bonds. Postwar Americans revived the bell – and its home at Independence Hall in Philadelphia – as symbols of American freedom as Communism spread internationally. The bells toured each state in specially designed Ford trucks and continue to be displayed on the grounds of thirty-one state capitals, including South Carolina's.

33.999217336451, -81.031981121322

Newsletter Signup

newsletter signup

Subscribe to our monthly newsletter for events, news, and updates from Historic Columbia!

  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Flickr
Historic Columbia

© 2023 Historic Columbia

Administrative Offices
1601 Richland Street
Columbia, SC 29201

Tours
All historic house and garden tours start at the Gift Shop at Robert Mills.
1616 Blanding Street
Columbia, SC 29201

Questions? Call (803) 252-7742.

Website by Cyberwoven