The Liberty Bell was recast into its present form in 1753.
Philadelphia ordered a bell for the Pennsylvania State House in 1751, seeking a large bell that could be heard across the growing city. The bell arrived from London in 1752, but it cracked during an initial test. Local founders John Pass and John Stow melted it down and cast a replacement.
The replacement also required another recasting after its sound was judged unsatisfactory. The bell was finally completed in June 1753 and hung in the State House steeple. Its inscription quotes Leviticus and refers to liberty throughout the land, although the bell was originally a civic alarm and proclamation bell rather than a purpose-built independence symbol.
Its association with American independence developed later. The bell became a powerful national emblem during the nineteenth century, especially as Americans connected its inscription with the Declaration of Independence and the country's founding ideals. The famous crack appeared sometime in the early nineteenth century, but its exact date is uncertain.