What was the Liberty Bell called before it became known by its current name?

The Liberty Bell was called the State House Bell before it became known by its current name.

The bell was commissioned in 1751 for the Pennsylvania State House, the building now called Independence Hall. Its original civic purpose was to summon lawmakers, announce public meetings, and signal important proclamations.

The name Liberty Bell emerged in the 1830s, when abolitionist societies used the bell as a symbol of liberty. Its famous inscription comes from Leviticus 25:10: “Proclaim LIBERTY Throughout all the Land unto all the Inhabitants Thereof.”

Popular tradition says the bell rang when the Declaration was adopted on July 4, 1776, but no contemporary evidence confirms that story. It was likely among Philadelphia's bells rung during the first public reading on July 8.