| Show SAVED BELL FROM BRITIS TF carried it to allentown where it was buried INCIDENT of revolutionary NO times finds a more vivid and dramatic contrast in this day than the first trip of the liberty bell from philadelphia writes john A ex state tre treasurer of pennsylvania in the philadelphia press that trip was to allentown a year and two months after it became the liberty bell at the time when howes army victorious over the continental tin forces at t the battle of the brandywine was wah advancing for the capture odthe of the city when the bell left tor for the san francisco exposition last year I 1 it t departed part ad with ith the godspeed god speed of the whole undivided city it was escorted to the train by the first city troop and by the great assemblage gathered for the fourth of july exercises on independence square it passed through streets thronged thron ged with venerating pe peor j on the train it was under the escort of a large body delegated by the constituted municipal authorities its passage across the continent was a triumphal progress A hundred cities along tho the route poured out their citizens to do it reverence as it passed and it vas received at the other rim of the continent in reverential awe by a countless multitude contrast with first trip that Is how the vell bell travels today it was very different in september 1777 on that first trip to allentown it went not in daylight but in the dead of night not with the music of bands and escorted in honor by multitudes tit udes but in silence and under the guard of only one man it went not in a special train but in a creaking crea kiny old farm wagon loaded with manure the better to conceal it for at that time there were many tories in philadelphia these included families then counted among the foremost citizens when the city was evacuated evacuate ed by the continentals Continent als these tories came aut of the obscurity in which they had been prudently lying and began preparing a welcome tor for howe and his army the following winter was waa a time of rare festivity for the british officers the british were fere expected by the city authorities upon taking possession to confiscate the church bells as spoils of war tor for the purpose of molding them into cannon that was recognized as one of their rights as captors it was to prevent this seizure i that the executive e xe council ordered the removal of the state bouse bell and tho the bells of christ church and of nine other churches to allentown by way of bethlehem I 1 dont know why allentown was selected unless it be that it was far enough away to keep the bells safe from the british had small escort john jacob mickley a soldier of tho the continental army was one of those detailed for the removal of the bells to him the state house bell was ln in trusted john jacob was the son of johann jacob the german version of the dame and arrived in philadelphia on the sailing balling vessel hope in the early part of 1733 on august 27 1733 he took the tha oath of allegiance to his adopted country he was a farmer at white ball lehigh county when the war of the revolution broke out at bethlehem mickleys Mick leys wagon broke down and the tha state house bell was transferred to the wagon of ja cob lester upon which it was hauled the remaining four miles in the records of the moravian church at bethlehem is the following entry under date of september 23 1777 the bells from philadelphia brought in wagons the wagon of the state house bell broke down here so it had to be unloaded the other bells went on burled buried under church floor the state house bell and the chimes of christ church were burled buried beneath the floor of zion reformed church allentown this church was built in 1762 of logs rebuilt in stone in 1770 1770 and again rebuilt later the rev abraham blummer was pastor of the church at the time and assisted in the work of burying the bells A tablet commemorating the event has been placed upon the church front and also a stained glass window with like purpose in the church after the evacuation of philadelphia by the british the bells were brought back and put in their respective plaes places in the latter part of the year 1778 |
