SANDPOINT — The Idaho Liberty Bell, a replica of the renowned Liberty Bell in Philadelphia, is coming to Sandpoint on Oct. 26.  

From 5:30 p.m. to 6:10 p.m., community members will witness the bell's legacy at Jeff Jones Town Square, where they can take pictures of the replica, learn more about the bell's significance and try their hand at ringing it. 

The Idaho Liberty Bell will make an appearance in every Idaho county as part of the nation's 250th birthday celebration. 

“It’s a tangible way to bring history to Idahoans," said Idaho Treasurer Julie Ellsworth of the bell. "Idaho is taking history on the road, bringing the bell to all 44 counties so people can see it, hear it ring, and celebrate America 250 in their own communities." 

In 1950, Paccard Foundry of France craftsmen diligently casted over 50 full-size Liberty Bell replicas, carefully measuring each feature of the original Liberty Bell to create accurate models. Those replicas are now housed at capitols and U.S. territories across the country, according to the Idaho State Historical Society. 

"The Liberty Bell is one of the most recognizable symbols of our nation's founding and the ideals of liberty, independence, and self-government," said Sandpoint Mayor Jeremy Grimm. "I'm pleased that Sandpoint has the opportunity to host this replica, and I hope its visit inspires people, particularly our younger generations, to take a greater interest in the remarkable story of our country, the principles upon which it was founded, and the history that continues to shape us today."

"I hope people leave with a stronger connection to our history and a renewed appreciation for freedom and unity. The bell is a reminder that the ideals behind our nation’s founding belong to every generation and that each of us has a part in preserving them,” said Ellsworth. 

The Liberty Bell has long been a beloved icon of the United States that represents freedom, even though it existed long before the American Revolution.  

Casted in 1752, decades before America won its independence; the Liberty Bell served a practical purpose in the then-new Pennsylvania Statehouse. It rang to call lawmakers and delegates to meetings and to gather citizens for local readings of the news, according to History.com. 

After being hidden under church floorboards to prevent the British from melting it into artillery in the wake of the Revolutionary War, the Liberty Bell returned to what is now Independence Hall in 1778. 

It wasn't until the mid-1830s that abolitionists gave the bell its famous name, "Liberty Bell," adopting it as a symbol of their antislavery movement. The dubbed name paired well with the bell's inscription of a bible verse from Leviticus to "proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof." 

Today, the bell rests in the Liberty Bell Center in Pennsylvania, serving as a patriotic reminder to let freedom ring, despite enduring cracks that have silenced the bell forever.