Zion's Reformed Church - Allentown, PA
N 40° 36.136 W 075° 28.228
18T E 460195 N 4494712
Zion's Reformed Church was one of the hiding places of the Liberty Bell during the Revolutionary War.
Waymark Code: WM802V
Location: Pennsylvania, United States
Date Posted: 01/01/2010
Views: 3
The ZION'S REFORMED CHURCH (open 7-4:35 daily), SE. corner Hamilton and Church Sts., is a brownstone Victorian Gothic structure erected in 1888 on the site of a former church, built in 1773, which was the hiding place of the Liberty Bell during the Revolutionary War. When Philadelphia was occupied by the British, the Liberty Bell was removed from Independence Hall in the dead of night and hauled through the British lines to Allentown, where it was concealed in the cellar of the church from 1777 to 1778. The church also served as a hospital during the Revolutionary War. In a pedimented tower of cast stone, above the main entrance of the present church, hangs a bell used by the early settlers to sound alarms, known locally as Allentown's 'Liberty Bell.'
The Zion Church currently houses the Liberty Bell Shrine (located in the basement) and has event every holiday season for the old Hess's displays and "Pip the Mouse," who helped Santa on Christmas. The Shrine is open all year.
Shrine Website: http://www.libertybellmuseum.org/museum/
The Zion Church is currently called the Zion United Church of Christ. It is still a most impressive structure.
Book: Pennsylvania
Page Number(s) of Excerpt: 184
Year Originally Published: 1940
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