Kentucky Liberty Bell replica

September 6, 2023: Julie Maio Kemper told me the bell will be shipped out for conservation this week. It will return in early 2024. There is no set date for it to return to public display, but once it returns from conservation, you can schedule a time to see it.

September 2022: Someone commented the bell is no longer on public display. I found the video below from April 29, 2022, of the Kentucky Historical Society moving the bell into storage.

I reached out and promptly heard back from Julie Maio Kemper, Curator for Object Learning with the Kentucky Historical Society. She told me the state’s bell was removed for some much-needed conservation. As visible in the photos below, the yoke (a replacement of the original) is rotten, structurally compromised and needs to be replaced (again).

The group hopes to use the bell to pique interest in the state’s celebration of the nation’s U.S. 250^th birthday in 2026. However, other unexpected projects have taken precedence, specific funds have not been allocated for the bell’s restoration, and there is no specific timetable for its return to public display.

Due to building renovations, the bell is completely inaccessible until at least January 2023. If you wish to see the Kentucky Liberty Bell after that time, please contact KHS at (502) 564-1792 at least two weeks prior to your visit to schedule a time.

(Former) location: Rear garden of the Kentucky History Museum
100 W Broadway
Frankfort, KY 40601

Serial Number: 36

Can I ring it? Not right now. It’s in storage.

Note: The bell was formerly displayed outdoors within a lockable gated area, accessible during open museum hours (10 to 5 Tuesday to Saturday, closed Sunday and Monday). The bell is currently not on public display.