Seattle Parking Officer Finds Stolen Liberty Bell Replica Worth Over $100,000

A parking enforcement officer in Seattle on Monday spotted a stolen replica Liberty Bell said to be worth more than $100,000, authorities said.

The Seattle Police Department said Parking Enforcement Officer Michael Eaton was on duty on the 1300 block of Northwest 83rd Street at around 8 a.m. on Monday when he saw a detached flatbed trailer with a rain tarp covering an “enormous” item. When he saw that it was a large bell, he recalled a recent report about the theft of a replica Liberty Bell from the Evergreen Washelli Cemetery.

Police said the replica Liberty Bell was reported stolen from the cemetery on March 1. Staff told officers they found a lock had been cut, leaving the doors to a facility open, and the replica Liberty Bell that had been inside was missing. According to staff, the heavy, copper bell is quite rare, with only 20 such replicas in the world, and is estimated to be worth more than $100,000.

When the police department learned Eaton had found the bell, officers contacted cemetery staff to verify and recover it.

The real Liberty Bell, on display in a glass case next to Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Penn., is in fact the second Liberty Bell. The first was cast in London, England, in 1751 and shipped to Philadelphia to take its place in the tower of the Pennsylvania State House, which is now Independence Hall, according to the National Park Service. 

That bell cracked on its first test ring, so Philadelphia metalworkers John Pass and John Stow melted it down to create a second bell. The second bell saw “nearly 90 years of hard use” before a crack developed in the 1840s. The narrow crack was widened in an ultimately unsuccessful effort to repair it, and the crack can still be seen today.

Police said officers are working to identify suspects, and an investigation into the theft is ongoing.

Police are asking anyone with information, photos or videos related to the investigation to come forward or submit an anonymous tip.