The Liberty Bell Museum is pointed out by a small arrow on a city map. Hummm, I thought the Liberty Bell was in Philadelphia and I am in Melbourne, Florida. What’s up?
Curiosity got the better of me. I’m glad it did. Got turned around and lost getting there but hey, you are not really lost if you find what you were looking for, right?
A sign says the museum opens at 10 a.m. I have the pick of the parking lot. It is empty except for me. The museum building looks odd – a round shape with a curved top. Windows are painted on the side. Why no real ones?
Liberty Bell Museum has a replica of the original bell made in 1751
Promptly at 10 a.m. a white-haired woman comes out the museum front door carrying a banner with a flag hanging down that says, “Open”. She looks determined. Maybe because she faces a long walk down a long boulevard, a good city block in length, then onto a lawn bordering a street where she puts the sign into a holder.
The Liberty Bell Memorial Museum and Melbourne Military Memorial Park sit together. The grand boulevard reflects that bigger design.
I take it as a good sign someone came out the door and head for the museum entrance. The door opens just as I reach for the handle. A woman holds an American flag. She looks surprised to see me.
“Come in,” she invites. “I’ll be right back to give you a tour.” She too is on a flag mission and puts up the American flag on a pole near the bottom of the museum steps. I wonder do museum volunteers flip a coin to see who gets the long walk flag duty and who gets the short walk?
Inside the main round room, sure enough, there is a liberty bell right in the center. This one doesn’t have a crack.
For our nation’s 1976 Bicentennial Celebration the Whitechapel Bell Foundry in London, England, the same one that cast the original bell made in 1751, sent a letter to all 50 states asking if they’d like to buy a bell replica.
Melbourne school children raised $13,000 and a bell was purchased. Florida’s replica at the Liberty Bell Museum resides inside a water tower, recycled to be a museum (hence the round shape and no windows).
Liberty Bell Museum actually lets you ring the bell
You can ring the bell using a rubber mallet. The harder you hit, the deeper the sound. It has a lovely reverb that goes on and on, mellow and mysterious.
I felt it was an honor to ring the bell inside the Liberty Bell Museum. With tongue firmly in cheek the docents give me a business card announcing I was now a member of the Ding Dong Society. I am not making this up.
Docents, all volunteers, are gracious and knowing. We walked around looking at glass cases and exhibits on the walls. Lots of memorabilia packed in a small space. Melbourne had a Naval Air Station that was one of seven U.S. Navy operational training bases during World War II. They also had a German POW camp.
A hole was cut in the water tower wall and a long rectangular room added for more museum space. In here are many military uniforms, which brought back memories of my dad dressed in his Navy blues.
My docent points out a case full of binoculars. On the wall a small WWII poster says “Will You Supply Eyes for the Navy?” She tells me FDR himself asked the American people to donate their binoculars and include their name and address so the glasses could be returned after the war. The case if full of binoculars never returned because the owners are unknown.
Museum hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. No admission charge. Donations welcomed. The museum sits right next to the Melbourne water tower. Both the museum and the memorial park are part of Wells Park.
The park continues across the street with a huge pond and a walking path all the way around. Nearby are picnic tables and playground equipment.
I loved learning bits and pieces of history here in Florida. Did you know we had a liberty bell replica and a Liberty Bell Museum? Me neither. I’d go back and ring the bell again in a heartbeat.
©2008 Lucy Beebe Tobias. All rights reserved. Lucy is an author, artist, and authentic Florida expert living in Ocala, Florida
More to Explore
Florida coloring books are available for free