In Bradford County’s county seat of Towanda, a tribute to Pennsylvania’s role in America’s birth was unveiled Friday. Inside the courthouse, an unveiling ceremony was held for ‘Bells Across PA’ – a statewide public art initiative designed to celebrate America’s 250th anniversary.
Renata Stiehl
Renata Stiehl
TOWANDA, PA (WENY) — In Bradford County’s county seat of Towanda, a tribute to Pennsylvania’s role in America’s birth was unveiled Friday.
Inside the courthouse, an unveiling ceremony was held for ‘Bells Across PA’ – a statewide public art initiative designed to celebrate America’s 250th anniversary. Artists are selected from each county to paint a fiberglass bell sculpture, which will be on public display through 2026.
“The fiberglass Liberty Bells were designed of course after the Liberty Bell in Pennsylvania, and that’s such a staple, such a symbol not only of freedom and of America, but also the 250th anniversary and of Pennsylvania, the birthplace of American democracy and we’re so darn proud of that, we’re really ready to welcome the world and have the spotlight here,” said America250PA Executive Director, Cassandra Cole.
In Bradford County, Wyalusing High School teacher Shauna Case was selected from applicants to design the bell. She wanted to encapsulate key locations, incorporate nature and foundations held dear to its residents, also also pay tribute to its agricultural roots.
Her bell’s design includes the historic Bradford County courthouse in Towanda, the winding Susquehanna River, the Marie Antoinette lookout in Wyalusing, the Troy Fair, among other landmarks. It also showcases the county’s vivid sunsets, wildlife, vast farmland, including an homage to her own family’s farm.
“I tried to think about things that stood out to me, hoping they would be meaningful to others and if not they’d be good symbols of things for people. So the farm that’s here behind me, that’s my family’s farm that I grew up on and live down the road right next to it now, so that agricultural background, there’s landmarks like the Wyalusing Rocks and Marie Antoinette, and then the courthouse and the Troy Fair, I was just really hoping everyone would be able to identify with with those, and the river just kinds of ties it all together,” Case said.
The bell sits on a tree stump that comes from Mount Pisgah in Troy.
Each county in the Commonwealth will have at least one Bells Across PA mural, with a total of 108 being unveiled across 67 counties.
Tioga County will unveil its Bells Across PA mural on December 19th at Smythe Park.
To see all of the Bells Across PA unveiled so far, visit Bells Across PA. There are also plans to create an interactive map, where people can plan trips to visit the bells in communities across the state.