Antique guns stolen from Weller Library in Mohawk, safe return sought
Story Created:
Sep 28, 2011 at 6:21 PM EDT
Story Updated:
Sep 29, 2011 at 2:03 PM EDT
MOHAWK, N.Y. (WKTV) - Two antique revolvers stolen over the summer from the Weller Library Museum in Mohawk are still missing and Mohawk Village Historian Lillian Gaherty says it is time they were returned.
"Most people don't know what we have up here, but the most important was the guns, because they have Mohawk imprinted right on it," Gaherty says.
The two guns were manufactured in the 1870s at Mohawk Manufacturing Company. Gaherty noticed they were gone in July, a month after she last saw them.
"On June 13, I brought everyone that was interested up into the museum and the guns were here that night," she said.
The guns, marked with serial number 41 and 92 were part of only about 100 revolvers made between 1873 and 1878 in Mohawk.
The museum wants them back for the sake of historical preservation and before anyone gets hurt. The revolvers take a .32 caliber cartridge that is hard to find, and if forced with modern ammunition, the gun could blow up.
Mohawk Village Police weren't able to get prints from the cabinet and say it is a tough investigation to follow, as many people could have gone through the museum in the month before they were reported missing.
"Something like this...it's just gonna' stand out like a Model A car going down the street or someone trying to sell one that they stole," says Mohawk Police Chief Joe Malone.
With fewer than 30 known such revolvers to still exist, police say the guns could be worth up to $2,000.
"It isn't the money, I mean, it's something specific from Mohawk. We want them back. We want them in our Museum. That's where they belong," Gaherty says.
Mohawk Police tell us they've put word out to local gun collectors as well as collectors nationwide, in case these rare guns are found or someone tries to sell them.
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