FBI Repatriates Revolutionary War-Era Firearms At Philadelphia’s Museum Of The American Revolution

The FBI announced the return of several Revolutionary War-era firearms during a repatriation ceremony at Philadelphia’s Museum of the American Revolution last week, according to CBS.

These guns, stolen in the 1960s and 1970s from around Valley Forge Park, were recovered following a lengthy investigation involving the FBI’s Art Crime Team, the Department of Justice, and the Upper Merion Township Police Department. The agency is now seeking public assistance to locate more missing artifacts.

Special Agent Jake Archer, a member of the FBI’s Art Crime Team said: “We were all committed to seeing justice — not just bringing the objects back home, but seeking a proper prosecution of those who perpetrated these crimes.”

CBS reported that in 2009, an investigation was triggered when a tipster informed Upper Merion Township police about a gun, suspected of being stolen, seen at a local antique show. Although it turned out not to belong to the Valley Forge collection, this tip led detectives to probe the thefts more deeply.

They collaborated with the Museum of the American Revolution, which now holds the collections previously managed by the dissolved Valley Forge Historical Society, and obtained a list of missing items.

As the investigation unfolded, Michael Corbett, Scott Corbett, and Thomas Gavin admitted to stealing items from Valley Forge Park and the Valley Forge Historical Society, according to the FBI. They assisted investigators in locating some of the stolen artifacts.

The collaborative effort expanded to include the FBI’s Art Crime Team, and together, they pursued leads on the thieves and the artifacts. Currently, the search continues for ten items: four firearms stolen on October 24, 1968, from Valley Forge and six other items taken from different locations.

The museum is actively working to refine the descriptions of the missing objects to include more distinctive details that may jog public memory, hoping that some artifacts might have been inherited unknowingly by individuals. The FBI and other involved agencies are still seeking public assistance to recover these pieces.

Scott Stephenson, president and CEO of the Museum of the American Revolution, concluded: “The fact is, the vast majority of people want to do the right thing.”

You can see photos and descriptions of the missing items on the FBI website.