Historic Weathervane Robbery

The cast-iron weathervane you see adorning the top of the White Church is a copy of the original vane depicting archangel Gabriel blowing a tapered trumpet, which was made in 1822 by Crown Point blacksmith William Henry Foster. According to local legend it was forged from ore that came from a hand-dug pit a mile away, the Saxe-Floyd Bed.

In 2003, the six-foot-long iconic weathervane was stolen. The theft had been so carefully planned that a replica of the weathervane was found in the parking lot. Something had scared off the thieves, keeping them from installing the reproduction. Eventually the stolen weathervane was recovered in Connecticut. Fearing the chance of it being stolen again and its fragile nature, the town of Crown Point decided to sell the weathervane. It sold to a private buyer for $750,000—with the money being used for preservation of the White Church and other historic purposes in Crown Point.