Pictured are mooring buoys that had been stolen from the Lawson Center Boat Museum in Bemus Point in 2016. A tip from a citizen revealed the stolen buoys were located in Erie County, N.Y.

A tip from a citizen led to the recovery of antique metal mooring buoys stolen in 2016 from the outdoor display of the Lawson Boating Heritage Center in Bemus Point.

Mooring buoys are floating devices anchored to the seabed, allowing boats to tie up and remain stationary without using an anchor. Historically they were large metal spheres with a metal loop end for tying to an anchor, but are now typically plastic or Styrofoam. Long thought to have been cut up and sold for scrap metal, they were found in good condition and being used as lawn ornaments.

David Wesp, past president of the Lawson Center, recently traveled with the Navigation Division of the Chautauqua County Sheriff’s Office to Erie County, N.Y., located and recovered the long missing buoys. Wesp was ecstatic about their return.

The 50-pound buoys are more than 60 years old and were used to anchor boats outside the center in the 1930s through the 1950s. The two red and white buoys had been displayed out in front of the center as decoration

“We (the Lawson Center) believe in the good moralities of people and always hoped someone would someday return them to us,” Wesp said. “They are an important part of the history of our lake.”

The buoys have been returned to their former display and will soon be refinished. No charges will be filed as the person in possession did not know they were stolen. The Lawson Center is open seasonally and showcases Chautauqua Lake’s boating history, and incorporates displays