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OGDEN — Vandals have beat up, and spray-painted several historic trains in Ogden. To make matters worse, the volunteers, who spend hours working on them, say it's an ongoing problem.
"[We see] windows smashed in all the time," said museum manager Diana Azevedo. "It happens often."
Sometimes the trains become shelter for the homeless, despite preventative measures.
"We find personal possessions, sleeping bags — people are using them as restrooms," said volunteer Doug Clark.
Volunteers like Doug Clark and Maynard Morris, among others, often have to deal with the mess, while the real reason they come here is to turn pieces of history into long-lasting displays. They get the trains working like new again.
We spend many, many hours to rebuild something like it was done before, just because somebody kicked it out,
–Union Station volunteer Maynard Morris
"We spend many, many hours to rebuild something like it was done before, just because somebody kicked it out," said Morris.
Pieces are sometimes so old they have to be rebuilt from scratch. Morris has been working on one particular 1880's tinder car for nearly 20 years.
"They are actually artifacts on display that are being destroyed," said Azevedo.
Managers at Union Station say they can only do their best to keep up with the damage while holding out for better security measures. Union Station is Ogden city owned. Managers say the city is in the process of getting cameras and motion detectors installed, but this is a problem they say they've been dealing with for about three years.
