OGDEN (AP) -- The demolition of one of Ogden's oldest structures started last week.
The Union Pacific backshop is being torn down for safety reasons and because it has outlived its usefulness, Union Pacific officials said."It serves no function for us," spokesman John Bromley said. "It's a hazard and an eyesore."
Constructed in 1906, the backshop provided a place for mechanics to do heavy service work on locomotives, said Mike Burdett, chairman of the Golden Spike chapter of the Railway & Locomotive Historical Society.
"It's one of the last, if not the last, giant steam engine buildings in the entire state. That's why I hate to see it go," he said.
The building was last used for complete overhauls in 1990, said Michael Maggio, who worked in the building for 39 years until it closed in 1993.
The backshop lost its functionality when Union Pacific relocated locomotive work.