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BELPRE - Model railroad enthusiasts and railroad history buffs gathered Saturday at Depot Street Park for the 15th annual Belpre Railroad Day, sponsored by The Ohio and Little Kanawha Division, a chapter of the Collis P. Huntington Railroad Historical Society Inc.

Eldon Young, secretary of the division, said there are 24 members in the group, which was formed in 1992.

The group organized the first Railroad Day in Belpre after it received a donation of a caboose to set up at the park. The club is also in the process of remodeling an old passenger car to be used for more historical railroad displays.

As part of Saturday's event, displays featuring various model railroad sizes were set up by local model railroaders from the Mid-Ohio Valley Model Rail Road Club.

David Marquis, a MOVMRRC member, had a N gauge display set up he made based on half of a standard door. He used it to show displays can be made at a minimal expense, he said.

Marquis was able to show only one of his engines and a model trolley at Saturday's event. He said he got all of his things ready the night before and loaded them into his car, but the heavy fog early Saturday exposed most of the models to too much humidity and only the two near the bottom of the box were functioning property.

Marquis said he got involved in model railroads in 1965 after he was discharged from the military.

"I was looking for something to do, I was just out of the military and there was nothing to do but watch television," he said. "Some people suggested I try bowling but that was not the lifestyle I wanted. I was introduced to this and I've been with it ever since."

A year later he was married and when his son was born he began to acquire more trains.

"Every year at Christmas and his birthday I would buy two train sets - one for him and one for me," he said.

Marquis said the trains made in the 1960s or earlier are much sought after by collectors.

Harold Shive, of Pennsboro, showed his N gauge display at the program on Saturday. Shive said it began as a kit that he has expanded over the years. His display now features several tracks, bridges and two tunnels.

It also features a number of small details. One shows a pickup truck that was hit by a train with the bed on one side of the tracks and the cab on the other.

"That was my grandson's idea," he said.

Shive has one side set up to look like a small downtown area, featuring one building with the name of his actual business, Harold's Olde Printery, a letterpress printing shop, and the other side has an amusement park with an operating Ferris wheel and a carousel.