Trains are still chugging through Western Wisconsin, as they have been since the 1800's.

But once those train cars are out of commission, they can be lost forever.

As Sarah Stokes shows us in this Wandering Wisconsin, there's a place in Dunn County, where they're making sure railroad history doesn't get derailed.

The Colfax Railroad Museum isn't a graveyard for train cars, think of it more like a hospital, where when they get here they're put back together and find new life.

"This was a magnificent car," says Herb Sakalaucks.

That magnificence is hiding under a huge mess.

"Almost like an archaeological dig, behind paint and paper to see what was there originally," he adds.

And what Herb Sakalaucks sees, was this car's heyday...

"Interior on this is all mahogany."

...and how he can bring it back.

"Built 63 new oak windows for the car, re-sided the car. You've seen something come back from extinction. This is the height of woodworkers art," he says.

But someone did some woodworking of their own on this car, cutting it up, adding on and using it as a house in Hammond up until 5 years ago.

"You couldn't even tell it was a train car," he says.

The other train cars here have a similar story.

"This is an 1884 mail car, built in Hudson by the Omaha route. This was a house in Altoona," he points out.

"This car had been siting in a Chippewa Falls yard for a few years, vandals had gotten into it."

Sakalaucks, the chairman of the Colfax Railroad Museum, has spent more than a decade using his woodworking skills to get these cars back on track.

His family has hopped on board with the projects too, he points out his wife's hard work, "she hand stripped all the wood."

And says his kids got some serious woodworking lessons, "found some inlays," he adds.

Those little details add up to a big experience.

"What we try to have people see here is what they would have experienced on a day to day basis with the railroad, whether you worked on it, rode on it, or shipped on it."

If you rode first class on a train back then, you would have been treated to stained glass and even cool comfort.

"This is a 1st class coach, built in 1911 by Barney and Smith for the Soo Line, was also one of the 1st cars built with air conditioning," he said.

"It was a different lifestyle, a lot slower, more relaxed, a lot more elegant."

That elegance is captured in the china. Each railroad had its own patterns, and this museum has one of the top five railroad china collections in the nation.

"Every service had its own plate, it was elegant dining and you don't see that anymore."

You can also see what the workers used to light up the railroad nights. There's a large lantern collection inside the restored depot, but Sakalaucks says it isn't the lanterns that light up the kids' faces.

"They see Thomas the Tank Engine. That's the big thing, but these are the real things, and a chance to see them up close, touch them, and climb on them."

He says he's loved trains since he was a kid, too

"My dad got me started when I was younger," he said.

And plans to spend his retirement years going full steam ahead, turning these train wrecks into train treasures.

"If someone's interesting in learning, we're interested in teaching."

Herb says even if you've been here before or you're a new visitor, this year, keep coming back. They're always acquiring new pieces in the museum and always doing more work on the cars. He says they've got about 20 more years worth of restoration to be done.

The museum is open the last weekend in May from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., but starting in June through August, it will be open Thursday through Sunday 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission is $2.50 for adults, $1.50 for kids six and over.

Museum members can use the library and video resources and the museum will now be available for birthday parties.

If you'd like to learn more, click here.