The City of Rocks National Reserve near Almo in south-central Idaho began testing chemicals this week to carefully remove spray-painted graffiti from historic sites.

Wallace Keck, superintendent at the reserve said more than $5,000 was raised with a Go Fund Me account put together by The Friends of Idaho State Parks. That money is being used to restore the historic sites.

“Nothing is coming out of the government on this,” Keck said. “It’s people who were sickened by what happened who have donated to have it cleaned up.”

Sometime during April 21, vandals spray-painted graffiti in black, white and pink colors over emigrant signatures and prehistoric pictographs on Camp Rock at the City of Rocks. The signatures written with wagon wheel axle grease were left by resting emigrants from the mid-1800s passing through on the California Trail as part of the Gold Rush.

The City of Rocks and adjacent Castle Rocks State Park are overseen by both the National Park Service and Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation. Both places are known for an abundance of tall granite spires and formations first named as a “City of Rocks” by passing emigrants during Gold Rush. The sites now attract rock climbers, hikers and campers.

No one has been arrested for the crime and National Park Service agents are still investigating.

Keck said more than 150,000 people saw the City of Rocks Facebook post seeking information on the incident. He said several credible tips came out of the online post.

“If they (vandals) are still running around, they have to be doing it with a heightened sense of people watching,” he said. “That crowdsourcing is what lead us to who we think it is.”