Railroad fans enjoy viewing of a Big Boy locomotive

On June 15 and 16, the Union Pacific Big Boy No. 4014 was open for public viewing at Steamtown National Historic Site in Scranton. While the 15th and 16th were the only two public display days with a virtual tour of the cab, the public can still get up close to view the world’s largest operating steam locomotive, along with the decommissioned Big Boy No. 4012, which is permanently displayed at Steamtown.

A commemorative journey across the U.S.

On April 10, Big Boy No. 4014 departed from Sacramento, Calif., on a trip across the United States to commemorate the country’s semiquincentennial. It has stopped for display in eight cities and has had over 50 whistle-stops in 10 different states. It began the Eastern leg of its tour on May 25, and it is scheduled to conclude its journey in Cheyenne, Wyoming, on July 29. The locomotive is currently in Scranton, where it will remain until the end of the month, receiving scheduled maintenance before it departs again to travel South to Philadelphia for a 4th of July celebration.

Anyone interested can still visit Steamtown before June 30 to see both Big Boy locomotives side by side, though a timed reservation is required before arriving. There is no fee to enter the park, but visitors will be charged a $1 service fee when making an online reservation.

The Big Boy legacy

Built in 1941, No. 4014 was one of 25 Big Boys designed to transport materials for the war effort, and it operated until 1961. It was then donated to the Railway and Locomotive Historical Society and later displayed at the RailGiants train museum in Pomona, Calif. In 2013, Union Pacific reacquired No. 4014, which then underwent restoration completed in 2019. While the other seven remaining Big Boys are on display in museums around the country, No. 4014 is the only one currently operating.

The Big Boy locomotives are aptly named for their size and weight, with No. 4014 standing 17 feet tall and weighing 1.2 million pounds when coupled to a full tender. It has a water capacity of 25,000 gallons and can reach a top speed of 65 miles per hour. While No. 4014 used to be powered by coal, it has run on No. 5 oil since being restored in 2019. Just a single one of its driving wheels has a diameter of five feet and eight inches, to give context for how large a machine it truly is.