The legendary Big Boy No. 4014 steam locomotive owned by the Union Pacific Railroad will make stops in several Route 66 towns in Oklahoma and Missouri in August during its 2021 tour.
The Big Boy will make scheduled stops at these Mother Road cities:
- Aug. 12, Vinita, Oklahoma, at East Flint Avenue crossing; 9:45 a.m. arrival and 10:30 a.m. departure
- Aug. 29, St. Louis, at 430 S. 15th St., on display from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
- Aug. 30, Kirkwood, Missouri, 110 W. Argonne Drive, 9 a.m. arrival and 9:30 a.m. departure
- Aug. 30, Pacific, Missouri, First Street, 10:15 a.m. arrival and 10:45 a.m. departure
The full schedule is here.
The Big Boy weighs 1.2 million pounds and remains the largest steam locomotive in the world.
Twenty-five Big Boys were built exclusively for Union Pacific, the first of which was delivered in 1941 to handle the steep terrain between Cheyenne, Wyoming, and Ogden, Utah.
Of the eight still in existence, No. 4014 is the world’s only operating Big Boy. The other seven can be found on display in Cheyenne; Denver; Frisco, Texas; Green Bay, Wisconsin; Omaha, Nebraska; Scranton, Pennsylvania; and St. Louis.
Here’s a video about the locomotive’s restoration:
(Image of the Big Boy No. 4014 steam locomotive courtesy of Union Pacific Railroad)
Neat. Visited one of the Big Boy’s in Bismarck, MO in the early 90’s with my father in law. Good memories, would love to see one again.
That locomotive is uuuuuuuuuuge.