Giant 'Big Boy' train begins a rare trip East. Here's where to see it

CHEYENNE, WY. ‒ Under wide blue skies, the world's largest operating steam locomotive has begun chugging east toward Philadelphia and the nation's 250th birthday celebrations.

Union Pacific's "Big Boy" is pulling a small train of cars as it heads east of the Mississippi, a rare journey to the eastern United States for the locomotive born to haul heavy materials across the Continental Divide between Wyoming and Utah. Preceded by the sound of its iconic steam whistle, the 133-foot-long locomotive will make multiple public stops during its trip, timed for July Fourth semiquincentennial ceremonies.

"A steam locomotive is an amazing machine from a bygone era," said Ed Dickens, a locomotive engineer and Union Pacific's senior manager of steam operations. "You don't have to be a rail fan for it to capture your imagination."

The train is making stops or appearances in Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois, including West Chicago, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania and upstate New York, before turning south to Philadelphia. Making the trip back west, it will stop in St. Louis and Kansas City, then return to Cheyenne in late July. Union Pacific recommends checking the Big Boy website for specific dates and times, and using the "steam tracker" to follow the train's historic journey.

Big Boy has already traveled west to California via Utah and Nevada this year as part of the 250th celebrations. Union Pacific officials say they expect more than a million people will have viewed the train in person by the time it gets back to the Cheyenne yards. People viewing the train's May 25 departure from Cheyenne came from as far away as New Jersey, along with enthusiasts from North Dakota, Colorado and Nebraska.

President Abraham Lincoln created the Union Pacific railroad amidst the Civil War, using the tracks to help tie the then-new state of California to the rest of the Union. Big Boy is the last operating locomotive of a class of heavy engines built to haul military material between the coasts during World War II. Keeping the train formally known as 4014 running has been a labor of love for Dickens and his crew.

Union Pacific bought 21 of the Big Boy locomotives, with the first delivered in 1941. Unlike modern locomotives that use diesel engines to power electric motors, the Big Boy class was originally fueled with burning coal, which heated up water to make the steam that moved the pistons connected to the wheels. Today, the last remaining Big Boy has been converted to burn fuel oil, although the railroad also uses waste engine oil from its traditional locomotives.

The train covered more than 1 million miles during its working life, and was retired in 1961. Union Pacific bought it back from a museum and Dickens and his crew spent several years restoring it, in many cases hand-crafting replacement parts that were no longer available. Today, because the train is a one-of-a-kind, it hauls along a special car filled with machine tools, including a drill press and lathe, so workers can make any necessary repairs along the way. It's also hauling a dorm car for the crew to sleep in.

Dickens asked that people who come to see the train during its eastern journey stay at least 25 feet back for safety. If you get any closer, the immense heat coming from the steam boiler serves as a potent reminder of just how powerful the locomotive is.

"When (people) come, they're going to hear that whistle, and chances are they're going to hear that whistle long before they see it. You'll feel the ground rumbling, feel the heat ... emanating off this giant machine. This locomotive, it does not disappoint," he said. "It runs like a Swiss watch."