July 25, 2024 |
Photo – Big Boy #4014 – Bigfoot99 file photo
The Medicine Bow Museum is prepped and ready for the arrival of the largest operational steam train in the world.
At 11:00am Friday morning, the Union Pacific Big Boy will arrive in Medicine Bow for the next-to-final stop of its Westward Bound Tour. The big steam engine is expected to draw hundreds of people to the small town in northern Carbon County, once an important stop on railroad.
Medicine Bow Museum Director Dawndee Yocom said despite the anticipated crowds, the museum board opted not to host a large event. Yocom said she and former museum director Sharon Biamon are simply making sure they are fully stocked with Medicine Bow-related merchandise.
Yocom said she has one vendor scheduled to attend tomorrow’s Big Boy stop: Jennifer Clark from the Rock River goat rescue, J & J Second Chance Small Holdings. The museum director said drinks will also be available.
Yocom said a local person will also be set up to sell her home-made jewelry during the event.
The Big Boy made an unexpected stop in Medicine Bow during the outgoing leg of its Westward Bound Tour. Yocom said she was in disbelief when a museum volunteer told her hundreds of people had visited that day.
Anticipating an even larger crowd for tomorrow’s scheduled stop, Yocom said she needs additional volunteers to help at the museum. She said the facility can’t support the number of people expected to attend the event.
Built in the early 1940’s, Big Boy, known by the designation 4014, is a 4-8-8-4 type locomotive. The numbers indicate the wheel configuration of the engine, with the Big Boy having four leading wheels, two sets of eight drive wheels, and four trailing wheels.
Between 1941 and 1944, 25 Big Boy locomotives were built to haul freight up the steep hills in and around Wyoming.
The large locomotives operated from 1944 until 1962, when the entire line was retired. Most of the engines were scrapped, with only eight examples surviving today.
All but one of the remaining Big Boy locomotives are display pieces, sitting in parks and museums across the country. Between 2014 and 2019, number 4014 underwent an extensive restoration project courtesy of Union Pacific’s steam train program. Now, 4014 is the largest operational steam locomotive in the world.
In 2019, after the restoration was complete, Union Pacific began taking the Big Boy on cross-country tours. The event is a big deal in the rail-fan community, with hundreds of people following the steam locomotive during its travels.
Tomorrow is the final leg of the Big Boy’s Westward Bound Tour. The excursion took 4014 through several states, including Wyoming, Utah, Nevada, California, and Idaho.
Following an overnight stop in Rawlins, 4014 will arrive in Medicine Bow at 11:00am tomorrow. Big Boy then will head back to the Capital City for an appearance during the final Friday night of Cheyenne Frontier Days. The steam engine will undergo maintenance before making its way south for the Heartland of America Tour in late August.
