EVANSTON — Union Pacific’s legendary steam locomotive Big Boy No. 4014, engineered by senior manager of Union Pacific Heritage Operations Ed Dickens, stopped overnight in Evanston on …
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EVANSTON — Union Pacific’s legendary steam locomotive Big Boy No. 4014, engineered by senior manager of Union Pacific Heritage Operations Ed Dickens, stopped overnight in Evanston on Wednesday, July 3 during its Westward Bound Tour. The tour will showcase the aptly-named engine — which is the world’s largest steam locomotive — to California, then back to its homebase in Cheyenne by the end of the month. The train was greeted excitedly by hundreds of enthusiasts of all ages during a local bash held at the Machine Shop and the railyards.
“We have an absolutely fabulous crew. There’s a lot of training involved and we’re bringing up the next generation,” Dickens, who has 36 years of railroading experience, told the Herald.
Dickens oversaw the 2.5-year restoration of the engine, originally built in 1941. Sixty years after its retirement, the revitalized train was unveiled in May 2019 during its tour to Ogden, Utah, for the celebration of the 150th anniversary of driving the “Golden Spike,” which tied America’s coasts by rail.
“This is a unique machine,” he said. “It’s not automated. It’s 100% manually operated. We’ve put about 15,000 miles on it since [it was restored].”
Initially to be named “Wasatch” after the mountainous front it would be trekking across, legend has it that an anonymous crew member wrote the name “Big Boy” on the side of the engine in chalk before it departed the station for its maiden journey.
“The name stuck,” Dickens said.
After Union Pacific scrapped most Big Boys in 1959 in favor of diesel-electric locomotives, eight steam engines were retained for posterity and displayed around the country. Big Boy No. 4014 is the only operational engine of those remaining.
Lynda Erickson, from Bedford (Lincoln County) brought her dad, Cliff Wilson, to Evanston to see Big Boy on the eve of his 83rd birthday. Wilson, who shares a birth year with the engine, fondly remembers the train traveling through his family farm in Nampa, Idaho, as a boy, which fed his love and enthusiasm for locomotives.
“This trip is such a big deal for him. A dream come true,” Erickson said, shortly before Wilson was introduced to Dickens. “It’s just so neat how much this means to him. This is really the best birthday gift we could give him.”
The Big Boy Bash, which was hosted by the Evanston Historic Preservation Commission, offered blacksmithing displays, $1 turntable rides, food and retail vendors, and deejaying services provided by Bearded Boombox Productions. All proceeds will benefit the ongoing restoration of Steam Engine 4420 and the Wahsatch Willy water tower relocation project.