The Union Pacific Railroad 2024 Heartland of America Tour is coming right through Christian County.  The tour kicks off August 28th from Cheyenne, Wyoming, passing through 10 states including Illinois.  The star of the show is the famed Big Boy No 4014 locomotive.  There were 25 “Big Boys” built during WWII but only eight have survived.  No 4014 is the only one of the eight still in operation and remains the world’s largest operating steam locomotive. 

On the afternoon of September 10th, the train will go through Pana before stopping in Nokomis from 3-3:30 PM. 

Twenty-five Big Boys were built exclusively for Union Pacific Railroad, the first of which was delivered in 1941. The locomotives were 132 feet long and weighed 1.2 million pounds. Because of their great length, the frames of the Big Boys were "hinged," or articulated, to allow them to negotiate curves. They had a 4-8-8-4 wheel arrangement, which meant they had four wheels on the leading set of "pilot" wheels which guided the engine, eight drivers, another set of eight drivers, and four wheels following which supported the rear of the locomotive. The massive engines normally operated between Ogden, Utah, and Cheyenne, Wyo.

There are seven Big Boys on public display in various cities around the country. They can be found in St. Louis, Missouri; Dallas, Texas; Omaha, Nebraska; Denver, Colorado; Scranton, Pennsylvania; Green Bay, Wisconsin; and Cheyenne, Wyoming.

Big Boy No. 4014 was delivered to Union Pacific in December 1941. The locomotive was retired in December 1961, having traveled 1,031,205 miles in its 20 years in service. Find out more information by visiting https://www.up.com/heritage/steam/4014/