Block Party Held In Muskogee For ‘Big Boy’ Steam Locomotive Rolling Through

The largest steam locomotive in the world, Union Pacific No. 4014, is spending the night in Oklahoma.

The "Big Boy" rolled through the state in 2019 headed north, this year it's headed south and expected to bring a lot of spectators. It’s made several stops in the state, and it visited Muskogee for the first time Thursday.

“One of the most important things it’s a steam locomotive that’s still running,” said Ed Dickens, the train’s operations manager.

Dickens has been traveling across the sooner state on Big Boy, celebrating the 150th anniversary of the transcontinental railroad.

“It’s all part of the celebration of our heritage. The heritage of America, but also most importantly, the heritage of railroading. Railroading oftentimes is kind of in the background of our lives, but strategically, railroads are extremely important to our economy,” Dickens said.  

Dickens said they get large crowds everywhere they go.

Hundreds of people - young and old - came out to tracks off Broadway Ave in Muskogee for a special block party. Some people even came two and half hours early, all to see the piece of history up close.

“I love trains because I think they’re amazing and loud and a great way to move things around!” said young train enthusiast Kayerra Lewis.

The locomotive has the name “Big Boy” for a good reason. It’s 135 feet long and weighs over 1.2 million pounds.

Mayor Marlon Coleman gave Union Pacific a key to the city and declared August 12th “Union Pacific Day.” Coleman said trains are vital to the country and to Muskogee.

“Union Pacific railroad makes over $200 million investment into the state of Oklahoma, many of those dollars land right here in the city of Muskogee,” Coleman said. “Their presence just at Muskogee alone guarantees jobs, guarantees economic investment, and changes lives in a great way.”

After the half-hour stop in Muskogee, The Big Boy headed full steam ahead to McAlester, but not without leaving plenty of smiles and memories.

A complete schedule of Big Boy's 2021 multi-city tour, along with a map tracking its journey, can be found here. The public can also follow along with Big Boy's adventure on Twitter at #BigBoy2021.