Union Pacific reacquires loco

Saturday, July 27, 2013

Union Pacific 4-8-8-4 “Big Boy” No. 4014 is shown on May 11, 2005, when it was being preserved by the Railway and Locomotive Historical Society’s Southern California chapter at Pomona Fairplex in Pomona, Calif.

Union Pacific Railroad announced this week it reached an agreement with the Southern California Chapter Railway & Locomotive Historical Society in Pomona, Calif., to transfer ownership of one of the world’s largest steam locomotives, Big Boy No. 4014, back to Union Pacific.


The railroad plans to relocate No. 4014 to Cheyenne, Wyo., where Union Pacific’s Heritage Fleet Operations team will work to restore it to operating condition. Details regarding those efforts will be made public at a later date.


Union Pacific donated No. 4014 to the historical society on Dec. 7, 1961. The locomotive arrived Jan. 8, 1962, at its current display location at the Rail Giants Train Museum in Pomona.
“Our steam locomotive program is a source of great pride to Union Pacific employees past and present,” said Ed Dickens, senior manager of Union Pacific Heritage Operations. “We are very excited about the opportunity to bring history to life by restoring No. 4014.”
Union Pacific Railroad links 23 states in the western two-thirds of the country. From 2007 to 2012, Union Pacific invested $18 billion in its network and operations to support America’s transportation infrastructure, including a record $3.7 billion in 2012. Some of that investment was in double-tracking the former Southern Pacific “Sunset Route” through western Pinal County, including Maricopa, Casa Grande and Eloy. The route runs from Los Angeles to Houston and New Orleans.