HORNELL, N.Y. (WENY) — For railroad enthusiasts and history buffs, a piece of history will soon make its way to the Southern Tier. Union Pacific Big Boy number 4014 is currently steaming across the country, and right through our area.
A famous locomotive is making its way to the Southern Tier next Thursday. The Big Boy will make several stops in Southern Tier, including at Hornell’s Erie Depot Museum, located at 111 Loder Street.
The Union Pacific Big Boy is a relic of America’s railroading heyday, and it’s coming to the Southern Tier next week. Next Thursday, it arrives in the Maple City, a place with deep railroad history.
“Hornell used to be a big railroad town in its day, used to be the main repair shops on the Erie Railroad, so it’s pretty significant having that train come through Hornell, and there’s a lot of rail fans here,” stated Richard Bartlett, a 20-year volunteer with the Erie Depot Museum.
Big Boy locomotives have history in New York State, despite usage mostly happening elsewhere.
“The Big Boy was built in Schenectady, and just coming back to New York State is a big event. This is gonna be a once in a lifetime experience for a lot of people, and we’re all excited to watch it,” added Joe Farnham, a 10-year volunteer with the Erie Depot Museum.
The steam locomotive is one of 25 manufactured in the early 1940s by the American Locomotive Company to haul freight over the high Wasatch Range mountains along the Utah-Idaho border. The celebration surrounding the engine will bring a multitude of onlookers, but safety remains the priority.
“Union Pacific wants everybody to be at least 25 feet away from the locomotive, ’cause it does put out a lot of heat and steam it spits out,” added Bartlett.
The museum will open in the hours leading up to Big Boy’s arrival and stay open after it has departed. Also on the museum grounds will be liver music and several food trucks. Several roads will be closed and parking at nearby businesses is reserved for patrons.
“Safety is the main thing. You stay back away from it. You can get up close, you can see details, but you also got telephoto lenses on your cameras and on your phones. You can get the details later, but please stay back,” remarked Farnham.
With it being a once in a lifetime opportunity to see the big boy in person, they’re expecting a very high turnout in the Maple City. It’ll be making a stop at the Erie Depot Museum at 2:00 PM next Thursday. It’ll stop for about half an hour before continuing onward, eventually reaching the Keystone State.
Following the whistle stop in Hornell, the Big Boy continues on through Steuben and Chemung counties on Thursday. It’s next whistle stop is in Owego the following morning at 10:45.