By RORY MOORE
Especially for the Hays Post

Big Boy No. 4104, the largest operational steam locomotive in the world, rolled through Hays in front of a crowd of hundreds on Sunday morning.

The famous 83-year-old steam locomotive stopped in town before heading to Grainfield as part of its nine-state Heartland of America tour.

Big Boy announced his arrival as he whistled to many excited families who gathered to watch the train stop on the tracks at the intersection of Ninth and Milner Streets.

Many had seen it before, others saw it for the first time.

Rick Stapleton of Dodge City had seen other versions of Big Boy in museums but had never seen him in motion.

“It's a massive locomotive and I've always wanted to see one move and feel the noise,” he said. “I saw one in a museum in Denver and one on the cliffs overlooking the Missouri River in Omaha.”

The train is one of 25 Big Boy locomotives manufactured by the American Locomotive Company and Union Pacific to transport freight across the country, primarily through the Wasatch Mountain Range in Utah and the Rocky Mountain Range in Colorado.

The powerful train was introduced in the railway industry in the 1940s and became reliable due to its performance. It is part of the Union Pacific's Heritage Fleet, which has been conducting a restoration project there since 2013.B

Built in 1941, locomotive #4104 weighs 1.2 million pounds and is 132 feet long. The Heritage Fleet retired it in 1961 and Union Pacific returned it to service in 2019.

Big Boy is one of the few remaining working steam locomotives in the world, making the experience unique for many of its younger viewers who are used to modern trains that run on fuel and electricity.

“It's really impressive how they whistled and how loud it got,” said Dale Highfill of Hays. “It kind of surprised everyone.”

People of all ages have admired the train due to its previous visits to Hays, particularly in 2019 when its appearance was brightened by snowfall. Its popularity and annual trips cause many to travel out of town to see the locomotive in person.

“I’ve talked to people who have come here for up to two and a half hours to see it,” Highfill said. “It takes quite a long time to get here to see it, and afterward they won’t forget it.”

For older viewers like Highfill, Big Boy's stop in Hays brings back memories of growing up with older technology and watching it evolve.

“That’s the kind of thing age reveals,” he said. “When my great-great-grandfather and I watched them work in Oklahoma, it wasn't this, it was something similar.

“He kept walking the way he was walking and then he was on horseback and then he was in this land rush. We got planes and cars and he wondered what would happen in our lives. I'm sitting here thinking about it, “Go back to the train.”

Another factor that increases people's anticipation of the tour is their amazement at Big Boy's size and appearance.

“Everyone seems a little surprised because I think the size is getting to them,” Highfill said. “If you look at their faces, they all have smiles on their faces and are happy. It’s a big black train, so it stands out to them quite impressively.”