The world's largest steam engine is making its way across the country, attracting crowds in cities and small towns wherever it goes. Currently chugga-chugga-choo-chooing across the Midwest, the hulking black engine is spreading old-fashioned analog delight across America's heartland and leaving wholesome local news stories in its wake. The steam engine's name is Big Boy, and he is a very big boy.
The occasion for Big Boy's restoration was the 150th anniversary of the completion of the 1,900-mile Transcontinental Railroad in Promontory Summit, Utah. Big Boy steamed into Ogden, Utah, for the festivities in May, and then continued his journey. He is currently on a leg that Union Pacific is calling “The Great Race Across the Midwest.” (You can track his progress on this interactive map.)
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