How much did the Big Boy cost?

“Big Boy” is the World's Largest Successful Steam Locomotive Built in 1941 by the American Locomotive Company at a cost of $265,000.00 and with a total weight of over 600 tons, Number 4006 is one of 25 Big Boys.



The original Big Boy steam locomotives, built by the American Locomotive Company (ALCO) between 1941 and 1944, cost about $265,000 each at the time of production.

Adjusting for inflation, that amount would be roughly $4.5 to $5 million in today’s dollars.

It’s worth noting that Union Pacific’s Big Boy No. 4014 — the one restored to operating condition in 2019 — required a multi-year restoration estimated to cost several million dollars, though the exact figure hasn’t been publicly detailed.

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Jim Wrinn was quoted in USA Today as estimating the cost to restore the 4014 at roughly $4 million. If I remember correctly, Stephen Lee was the engineer on the 844 trip.

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All of the Big Boys were coal-burning, stoker-fired, designed to run 7,000 horsepower at 70 miles per hour. They have been lauded in the industry as the highest horsepower, heaviest, and longest steam locomotives ever built.

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Twenty-five Big Boys were built exclusively for Union Pacific Railroad, the first of which was delivered in 1941. Of the eight remaining Big Boys in existence, No. 4014 is the only one operating today. The Big Boys were about 133 feet long and weigh 1.2 million pounds.

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Each one cost approximately $265,000 to build, or about $4.4 million in today's money. In the railroad world, the Big Boys were known as 4-8-8-4 articulated type locomotives.

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Therefore I say it was and is the largest steam engine that was ever created... There was a machine called the Allegheny type which I think was a 4-6-6-6 which some believe was actually more powerfull and heavier than the Big Boy.

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Stood on its end, one would be the equivalent of a 13-story building. Each one cost approximately $265,000 to build, or about $4.4 million in today's money. In the railroad world, the Big Boys were known as 4-8-8-4 articulated type locomotives.

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Theoretically, the Big Boy could pull a train 5.5 miles (8.9 km) long on flat ground from a standing start. In practice, the engine routinely pulled over 100 cars. During World War II, the Big Boys spent most of their time moving freight between Ogden and Green River.

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A group of Union Pacific employees volunteered their services to restore the locomotive to running condition in 1981. In 2022, Union Pacific donated Challenger No. 3985 to the non-profit Railroading Heritage of Midwest America (RRHMA) who plans to restore it back to operating condition.

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2023 Schedule In 2023, Big Boy No. 4014 visited Omaha on the Home Run Express during June.

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World's most powerful electric locomotive Shen24 by CRRC for coal cargo service in China. China: The 28.8 MW 24-axle six-section locomotive develops starting tractive effort of 2,280 and continuous tractive effort of 1,596 kN reaching 120 km/h. Its official operation began in June 2021.

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Flying Scotsman is owned by the National Railway Museum and operated and maintained by Riley & Son (E) Ltd.

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Its girth requires a 4-8-8-4 wheel configuration to keep it rock-steady on the rails. With a puny 7,000 horsepower, Big Boys had a maximum tractive power of 135,375 pounds, all to pull huge loads of freight across steep grades in Utah's Wasatch Mountains and the Rockies.

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