Two Big Boys In The Same Railyard For The First Time Since 1959 — What Steamtown Looks on June 15th

Two Big Boys In The Same Railyard For The First Time Since 1959 — What Steamtown Looks Like On June 15th Two of the eight surviving Union Pacific Big Boy locomotives will share the same railyard in Scranton, Pennsylvania on June 15th — the first time two of these machines have been in the same location since they were in active revenue service in the 1950s. This is not a schedule guide. It is an institutional audit: how both machines survived the 1959 scrapping order, what their survival cost across six decades, and what ends permanently when Big Boy 4014 leaves Scranton at the end of June. Of the 25 Big Boy locomotives built by ALCO between 1941 and 1944, 17 were scrapped between 1959 and 1962. The eight that survived did so through a sequence of accidental individual decisions — not institutional planning. Number 4012's survival required one man to create a non-profit organization from scratch specifically to receive the Union Pacific donation. Number 4014 survived 52 years of outdoor display in Pomona, California before Union Pacific reacquired it in 2013 and spent $50 million on a full operational restoration. Both machines are in Scranton in June 2026. What they look like standing next to each other is the most complete record of American industrial preservation policy currently on public display anywhere in this country. Steamtown National Historic Site is at 350 Cliff Street, Scranton, Pennsylvania. June 15 and 16 are the Union Pacific closed display days, ticketed through recreation.gov. Both locomotives remain on site through June 30 during regular park hours. Chapters: 00:00 The accounting decision — 17 of 25 scrapped 02:30 What the Big Boys actually were 06:00 How 4012 survived: Nelson Blount and the accidental non-profit 10:30 The institutional audit: $66 million and no roof 15:00 What the June 15th configuration looks like 17:30 The last frame — what ends when 4014 leaves References: Steam Giants — The Union Pacific Big Boy Story. steamgiants.com/big-boy/history/union-pacific-big-boy-story/ Steam Giants — Surviving Big Boy Locomotives. steamgiants.com/big-boy/history/surviving-big-boy-locomotives/ Steam Giants — Union Pacific 4012 Big Boy at Steamtown. steamgiants.com/big-boy/union-pacific-4012-big-boy/ NPS — History of the Union Pacific Big Boy No. 4012. nps.gov/stea/learn/historyculture/history-of-the-union-pacific-big-boy-no-4012.htm NPS — Return of Union Pacific Railroad Big Boy No. 4012, May 2021. nps.gov/stea/learn/news/return-of-union-pacific-railroad-big-boy-no-4012.htm NPS — Big Boy No. 4012 Removed From Display for Cosmetic Restoration, October 2019. nps.gov/stea/learn/news/steamtown-national-historic-site-s-union-pacific-big-boy-no-4012-removed-from-public-display-for-cosmetic-restoration-and-painting.htm NPS — Big Boy Reunion at Steamtown 2026. nps.gov/stea/planyourvisit/big-boy-reunion-at-steamtown-2026.htm HawkinsRails — Steamtown National Historic Site Scrapbook. hawkinsrails.net/preservation/snhs/snhs.html NPPlan.com — Union Pacific Big Boy No. 4012 Locomotive. npplan.com/parks-by-state/pennsylvania-national-parks/steamtown-national-historic-site-park-at-a-glance/steamtown-national-historic-site-train-collection/union-pacific-big-boy-no-4012-locomotive/ Trains and Railroads — Union Pacific 4014. trains-and-railroads.com/union-pacific-4014 Fox News — Big Boy Steam Locomotive Begins Trip from California to Wyoming, 2014. foxnews.com/us/big-boy-steam-locomotive-begins-trip-from-california-to-wyoming-will-return-to-the-rails