Observations all along the line - Kimball & the Southern Panhandle First

Boy, Oh, Boy

Union Pacific's Big Boy 4014 steam engine drew quite the crowd when it passed through Kimball on its "Heartland of America" tour that continues this week in the Midwest.

The iconic locomotive departed Aug. 28 from its base in Cheyenne and has passed through Nebraska and Iowa to Illinois, where it proved to be a popular attraction this week at train stations and crossings along its route.

Coming up are stops in Missouri, Arkansas, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Colorado.

The Big Boy is the last operating steam engine of its kind....