He also mentioned the connection with the Pennsylvania Railroad, NS predecessor and at one time the nation’s largest railroad, whose main shops were in Altoona — while the CEOs of both current firms spoke of the merger connection they’re planning that would create anew the nation’s largest railroad and the first to span the country.

Shapiro chose Altoona to see the Big Boy because it remains a hub of railroad employment with the nearby Juniata Locomotive Shop, and because it’s a place to which tens of thousands of people trace railroad roots, he said.

“(And) I will work my tail off to make sure the shops are always here,” the governor said.

The shop, whose handiwork was on display behind the speakers with the America250-designed paintwork on NS diesel helper engines that are part of the Big Boy train, is even now the single largest locomotive facility in the nation and the “heart” of NS operations, according to NS CEO Mark George — who added that discussions with Union Pacific counterpart Jim Vena and the governor in recent times included how the parties could work together to bring development and jobs to Pennsylvania.

Gov. Josh Shapiro (right) talks with Union Pacific CEO Jim Vena (left) and Norfolk Southern president and CEO Mark George next to Union Pacific Big Boy No. 4014 locomotive at Norfolk Southern's Rose Yard in Altoona on Thursday afternoon. Mirror photo by Patrick Waksmunski

“We’re going through with the deal,” and it will be good for the nation, the Altoona area and the employees of the Locomotive Shop, Vena said.

The high-level officials at Thursday’s event called up the Big Boy’s engineer, Ed Dickens, for introduction and a picture.

Tall and wearing bib overalls, Dickens couldn’t fit the part better if he were straight from central casting in Hollywood, according to Vena.

He’s run the train from its base in Cheyanne, Wyo., to Sacramento, Calif., where it commenced its eastward trek, highlighted by a July 4 visit to the nation’s birthplace in Philadelphia, Vena said.

It’s headed back west now.

Railfans gather to get a closer look at Union Pacific Big Boy No. 4014 locomotive at Norfolk Southern's Rose Yard in Altoona on Thursday afternoon. Mirror photo by Patrick Waksmunski

“It’s the honor and privilege of a lifetime,” Dickens said later about his engineering gig, as he stood beside the train led by the Big Boy.

Dickens, 60, is a Colorado native who has loved trains all his life, and who has been operating steam locomotives since he was 21 — starting with a mini-engine on a railroad line owned by a friend.

He learned early by working as a fireman on excursion trains run by men in their 70s who had operated revenue-service steam engines in the 1940s and 1950s.

Ultimately, however, you need to figure it out on your own, according to Dickens.

“You either have it or you don’t,” he said. “I took to it like a duck to water.”

Gov. Josh Shapiro waves from the cab of Union Pacific Big Boy No. 4014 at Norfolk Southern's Rose Yard in Altoona on Thursday afternoon. Mirror photo by Patrick Waksmunski

The Big Boy is essentially two locomotives with one boiler, capable of tremendous power, he said.

The boilers are designed to operate with as much as 300 pounds per square inch of pressure, he said.

The train that includes three diesel locomotives and about a dozen cars that pulled into Altoona Wednesday is “100 percent” powered by the Big Boy, although when underway, the diesels are idling, and available when needed for braking, according to Dickens.

“All systems are live” on the steam engine, Dickens said.

He operates the Big Boy by “sensation.”

Gov. Josh Shapiro talks about the importance of the rail industry to the state as he is joined on stage by (from left) Altoona mayor Matt Pacifico, Norfolk Southern president and CEO Mark George and Union Pacific CEO Jim Vena at Norfolk Southern's Rose Yard in Altoona on Thursday afternoon. Mirror photo by Patrick Waksmunski

“You feel it in the seat of your pants, in your elbows and in your hands and in the pit of your stomach,” he said.

That operation via sensation is happening “every inch of the way,” as the locomotive travels across the country, “up hill, down dale,” around curves, “mile after mile,” he said.

He especially loves sounding the whistle.

“That’s the funnest part,” he said.

Marvel of engineering

Joseph Thomas Sr. of Lake Placid, Fla., was taking video Thursday of the Big Boy as it rested on a newly constructed spur parallel to the NS mainline.

NS had prepared the area by clearing a long space behind the Salvation Army Adult Rehabilitation Center and paving it with crushed and rolled stone.

There was a large tent with chairs in rows for attendees to rest, portable johns and water stations.

According to Altoona-Blair County Development Corp. CEO Stephen McKnight, attendance at Thursday’s event exceeded 15,000.

Thomas had never seen the Big Boy before, but he’s been following its progress since its restoration was merely “a rumor” in 2014, he said.

He chose Altoona for the viewing opportunity because his son Joseph Thomas Jr. and his son’s family live here.

The locomotive is massive in appearance, but, especially lower down, it’s complex, consisting of many and sundry parts.

Thomas Sr. appreciates all the workmanship, the attention to detail.

He was a diesel mechanic who worked on cars, trucks and heavy machinery, but prefers to contemplate steam locomotives when he thinks of railroading.

Diesels are powerful and efficient, but steam locomotives, in their mechanical complexity “are in a class by themselves,” he said.

And the whistle — “nothing beats the whistle,” he said.

He recalled the engine’s arrival in Blair County Wednesday, with its whistle echoing through the valley.

He’d previously wanted to go to Cheyanne to see the Big Boy, but the logistics didn’t work out.

That’s OK, because “this is a dream come true,” he said.

Event attendee Don Skubisz of Sykesville is a “diehard,” but not a “professional” railfan.

“Blame it on my late uncle,” a brakeman on the B&O Railroad who was hired in the late 1950s and retired from B&O successor CSX in 1982, he said.

Coming to see the Big Boy was a good way to break out of his normal routine, said Skubisz, who works for Beverage-Air Corp., a commercial refrigerator manufacturer in Brookville, he said.

Without a hitch

From the city’s perspective, Thursday’s Big Boy viewing went well, according to Altoona City Manager Christopher McGuire.

Other than a few non-life-threatening medical calls, there were no incidents, he said.

The city’s administrative office and the Police, Fire and Public Works departments were all involved, he said.

He spoke to out-of-town visitors who were pleased at what they saw here, saying the people are friendly and the event was well organized, McGuire said.

Mirror Staff Writer William Kibler is at 814-949-7038.