Purdue earned the nickname “Boilermakers” when the football team allegedly played actual boilermakers on the field in a game against Wabash College in 1891. The trains that brought Purdue football to their various away games soon became known as “Boilermaker specials,” since the trains operated outside of usual train timetables just for the team. To recognize this tradition and Purdue’s reputation for engineering, the first Boilermaker Special debuted in 1940. The fan base has been “on board” with their locomotive mascot ever since.