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What is a Gandy Dancer?

Mary McMahon
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Updated: May 23, 2024
Views: 15,851
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A gandy dancer is someone who works on the maintenance crew of a railroad. Track crews are critical for a working railroad, as these men and women ensure that the tracks are in good working order, and they address situations on the tracks before they turn into problems. Work in this field can be backbreaking, and the hours are often very long, as people are sometimes required to travel great distances to check on and repair tracks.

The origins of the term “gandy dancer” to refer to a track worker are rather obscure. The term appears to have emerged at the end of the nineteenth century, and it was often used specifically in reference to black track workers. Many track workers in the Eastern part of the United States were of black heritage, while workers in the West tended to be Chinese and later Latin American, after Chinese immigrants were excluded from most work as well as property ownership, marriage, and citizenship. Latin American gandy dancers had their own term for themselves: traqueros.

There are a variety of theories about why track workers came to be known as gandy dancers. The “dance” part is actually rather easy, as most track crews sang songs while they worked to keep rhythm. Singing also helped to dispel fatigue, and on a well-coordinated crew, the singing and carefully timed movements could be reminiscent of dancing.

As for the “gandy,” things are a bit more complicated. Some people have suggested that it is a reference to special tools known as gandies which were use for lifting the rails while ties were replaced. However, this could easily be a backformation from “gandy dancer.” Others have said that it is a nod to the Gandy Manufacturing Company of Chicago, which made lots of tools for track maintenance. This would be plausible, except that no record of this company's existence can be found.

In another theory about the origins of "gandy dancer," people point to the way in which the rails used to lie track were handled. These rails were very heavy, and typically a large crew of men would move the rail together, shuffling carefully in time to the music and supposedly looking like a flock of waddling geese. This apparently led people to call track workers “gander dancers,” which was corrupted into “gandy dancers,” though why ganders specifically instead of geese in general would be singled out is unknown. Perhaps it is a reference to the all-male nature of historic train crews.

Whatever the origins of the term, gandy dancers routinely ride the rails to inspect them. Every time a train passes, the vibration loosens the fixtures of the track, so it is important to tighten tracks, check for rotting or damaged ties, and clear hazards on the tracks such as downed trees. Gandy dancer crews historically used specially built lightweight track cars, which could be self-powered or powered by a small engine, to travel the sections of the track they maintained. Many modern crews use custom-fitted cars and trucks which are capable of driving on train tracks.

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Mary McMahon
By Mary McMahon

Ever since she began contributing to the site several years ago, Mary has embraced the exciting challenge of being a PublicPeople researcher and writer. Mary has a liberal arts degree from Goddard College and spends her free time reading, cooking, and exploring the great outdoors.

Discussion Comments
By anon1006753 — On May 15, 2022

I worked as a gandy dancer for the Bessemer Lake Erie RR in the early 70s. No blacks,Chinese or Mexicans. We did speed and smoked marijuana (even the old guys). And no dancing or songs. Ever!

By anon178385 — On May 20, 2011

I worked on a section gang in the forties. I worked

with five black men (I was a 16 year old white boy) and most of them had worked for the railroad many years. I think we were more commonly referred to as section hands, and a group of men that stayed in older bunking cars and came to build or rebuild track to help local section crews were more likely called "Gandy Dancers." They had a sing song that they used to lift heavy loads where a rhythm was helpful.

By anon153141 — On Feb 16, 2011

I was a gandy dancer for the Illinois Central, Chicago and Eastern Illinois and Indiana Harbor Belt Railroads. The story I always heard was there was a company, Gandy, that made track maintenance equipment and that the section crews performed a "dance" while using them. Thus, the term gandy dancers.

By anon121673 — On Oct 25, 2010

Both my grandfathers were section foremen, one on the Santa Fe and one on the Katy railroad, and their tool box included a gandy hammer to drive spikes through the hold-down plates on the rails. The hammers were long handled and symmetrical. The head narrowed to a small round peen on each end.

Mary McMahon
Mary McMahon

Ever since she began contributing to the site several years ago, Mary has embraced the exciting challenge of being a...

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