Talk:Gandy dancer
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[edit] Origins
My understanding is that the "Gandy Shovel Company", or any other company named Gandy, didn't really exist, and that this historical tidbit actually arises from a fictional account of the etymology. Can someone find a verifiable record of this company?
[edit] Other Uses
No disrespect to the Gandy Dancer Restaurant in Ann Arbor, but the term is used in the names of countless businesses across the country. It seems a little strange to feature just one.
- You're right - a quick Goggleing finds lots of Gandy Dancer businesses. I have removed it. - DavidWBrooks 16:13, 16 January 2006 (UTC)
[edit] Gandy Shovel Company
I have done a lot of research on the term gandy dancer and have never heard of the Chicago based company referred to as the Gandy Shovel Company. It is always referred to as the Gandy Manufacturing Company, or the Gandy Tool Company. Using the following as a source I am going to change "shovel" to "manufacturing".
[QUOTE] The tool was seemingly called a gandy, but where the name came from is a mystery. It would seem it was based on some bit of railway slang now lost to us. The idea that it referred to a Chicago business named the Gandy Manufacturing Company—which supposedly supplied a variety of tools to railway workers—seems to rest on a reference in a book called Railroad Avenue by Freeman H Hubbard, published in 1945. Several people have searched for this business, but have failed to find any trace of it in railway trade journals or Chicago city directories of the period. However, a number of otherwise reputable works continue to give this as the source. [END QUOTE]
Incidently many sources currently state, wrongly it would seem, that the tool was used to tamp the ballast (rock bed) between the ties - a good example of misinformation being quoted and re-quoted till evently accurate information can be forever lost. I feel that this example shows how important the work of Wikipedia is.
Gandydancer 13:20, 13 November 2006 (UTC)
