The sounds of Bluegrass music and train whistles will commingle at the first annual Gandy Dancer Festival on Sunday, August 12 in Central Park, Madison, Wisconsin. Sponsored jointly by Mid-Continent Railway Museum and The Southern Wisconsin Bluegrass Music Association, Inc. (SWBMAI), this event will combine free train rides on the Wisconsin & Southern Railroad with free music in a day-long festival. The festival site, a rail corridor formerly used by the Chicago & North Western and Milwaukee Roads, is located at the corner of Ingersoll and East Wilson Streets, Madison. Train rides will depart hourly beginning at 10:00 a.m.

Music on the main stage will begin at 11:00 a.m. with a Gospel-Bluegrass set by Jefferson County and wind up with the Alan Munde Gazette, 6:30-8:00 p.m. There will be more Bluegrass music by the The Nob Hill Boys and Round the Bend, along with train songs by Larry Penn of Milwaukee, and two blues bands, Filisko and Noden and the Water Street Hotshots.

“Gandy dancers” is railroad jargon for the hard-working section hands who maintained track for the railroads. Some authorities believe the name derives from the use of tools built by the Gandy Company, while others cite the rhythmic movements of the crew as they did their work. “We want to borrow from their image to symbolize the hard work that is taking place to restore one of Wisconsin’s railroad treasures, the Badger 2,” says Johanna Fabke, a lifelong rail fan. She is working with Carolyn Hegeler and Bob Queen of Madison, and Don Meyer, General Manager of the Mid-Continent Railway Museum to organize the festival.

The Badger 2 was custom-built by the Pullman Company in 1912 for the Wisconsin Fish Commission, a forerunner of today’s Department of Natural Resources. It was in service for more than 30 years transporting fry and fingerlings from state-owned hatcheries to waterways around Wisconsin to help build up the game-fish population. Several state and federal agencies used fish cars, but Badger 2 is believed to be the only one still in existence.

Citing its unique historic significance, the Jeffris Family Foundation of Janesville, Wisconsin has offered a challenge grant of $475,000 to restore the car to original condition. The Gandy Dancer Festival, a key event in the Mid-Continent Railway Museum’s campaign to match the grant, is supported in part by the Madison Arts Commission with additional funds from the Wisconsin Arts Board. The festival is also supported by Wisconsin & Southern Railroad, ProRail of Madison, Berghoff Beer, and WORT89.9FM.

Volunteers are welcomed to help with a variety of chores including stage managing, selling performers’ merchandise, set-up and clean-up. Contact Johanna Fabke or Carolyn Hegeler for more information or to sign up.