Quarter plate tintype. (Image a bit dark, surface mottling throughout, some image loss to lower right; unsealed). Housed in half pressed paper case. 

An exceptional view depicting a group of railroad workers, or "gandy dancers," with their tools. Of primary note is the multi-racial composition of the workers: African American and white men working side by side. The men pose on and near a handcar with an arsenal of picks and shovels. The subject at far left appears to hold a length of rail, suggesting that these men were laying or repairing track.