I think its called a "rail fork"/ Vintage railroad tool.

[wrenchguy]

is it just 4 tipping over the rail? or used 4 rolling it over and over? But how?  I can only really get it to work tipping it from its standing position. its 66" long.
 thanks 4 any info.

[Lostmind]

Looks like it would work for spreading auto and truck springs to grease them , but never saw one exactly that shape. Does look to be shaped for rail.

[Papaw]

http://www.akrailroad.com/products/track-tools
1/3 of the way down the page. I bet it is for positioning rail rather than tipping it over.

[Plyerman]

66"? Good lord how much does that thing weigh?!

[wvtools]

http://www.akrailroad.com/products/track-tools
1/3 of the way down the page. I bet it is for positioning rail rather than tipping it over.

That is what I always thought also.  I have had a couple of different types, but not one like that.  Sellens says it is used to maneuver a rail.

[rusty]

Remember, the rail sits on a steel rail plate on top of the tie. You would want to tilt and slide the rail so it catches in the groove in the plate, after which it is aligned in the plate....

You would probably want a few other fellows to help out, 100lb rail weighs 100 lb's per yard, and comes in 40 foot lengths , so you are flipping 1300lb's around :P

[turnnut]

in the 1919 Chandler & Farquar Co. catalog, they sold Atha track tools, a couple of them were; railroad claw bar,  5 5/12 ft. long, and 30 lbs. @ $4.50
also a gooseneck claw bar, 5 1/4 ft. long and 25 lbs. @ $4.90

it may be possible for two men with those bars to lift a small section of track
attached to the ties to repack a section of the rail bed.

remember, we are talking about 1919 labor.

just my 2 cents on this subject, have a good day.

[turnnut]

I just went back and checked if they had a "rail fork", they did, it is a round bar
with a narrow, long slender  u shaped fork on the end, it did not give the length, but it 
listed it as 15 lbs. and cost only $2.50

the two man track tongs like the one that I have cost $2.80 & is listed as 17 lbs.
when it warms up, I will take it off the outside wall and put it on a scale,
rust and all.

[wrenchguy]

66"? Good lord how much does that thing weigh?!

right at 30lbs.  found these markings, whats that logo, seen it b4 and use to know it.  Illinois tool works??? Maybe the photo is upside down???  Appears to read 89D and logo far right.
 thanks.

[rusty]

Woodings Verona, oddly, in the other what's this mark thread...weird ...

They made quite a lot of RR tools, so not a surprise...

[pritch]

It may be called a Gandy, as being used by these Gandy Dancers:

[oldtools]

interesting reading about Gandy Dancers...

[tracksmak]

This tool is an anchor wrench, used for applying rail anchors to the base of rail.

[kxxr]

The op is a rail fork and is used to manipulate rail. The hook end fits the rail when it is in the upright position. It the rail is tipped over, poke the other end into a bolt hole and tip it back upright. Anchors are hammered onto the rail. There may be other methods, but those are the ones I know for sure. I don't recall ever seeing any anchors that were snapped into position with any tool other than a hammer, but there certainly could be. There are many kinds of track and track hardware. I noticed the rail fork in Papaws link has a round knob on the handle end that might prevent poking it into a bolt hole. I have not seen this design. All the ones I have seen were tapered like a spud wrench or bar on the handle end.