Christine Gonzalez

Christine Gonzalez Aldeis is an American train engineer and the first woman to work as an engineer on a Class 1 railroad. Born and raised in El Paso, Texas, Aldeis came from a family with strong ties to the railroad industry. Her grandmother was a Harvey Girl, her grandfather was a Pullman conductor, her father was a train conductor, and her mother was a secretary to the Santa Fe trainmaster. Aldeis began training as a hostler in May 1973 and graduated from simulator school in Topeka. She started working as the first woman train engineer for the Santa Fe Railway system in February 1974. Aldeis was featured on the cover of Redbook in March 1975. She took a break to be with her children but later returned to the railroad.