Delmar Browning started his railroad career in May 1977 with the Louisville & Nashville Railroad, which later became the SCL/L&N, the Family Lines, the Seaboard System, and finally, CSX.
“Most people don’t like their job, and I do,” Delmar said in the video (see above). “It was fun. I mean, it’s not work. It’s really not. And I’m sure I’m going to miss it.”
CSX filmed Delmar’s last time operating a train, which, fittingly, was his son’s first time operating one. “How more perfect is that than to symbolize passing the torch,” said Bobby Muncy, Operations Field Trainer at the railroad. “This is going to be a great time for his son to actually see what his daddy’s done all this time he’s been gone.”
Muncy started working with Delmar in 2004, and characterized him as a “good” and “punctual” railroader. “Everybody kind of sets their standards against him because he always sets his standards so high,” Muncy said in the video.
According to Delmar, his son Bryce is doing “a good job,” too, and has some of his qualities—“getting to work on time and doing your job, don’t argue, don’t complain.” While Delmar joked in the video that he tried to talk Bryce out of joining the railroad business, Bryce’s mind was made up. “I’m glad,” Delmar said. “It’s a good job. It really is. I hope he has a good career like I did.”
As a child, Bryce remembers going to the railroad field office, seeing the locomotives, and “just thinking that’s something I want to do,” he said in the video. “My dad, with him being gone and stuff, I didn’t fully know exactly what he was doing. But I knew he worked for the railroad. Now that I’m older and I’ve worked for two years out here, I have a lot more respect for him. This is something that I’ll be able to talk about with my kids one day.”
Having the Browning family legacy continue at CSX is important for everyone, Muncy said. “It really signifies exactly what’s going on with this company,” he pointed out. “We’re training so many people right now—new conductors and locomotive engineers. Even though Delmar is retiring, we’re all going to be a little bit of Delmar, still running the locomotive because he trained us all.”
