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Delbert Crouser, Sr.
The earliest Crouser that I know of in Texas was Delbert Edgar Crouser, son of Benjamin Jackson Crouser and his wife, Frances Wilkerson, of Parkersburg, West Virginia. He was born in Slate Creek, West Virginia in about 1882 and moved to Ft. Worth, Texas, in 1901.
Pictures were taken for the Fort Worth Star Telegram at the time of the dedication of the engine. They featured Delbert Crouser with his son and grandson, both of whom were also named Delbert Crouser, on the historic old engine.
Funeral services for D. E. "Doc" Crouser, 86, of 4209 Locke, retired Texas & Pacific Railway transportation superintendant, will be at 2:30 p.m. Saturday in Greenwood Chapel.
Burial with Masonic graveside rites will be in Greenwood Memorial Park. Crouser died Thursday at his home.
Crouser, widely known for his ability to restore wrecked trains to sevice, retired from the railroad in 1948 after 47 years employment.
He was a native of Slate Creek, W. VA,. and his railroad career brought him to Texas.
He was a 32nd Degree Mason, member of Moslah Temple shrine and Grand Consistory of New Orleans for more than 60 years.
Surviving him are his wife; a son, D.E. Crouser, Jr. of Dallas, a daughter, Mrs. Frances French of Auburn, Ala.; a sister, Mrs. Della Shaffer of Canton, OH; a brother BJ (should be "P.J.") Crouser of Kansas City, Mo.; and seven grandchildren.
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Delbert Crouser, Jr.Delbert Edgar Crouser, Jr, was a civil engineering consultant for most of his life although at one point he was involved in Ice Capades where he met his wife, Gloria. They had three sons. One of Delbert Jr's proudest accomplishments was designing the double railroad track system that moves all the radio-telescopes at the Very Large Array in New Mexico. This engineering feat was shown in the movies "2010" and "Contact".
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Thank you for visiting our webpage. We hope you will sign our guestbook before you leave. We would love to hear from members of this family. Please email us at crouser2@hotmail.com.
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Delbert Sr.was a railroad engineer for many years, and eventually became the Assistant Superintendant of the Texas & Pacific Railroad. An engine he operated in the 1920's and 30's for the P&TR, a Baldwin 10-2-4 Texas #610, was dedicated to the people of Fort worth in 1952 and placed on display in the Will Rogers Coliseum in that city. It was called out of retirement in 1976 to pull the Freedom Train around the United States, following which it was loaned to the Southern Railway for a few years to pull excursion trains. When the engine returned to Fort Worth, it was put in covered storage to prevent deterioration since so much had gone into its restoration. An attempt is being made to raise money for a museum to house the engine for public display.
