That’s a Lotta Bull...part ii
- Michael Jay Tucker's explosive-cargo
- Oct 2
- 5 min read
So last time I had us in Durham. Specifically, we were downtown and I was about to introduce you to Major, the Bull...
But I was also explaining why the Bull is the city’s symbol and mascot. I had just mentioned that John Green, a tobacco merchant, began his best-selling Bright Leaf tobacco in packages with the picture of a Durham bull on the front.
And it caught on. Big Time. Soon Mr. Green’s tobacco, with its bull, was all over the world. Sadly, Mr. Green did not himself live long enough to see his product’s enormous success. He died of tuberculosis in 1869.(1)
However, his business partner, James R. Day, took over the business and continued marketing Mr. Green’s tobacco -- christened “Bull Durham” -- after that.(2) He also continued to use the bull emblem. Soon, Mr. Day’s competitors starting bulls on their packages as well. That led to lots of litigation as the original Bull Durham went after the imitation Bull Durhams. But, one way or another, as the icon of one company or another, the Bull was everywhere.
In the process, Durham the City became identified with Durham the Bull. The two were now linked at the hip. And that’s why there is a huge bronze statue of a bull right downtown. We arrived there, parked, and went to visit The Bull.
ABOUT THE PHOTOS: Three today. First, a second shot of Martha and Major (the Bull) in downtown Durham. Second, the Ninth Street Bakery. Well worth a visit if you’re in town. And, finally, Martha having one of their excellent pastries for breakfast.
We looked it over. We took a couple of photos (one of which I’ll post). Locals went past and gave us a tired glance. “Oh... sigh...tourists,” they were thinking. You know the routine.
Actually, it is a very impressive sculpture. I did find a webpage dealing with it. Check out the “Major The Bull” section of the Liberty Arts website.(3) Apparently, it is the work of husband-and-wife sculptors team Michael Waller and Leah Foushee Waller. (4) Definitely do check out the Liberty Arts page on the casting, which was looks rather dramatic. As for the Wallers, they now seem to have a separate studio, WallerFoushee Studios, and I’ll put a link to it in the footnotes.(5)
Having given due homage to Major the Bull, we turned and had a little walk around the area. It was Monday, unfortunately, which meant that many things, particularly cafes, were closed. But we had a nice tour just the same and Vincent pointed out several shops and other places that we would visit later.
The day ended, happily enough, on ice cream. Vincent took us to The Parlour, at 117 Market street.(6) They had ice cream and espresso, so I was happy.
After that, we headed back to Vincent’s house. We were in town for one more day, but we were going to spend it by ourselves, as a kind of date day. So, we said our goodbyes that afternoon. It had been a great visit for us. And I hope Vincent enjoyed his birthday.
From there, I’m going to rush to a conclusion. The next day, we got up early and drove downtown. We had terrific breakfast at the Ninth Street Bakery. Definitely give it a visit if you’re in town.(7) Then we toured the area. Things were open, now, so we visited several places that had been closed the day before -- including, by the way, the Durham Visitor Information Center. (8) Very useful and staffed by very pleasant people happy to help clueless folks like ourselves.
After that, we headed off to Duke where we visited one of our favorite art museums, Nasher Museum of Art. I’ve written about it before, so I won’t go into too much detail again. Suffice to say that it is terrific, and if you’re in town, you should visit. (9)
The finale for the day? Dinner at the Bleu Olive Mediterranean Bistro, another recommendation of Vincent’s, and well worth it.(10) I had the steak frites.(11)
And that, pretty much, was our trip.
I could, of course, end this series now. Maybe, in fact, I should. But I find that I have a little bit more to say. It isn’t profound, or exciting, or interesting, but I do sort of feel the need to say it.
So stay tuned.
There’s a few more thoughts to come.
Footnotes:
1. Or at least that’s what it’s said he died of. And certainly, it makes sense. Tuberculosis killed a lot of people in those days. Still, I have wondered. He dealt in tobacco, and he was doubtlessly a smoker, and tuberculosis...a.k.a., “consumption”...can be confused with lung cancer even today, even with our modern medical technology.
Still, I guess it is more likely that it really was tuberculosis. It turns out that lung cancer at that time was quite rare. See, for example, Robert N. Proctor, “The History of the Discovery of the Cigarette–Lung Cancer Link,” Tobacco Control 21, no. 2 (2012): 87–91. https://tobaccocontrol.bmj.com/content/21/2/87
According to Proctor, up to about 1900, cases of lung cancer was almost unknown. But, as more and more and...and more...people took up smoking cigarettes instead of pipes and cigars, lung cancer became increasingly common and increasingly deadly. Proctor notes acidly, if accurately, “The cigarette is the deadliest artifact in the history of human civilization.”
2. See the previously referenced Katie Saintsing, “How the Bull City Got Its Bull,” Our State, January 9, 2019, https://www.ourstate.com/how-the-bull-city-got-its-bull/ and also “Green, John Ruffin,” Open Durham, https://www.opendurham.org/people/green-john-ruffin
3. Liberty Arts is a Durham-based non-profit supporting and promoting the arts. You can see its page here: https://www.libertyartsnc.org/
4. “Major the Bull,” Liberty Arts, https://www.libertyartsnc.org/major-the-bull
5. WallerFoushee Studio, https://wallerfoushee.com/
6. The Parlour https://theparlour.co/
7. The Bakery has its webpage here: https://www.ninthstbakery.com/
8. See Discover Durham: https://www.discoverdurham.com/resources/visitor-info-center/
9. The Nasher’s website is here: https://nasher.duke.edu/
10. The Blue Olive’s webpage is here: https://bleuolivebistro.com/
11. And damn! They were good.
Copyright©2025 Michael Jay Tucker
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