LIFE
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The Bull Durham Tobacco mural can be seen at any time through the glass front of the building. 109 W. Grand St. Comanche, Texas (325)356-1725
texasruralliving.com Comanche County Museum 401 Moorman Road Comanche, Texas (325) 356-5115
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(left and right) Clint and Jami Tunnell found a historic gem under layers of stucco while renovating their business location. | Photos courtesy of the Tunnells
It’s a Lot of Bull! by Loretta Fulton
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hipping away at a stucco-covered wall is no fun, but it’s worth the work if a gem of a discovery is waiting to be uncovered. Clint and Jami Tunnell weren’t looking for a gem when they decided to remove part of the stucco from one wall of a historic building they bought in Comanche in 2019. They knew the building’s history and wanted to renovate it to house their three businesses on the courthouse square in downtown Comanche. But they had no idea what lay in store once the laborious task of removing decades of dirt, 54
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grime, and “improvements” began. “Everything that was historical in the building was covered up,” Clint said. Even after the stucco removal began, they didn’t know what to expect. But then, slowly, red paint started to show, and then green paint. Before long, a tail appeared. When the chipping ended, an 18 by 18-foot “Blackwell’s Genuine Bull Durham Tobacco” mural, with the famous bull logo, was exposed. The Blackwell Company of Durham, North Carolina, was among the first to carry out a large-scale outdoor advertising campaign around the country. From the late 1870s
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