The Story Behind the Nickname
If you’ve spent any time in Durham, North Carolina, you’ve encountered the bull. It’s on logos, murals, merchandise, and monuments throughout the city. The Durham Bulls baseball team plays at the Durham Bulls Athletic Park. Locals proudly call their home “Bull City.” But where does this distinctive nickname come from, and why has a farm animal become so central to a city’s identity?
The answer lies in Durham’s remarkable transformation from a small settlement to an industrial powerhouse—a story of entrepreneurship, marketing genius, and a product that became known around the world.
It All Started with Tobacco
To understand Bull City, you need to understand Durham’s relationship with tobacco. In the mid-1800s, Durham was little more than a railroad stop called Durham’s Station, named after a local doctor who donated land for the depot. The area’s future seemed unremarkable until the Civil War changed everything.
Legend has it that after the final major battle of the Civil War—the Battle of Bentonville in April 1865—both Union and Confederate soldiers passed through Durham’s Station. While camped in the area, they discovered the tobacco grown on local farms, particularly at John Ruffin Green’s plantation. The soldiers helped themselves to the tobacco, and when they returned home after the war, they remembered that distinctive North Carolina leaf.
Soon, letters began arriving addressed simply to “Durham, North Carolina,” requesting more of that tobacco they’d enjoyed during the war. Entrepreneurs recognized an opportunity, and Durham’s tobacco industry was born.
Enter the Bull: Washington Duke and Julian Carr
The story of Bull City really begins with two men: Washington Duke and Julian Shakespeare Carr. Washington Duke returned from the Civil War to his small farm and began processing tobacco, initially packing it by hand and selling it from a wagon. His business grew, and eventually his sons joined him in founding W. Duke, Sons & Company, which would become one of the world’s largest tobacco manufacturers.
But it was Julian Carr who gave Durham its enduring symbol. In 1869, Carr purchased a tobacco company from a man named Robert Morris. The company’s product was called “Bull Durham” smoking tobacco, and it featured a distinctive logo: a Durham bull.
The Bull Durham Brand Goes Global
Carr was a marketing genius ahead of his time. He understood the power of branding and advertising in ways that were revolutionary for the late 1800s. The Bull Durham trademark—featuring a powerful bull in profile—became one of the most recognizable logos in the world.
Carr’s advertising campaigns were aggressive and creative. He painted the Bull Durham logo on buildings, barns, and fences across America and even internationally. Some estimates suggest that at the company’s peak, the bull logo appeared on over 6 million square feet of painted surface worldwide. The distinctive image showed up in Egypt, on cliffs in South Africa, and across Europe and Asia.
The company distributed promotional items, placed advertisements in newspapers and magazines, and created elaborate marketing campaigns. The Bull Durham brand became so successful that “Bull Durham” became synonymous not just with the tobacco product, but with Durham itself.
More Than Just Tobacco
The success of Bull Durham tobacco and other tobacco companies like the Duke family’s enterprise transformed Durham from a small railroad stop into a booming industrial city. The wealth generated by tobacco funded the growth of downtown Durham, led to the establishment of what would become Duke University, and attracted workers from across the region and beyond.
Durham became a manufacturing powerhouse, drawing on its tobacco wealth to diversify into textiles, banking, and other industries. The city’s African American community, in particular, built thriving businesses and institutions, creating what would become known as “Black Wall Street”—a concentration of African American-owned businesses and banks that was nationally recognized.
Throughout this growth and transformation, the bull remained Durham’s symbol—a representation of the product that built the city and the strength, determination, and pride of its people.
The Bull Endures
The tobacco industry’s dominance eventually waned. The Bull Durham tobacco brand was sold and eventually discontinued. The massive tobacco warehouses that once defined Durham’s skyline were repurposed or demolished. Duke’s tobacco company merged with others and moved operations elsewhere.
But the bull never left. Even as Durham transformed from a tobacco town to a center of medicine, research, technology, and innovation, the bull remained central to the city’s identity. The nickname “Bull City” persisted and even strengthened, taking on meanings beyond its commercial origins.
What the Bull Means Today
Today, the bull represents more than just Durham’s tobacco heritage. It’s become a symbol of Durham’s character: strong, tenacious, independent, and distinctive. The bull embodies the city’s working-class roots, its entrepreneurial spirit, and its refusal to be overshadowed by nearby cities like Raleigh and Chapel Hill.
Durham has embraced and reimagined the bull symbol in countless ways:
The Durham Bulls baseball team, made famous by the 1988 film “Bull Durham,” keeps the connection alive for sports fans and movie buffs alike. The team’s success has made the Durham Bulls Athletic Park a beloved destination and the bull mascot known far beyond North Carolina.
Bull City murals and art appear throughout downtown and in neighborhoods across the city. Local artists have interpreted the bull in styles ranging from traditional to abstract, creating a visual language that’s distinctly Durham.
“Bull City” branding appears on everything from local businesses to craft breweries to T-shirts and bumper stickers. It’s become shorthand for Durham pride and identity.
The giant bull sculpture that once stood atop the old Durham Bulls Athletic Park now resides at the Durham Bulls’ current stadium, a physical reminder of the connection between past and present.
A Symbol of Transformation
Perhaps the most fitting thing about Durham’s bull symbol is how it represents the city’s ongoing transformation. Just as Durham evolved from a small settlement to a tobacco powerhouse to a diversified city of medicine, technology, and culture, the meaning of the bull has evolved too.
The bull that once advertised a tobacco product now represents a city that’s constantly reinventing itself while honoring its past. It represents a community that’s diverse, creative, resilient, and proud. It’s a symbol that belongs to everyone who calls Durham home, regardless of when they arrived or what brought them here.
Why It Matters
Understanding why Durham is called Bull City isn’t just a history lesson—it’s a window into what makes the city unique. Unlike cities named for founders or geographic features, Durham’s identity is tied to a commercial product and a marketing campaign. That commercial origin reflects Durham’s working-class roots and entrepreneurial spirit in a way that feels authentic rather than manufactured.
The continued embrace of the bull symbol also speaks to Durham’s comfort with its identity. This isn’t a city trying to distance itself from its industrial past or rebrand as something it’s not. Instead, Durham has taken a symbol from its history and made it mean something new and relevant for each generation.
Final Thoughts
The next time you see a bull logo in Durham—whether on a baseball cap, painted on a wall, or perched atop the stadium—you’re looking at more than 150 years of history compressed into a simple image. You’re seeing the story of how a marketing symbol became a city’s identity, how commercial success built a community, and how a nickname rooted in tobacco has come to represent so much more.
Bull City. The nickname has outlasted the product that inspired it, evolved beyond its commercial origins, and become an essential part of Durham’s identity. It’s a reminder that sometimes the most enduring symbols are the ones that can grow and change with the communities they represent—staying rooted in history while embracing the future.
Bottom line: Durham earned its “Bull City” nickname through the success of Bull Durham tobacco in the late 1800s, but it’s kept that nickname because it captures something essential about the city’s character. The bull represents Durham’s strength, its independent spirit, and its ability to transform while honoring its roots. It’s a symbol that belongs to everyone who loves this city—and that’s exactly why it endures.
That being said, there is also a fascinating story about the connection between Durham’s tobacco bull and Coleman’s Mustard.
The Durham bull was indeed inspired by Coleman’s Mustard (often spelled “Colman’s”), which was made in England and featured a bull’s head on its containers. John R. Green of Durham drew inspiration after the Civil War from a popular brand of mustard made in Durham, England, that featured the head of a Durham bull on its label NCpedia . However, Green chose to use the image of a whole bull rather than just the head NCpedia .
There’s an interesting debate about whether this was an intentional tribute or a fortunate mistake. Some sources suggest that Green mistakenly thought Coleman’s Mustard was produced in Durham, England, when in fact “Durham Mustard” had become a generic name for a variety of mustard Discover Durham . However, other historians note that “Durham Mustard” had come to denote a variety of mustard and was printed on containers regardless of the manufacturer’s actual location, making it unlikely this was simply an error Open Durham Open Durham .
According to historical accounts, it was Green’s friend JY Whitted who suggested that Green make use of the bull used by the Coleman Mustard Company on their “Durham Mustard” containers Open Durham Open Durham . Green registered the trademark in 1866, along with the name “Genuine Durham Smoking Tobacco” Wikipedia .
Whether intentional homage or happy accident, this borrowing of the bull symbol from an English mustard company would become one of the most successful branding decisions in American advertising history, ultimately giving Durham, North Carolina its enduring “Bull City” nickname
Major the Bull
Major the Bull: Durham’s Bronze Icon
When you walk through downtown Durham and find yourself in CCB Plaza (now known as City Center Plaza), you can’t miss him: a massive, gleaming bronze bull standing 10 feet tall and weighing in at a full ton. This is Major, Durham’s most photographed resident and the physical embodiment of Bull City pride.
A Gift to the City
In 2003, Central Carolina Bank (now Truist) commissioned the 10-foot, one-ton statue Wikipedia , though Major was actually dedicated in 2007 North Carolina History – . Major the Bull was created by local artists Michael Waller and Leah Foushee in memory of George Watts Hill, a World War II veteran who was the bank’s President and Chairman of the Board for 61 years before passing in 1993 Waltergrutchfield . He was known to his friends as “Major” Waltergrutchfield —hence the sculpture’s name.
The monument was built from start to finish at Liberty Arts — a non-profit studio and foundry in Durham Waltergrutchfield . The sculpture took 13 months to complete Open Durham and was given to the community as a symbol of Durham’s strength and character.
Where to Find Major
When you’re in the main square of downtown Durham, you’ll see the 10-foot bronze bull statue in the southeast corner of the plaza Open Durham . He’s positioned at the intersection of North Corcoran Street and West Parrish Street, right in the heart of downtown Durham’s action.
The location is perfect—surrounded by restaurants, shops, and cultural attractions. Major has become the unofficial meeting point for downtown Durham, a central landmark that’s impossible to miss and easy to give directions from.
A Community Gathering Spot
Major isn’t just a statue you admire from a distance—he’s meant to be interacted with. Children chase each other in circles around his hooves. Tourists climb on his back for a photo op Open Durham . Locals rub him for good luck, and over the years, certain spots on the bronze have been polished to a golden shine from thousands of hands seeking fortune.
The sculpture has become more than just public art—it’s a beloved community member. Families take Christmas photos with Major. Visitors pose on his back. Friends meet at “the bull” before heading to dinner or a Durham Bulls game. He’s witnessed proposals, protests, celebrations, and countless everyday moments that make up life in downtown Durham.
Not Durham’s Only Bull
Major is not the largest bull icon in Durham — the snorting bull at the Durham Bulls Athletic Park measures a whopping 20 by 30 ft. Waltergrutchfield But while the stadium bull is impressive and iconic in its own right, Major holds a special place in Durham hearts because of his accessibility and central location. You don’t need a baseball ticket to visit Major—he’s always there, rain or shine, welcoming everyone to Bull City.
Anatomical Accuracy
It’s worth noting that the sculptors didn’t shy away from anatomical accuracy. Major is, shall we say, anatomically complete, which has become part of his charm and character. This attention to realistic detail reflects the artists’ commitment to creating an authentic representation of a Durham shorthorn bull—the same breed that appeared on the original Bull Durham tobacco labels.
A Symbol Through the Years
Since his dedication, Major has witnessed Durham’s continued transformation. During the “Occupy” movement in 2011 the bull statue served as a rallying area for the Occupy Durham protests NCpedia . He’s been decorated for holidays, photographed in every season and light, and has become the backdrop for countless personal milestones.
The sculpture represents Durham’s evolution while honoring its history. He stands at the center of a downtown that’s been dramatically revitalized, a symbol of the city’s strength and resilience through decades of change.
Making Your Visit
Major is accessible 24/7—there’s no admission fee, no hours to worry about, no tickets to buy. Just walk up, take your photos, give him a rub for good luck, and become part of the tradition. The plaza around him offers benches for sitting and people-watching, and you’re steps away from some of Durham’s best restaurants, coffee shops, and attractions.
Whether you’re a first-time visitor to Durham or a longtime resident, Major remains a must-see landmark. He’s Durham’s welcoming committee, its photographic backdrop, its meeting place, and its bronze embodiment of Bull City spirit.
The Legacy
Major has become exactly what his creators and commissioners hoped: a symbol of Durham’s character given to the community. He represents the city’s past—the tobacco industry that built Durham and gave it the bull symbol—while standing proudly in its present as a cultural and economic hub.
In a city full of bull imagery, Major stands out as the most accessible, most photographed, and most beloved. He’s become part of Durham’s identity in a way that few public artworks achieve—not just admired but genuinely loved, not just visited but truly embraced by the community.
So next time you’re in downtown Durham, stop by CCB Plaza and say hello to Major. Rub his nose for good luck, take your photo, and join the thousands who’ve made this bronze bull an essential part of the Bull City experience.
