How can a name like Bug Tussle not catch your attention? The town was originally named Truss, after a local settler in the 1890’s. Stories were made up to explain its new name. One was that an invasion of bugs ruined a church’s ice cream social. Another is about 2 people arguing over a new name, and one pointed down and exclaimed, “look at those bugs tussle.” And yet another was simply that there was nothing to do but eat ice cream and watch bugs tussle. Regardless of how, the name has caught people’s attention for a hundred years. Dozens of highway signs have been stolen over the years. There was originally a general store, garage, blacksmith shop, and about a half-dozen homes.
A resident was quoted in an October 30, 1953 edition of the Paris News as saying, “Without a chamber of commerce to toot its horn, what selling points, if any, does Bug Tussle have? You might list them like this: 1. An unusual name. 2. Good people, 3. Pure water. 4. Rich land. 5. Fresh air. 6. Plenty of parking space. And, Bug Tussle folks will tell you, not every town in Texas has that much to offer the world.”
All that remains today is the old general store which has had its wood covered in aluminum siding, and a sign that says, “Welcome to Bug Tussle Texas, Y’all come back now ya hear!”
