Troy Busick

  Kenny Stallard

     As a child, you often see someone and know nothing of the person.  From the mid-1940’s into the mid-1950’s many of us saw Troy Busick around Lynn Garden.  We only knew Troy as a shuffling figure in oversized overalls, rough brogan shoes, an ill-fitting old suit coat in mild weather and an old mackinaw jacket in the colder weather.  The hat was always the same, a mis-shapen old gray felt fedora.  I do not ever remember seeing Troy with a clean shave.  Usually he sported what looked to be a three-day or more growth.

     Most times we would see Troy walking up May Street on his way home at Cherry Hill.  Usually he would be carrying a gunny sack, sometimes empty, sometimes with some unknown object as evidenced by mysterious shapes in the sack over his shoulder.

     Usually when a group of boys were near where Troy was passing, someone would dare another to shout ‘Bang-Bang’ at Troy.  The one accepting the dare would then run up close and shout ‘Bang-Bang’ loudly at Troy.  This would bring about a change in which Troy would become very agitated and make threatening motions and sounds to his antagonist.  This in turn would bring about laughter from the crowd of young ruffians.

    At other times, someone driving up the street would stop and offer Troy a ride.  His answer was always the same; “Buff-Buff, I’m in a hurry, I’ll walk”.  The “Buff-Buff” was a hoarse cough Troy always preceded a sentence with.

     It was not until the mid-1950’s that I learned the reason for Troy’s sever reaction to “Bang-Bang” and his hoarse cough preceding his speaking.

     It was about this time that my granddad told me that Troy had been in the Army during World War I.  While serving in France, he was caught in an artillery bombardment and gassed in the trenches.  From this incident, he became shell-shocked and was left with lung damage from the gassing.

     It was much later that I was to learn that in the Cherry Hill tornado of March 1933, that Troy’s wife and four year old son were severely injured.  His mother and step-father were also severely injured, with his step-father dying.  His mother passed away a couple of years later in 1935.

     After graduation and then returning home in the fall of 1959, I have no recollection of seeing Troy around Lynn Garden.  I don’t know if he passed away, moved away or what might have happened.  

Addendum: Troy was born in Wise County, Va., 1893, a son of Robert D. and Eliza Busick.  Troy was living in Hawkins County, Tenn. before WW I.