History Of Buc-ee's
Aplin's grandparents, Arch and Mae Aplin, owned and ran a general mercantile and gas station they dubbed the Biggest Little Store in Catahoula Parish in Harrisonburg in central Louisiana. While their son, Arch Jr., went into construction in Texas, their grandson Arch III had inherited the family entrepreneurial streak and convenience store bug.
After spending summers pumping gas and working at his grandparents' shop, when he spied an empty lot in Lake Jackson, Texas, and knew just what he wanted to do with it. In 1982, he opened a 3,000-square-foot store at 899 Oyster Creek Drive on the border of Clute and Lake Jackson, according to Texas Monthly. Inspired by his longtime nickname, Beaver, and his beloved Lab, Buck, he named the store Buc-ee's with a cartoon beaver as its mascot.