Amos Law was one of the most renowned moonshiners in Franklin and Pittsylvania counties. Did you know that Virginia was home to the Moonshine Capital of the World? His grandfather and father have. Franklin County remained wet and voted 1,373 against statewide prohibition with 1,079 for. For Franklin County, moonshining is a family business, and one of the most notorious families is the Law family. "This is kind of a last-chance thing," he said Friday. . The Franklin County Moonshine Conspiracy emerged during Prohibition, when mountain settlers transformed their liquor-making craft into a huge industry. We'll go through this sugar rather quickly, said Bobby Cobbs of Virginia Baptist Children's Home and Family Services, adding that . In Virginias mountains, a few bootleggers were quite wealthy, earning tens of thousands of dollars in cash while the Great Depression was in full swing. In response, lots of citizens chose not to license their distilleries or pay taxes on the resulting liquors. During the period of the movie shotgun shells were made of thick paper with a metal bottom for the primer. Old Roller Mill will be home to Bondurant distillery. Instead of wasting the fruits and grains that they were unable to sell, the farmers used a homemade copper still and wooden barrels to mix the mash and store resulting spirits for years to come. After an examination of the evidence, County Commonwealth's Attorney and grand-nephew of Robert E. Lee, Charles Carter Lee, along with two others, were acquitted with the other 30 defendants found guilty. I think we got it. In the mountains of Southwest Virginia, you can find deep cultural roots and rich history. Biography Bondurant in 1931 Owen Law started as a bootlegger in the 1920's. "He died when he was 92, and he was still under probation," said Henry Law. Virginias moonshine history runs deep, so its no surprise that the mountain region of Virginia still has plenty to offer when it comes to distilled spirits. Today's episode continues the Franklin County Moonshine Heritage month episodes. These details and the lack of tax revenue caught the attention of lawmen on a national level, and a federal investigation began. Looking to sample moonshine in other parts of Virginia? Boones Mill, VA 24065 (Map & Directions) (540) 334-1610. Its been suggested that binge drinking got its start during prohibition, plus additives like creosote and embalming fluid were known to have been mixed into some batches to add color and potency. society will be better off wrote William Allen White. because court files and the official trial transcript inexplicably disappeared Good moonshine can "hold a bead" so a bubble at the surface stays intact, due to surface tension and indicating a high percentage of alcohol rather than watered-down product. 13:15:49 MARTINEZ Or have you ever tried to make it yourself? The last reference to the transcript that Greer has found is a 1945 The most comprehensive list of wrestling tournaments all in one place. A "white liquor" distiller in Wilkesboro was arrested in October 2009 and 929 gallons of moonshine was confiscated. But likker makin' still goes on. But did you know that Franklin County, located in the mountains of Virginia, came to be known as the Moonshine Capital of the World due to the regions heavy involvement in the illegal moonshine industry that occurred during Prohibition? [2] Franklin County is part of the Roanoke Metropolitan Statistical Area and is located in the Roanoke Region of Virginia. DUNCAN ADAMS,The Roanoke Times. who were convicted of the murder, Paul and Hubbard Duling, were not Finally, if youre visiting Southern Virginia, plan a stop at Bondurant Brothers Distillery in Mecklenburg County, run by one of the grandsons of the legendary Bondurant brothers. Just south of Roanoke on Virginia highway 220. Duke Carter returned to 10 News in January 2022. Few People Realize That The Moonshine Capital Of The World Is In Franklin County, Virginia Moonshine has a fascinating and complicated history. Required fields are marked *. Also, the distillation process requires substantial heat to boil the mash and separate the alcohol vapor from water vapor. The still was discovered in 1979, by which time revenue agents estimated that it had run for several years before being discovered. He was the gang's de facto leader during the 1930s, despite being the middle brother. Have new blog posts delivered directly to your e-mail inbox. The first time I got ran, the officer came around and grabbed me by the neck and grabbed my partner around the neck, both of us at the same time. Spirits would be taxed by the American government on and off for about 40 years after the Revolutionary War, followed by a 45-year untaxed period; however, with the start of the Civil War, Congress would again pass a whiskey tax. 0. Virginia Economic Development Partnership Visit www.vedp.org. The Great Moonshine Conspiracy Trial of 1935 resulted in little real effect on illegal liquor production in Franklin County, Virginia. In fact, the Temperance Movement that led to Prohibition was supported by a diverse range of progressives and womens rights advocates as well as religious conservatives in part because of the amount of excessive drinking and the resulting violence. "In one county (Franklin) it is claimed 99 people out of 100 are making, or have some connection to illicit liquor." - Official Records of the Commission of Law Enforcement and Observance 1935, Vol. Henry Law was a third-generation distiller, but the first to produce legal and taxed liquor. Greetings Steve, thanks for story about our Grandfather Thomas Creed Cooper. In 1929 alone, 35,200 illegal stills were seized in the U.S. During all of Prohibition, 3,909 stills were destroyed and 130,716 gallons of alcohol seized in Franklin County which accounted for 18% of the alcohol and 12% of the stills found by law enforcement in Virginia. Watch 10 News for the latest local, statewide and national news, as well as the forecast from Your Local Weather Authority. "I've found no evidence of any deliberate malfeasance on anyone's part," Laws were passed during this time to make rural distilleries illegal, and in the following years, Virginia counties one by one banned both the production and sale of spirits. She's also a mom and wife living in and loving the mountains and valleys of Virginia. Moonshiners would ignore these laws and continue delivering their products in motor vehicles to industrial towns like Danville, Lynchburg, and Roanoke. These were the first moonshiners in America, with many residing in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Western Virginia where a smaller, less dense population and large tracts of land allowed them to hide their operations with relative ease. The agricultural aspects of the communities and a lack of roads to transport produce grown on the lands to other parts of the state resulted in an abundance of fruits and grains to use in the distilling process. Not surprisingly, some distillers preferred to run their operations illegally rather than pay these high taxes. enforcement of the 18th Amendment reported: "In one county, Franklin, it is About the only thing, really, that moonshiners did wrong was not pay taxes on the alcoholic beverages because they did not have a license.. After roughly a year, Bailey was allegedly able to uncover a complex system driven by bribery and extortion, in which distillers would supposedly pay local sheriffs for protection from federal law enforcement agencies. That pattern dates back to the 1700's, and whiskey taxes helped the first president of the United States define the power of the Federal government. Forrest Bondurant: It is not the violence that sets men apart, alright, it is the distance that he is prepared to go. Many of the Scots-Irish, German, and English citizens that immigrated to American were in part fleeing from what they viewed as unfair taxes imposed upon them by their former countries, and one such tax was on distilling whiskey. Fast forward to the 1700s, when the English, Germans, and Scots-Irish began immigrating to America and settling into western Virginias backcountry, where they would bring their own traditions for making homemade spirits, using fruits to make brandy and grains to produce whiskey. Even worse, crime and corruption increased. They set that raid up where they have a jump man. MOONSHINE EXPRESS Hosted By Franklin County, VA Historical Society. You can learn more about Franklin County Distilleries here and Twin Creeks Distillery right here. In 1946, a federal grand jury indicted 24 people on charges of tampering Law said he got a thrill out of it, especially after getting away from the law. What I figured out early in the game was to go back around the way the jump man came, Law said. His goal now is to preserve the history of moonshine the good and the bad. into districts overseen by deputy sheriffs who were paid to protect the Get more stories delivered right to your email. By 1914, Virginia voted to ban alcohol completely and the Commonwealth was completely dry of legal liquor. Although Prohibition was no longer in effect, illegal moonshine was still a thriving industry, as moonshiners went to great lengths to avoid paying taxes on their products. You just capped your first one, and then we would do that all the way down, and when the steam catches, it cooks real hard and it will not leak, Law said. upon it yet.". liquor.". Pre-Prohibition, moonshining allowed small farmers to increase profits, and for many it was the one reliable source of cash. Skilled bootleg drivers were known to use a bootleg turn, where they would spin the car into a 180-degree skid to shake pursuers. Im Milton Thomas Coopers youngest son. Greer, 69, has written to the survivors of the attorneys involved in the Franklin County Kahila Moonshine Classic detail view. Multiple days spent hauling crops that could spoil could be reduced to one day hauling liquor that would not spoil. 25156 Hwy 220. | Stop in TODAY! At that point, the rebellion dissolved and pardons were quickly issued for most participants.4. in the 1950s. The third moonshine distillery to open in the county, Finally, if youre visiting Southern Virginia, plan a stop at, in Mecklenburg County, run by one of the grandsons of the legendary Bondurant brothers. Click here to take a moment and familiarize yourself with our Community Guidelines. | HIRING - Wait and Kitchen Staff! Some moonshine might be shared with friends, families, and trusted customers near where it is manufactured. Now since the popularity of moonshine is rising, Law wants to make sure people know that moonshiners had to be very smart to build steel subs to make the drink. The Franklin County Moonshine Conspiracy emerged during Prohibition, when 'The Untold Stories of Notorious Franklin County Moonshiner Amos Law." Follows the 6-year career of Amos Law and includes some of Henry's exploits as well. A famous example of this occurred in the late 1970s in Franklin County, where a moonshiner bulldozed a massive hole into a field, built an underground room with a sod-covered roof, placed cinder block headstones on top, and created a fake cemetery that they regularly mowed and placed flowers throughout. Popular culture has long associated moonshine running with NASCAR auto racing, but in reality, very few moonshine drivers from the Blue Ridge were involved with organized racing. in Harrisonburg. They became known as moonshiners or bootleggers. Virginias moonshine history runs deep, so its no surprise that the mountain region of Virginia still has plenty to offer when it comes to distilled spirits. Women and children did suffer both physical violence and poverty due to wages spent on alcohol and gambling instead of groceries and rent. Henry Law used small-batch recipes from his father and grandfather, processed through two "doublers" or "thumper" barrels with a 60 feet long "worm" made of 2-inch copper pipe to condense the alcohol vapor. According to members of the Bondurant family, the Bondurant Boys Forrest, Howard, and Jack - bucked the idea of paying additional protection money and were thus involved in a 1930 shoot-out with police at Maggodee Creek Bridge. In 1926, bootleg liquor sales reached an estimated $3.6 billion, approximately the size of the federal budget. Bloomery Plantation Distillery, Charles Town. for their ruthlessness and passion for moonshining in Franklin County Virginia. Our family has deep ties to whisky making in the hills of Franklin County, Virginia. These were the first moonshiners in America, with many residing in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Western Virginia where a smaller, less dense population and large tracts of land allowed them to hide their operations with relative ease. Love Virginia? Several witnesses reported to have moved hundreds of thousands of gallons over a period of five or six years. There are. The distillery is in the small town of Boones Mill, famous for being home to the Bondurant brothers store during Prohibition, where the bootlegging brothers and their associates would transfer moonshine for national distribution. The image of a moonshiner in the Blue Ridge Mountains tends to bring to mind an impoverished backwoods farmer, but in reality, some moonshiners would turn an incredible profit, especially during Prohibition. [3] Under Prohibition, there were no taxes on alcohol for personal consumption, and little funding for agents to enforce the Volstead Act laws concerning the manufacture, transportation, and sale of alcohol. Download our FREE Savings Pass to easily access discounts to local attractions, restaurants, & shops! Greer said a review of the trial transcript - prepared for the appeal of FRANKLIN COUNTY, Va. - Henry Lee Law is a third-generation moonshiner. By James H. Burnett III Globe Staff,September 1, 2012, 6:00 p.m. It's left a trail of graft and slime,It's filled our land with vice and crime,It don't prohibit worth a dime,Nevertheless we're for it.. . roads each night in bootlegger caravans. Actually, distilling boils down to tax evasion more than prohibition. Franklin County in the Blue Ridge is traditionally considered the center of moonshining Virginia. The stills found during a raid would then be destroyed using axes or sticks of dynamite. Given the poor state of many roads and the reliance on wagons, a trip to town or a railroad station could take up an entire day. We are a 501(c3) organization operated five days a week by volunteers. Copyright 2022 by WSLS 10 - All rights reserved. Set in Depression-era Franklin County, Virginia, a trio of bootlegging brothers are threatened by a new special deputy and other authorities angling for a cut of their profits. For generations, state agents have chased moonshiners in rural parts of Virginia, raiding chicken coops, tobacco barns and old warehouses for the illegal brew. Some government officials in Franklin County accepted bribes to look the other way and protect bootleggers from other lawmen and moonshine distillers; even the Sheriff of Franklin was in on the racket, overseeing a complex bribery system for the biggest moonshine producers in the region. o commemorate the history and cultural aspects of moonshine with tours, special events, and costumed interpreters. Posing as a small-scale moonshine buyer, Bailey went undercover in Franklin County beginning in 1934. The farmers of Western Pennsylvania rebelled in 1794 against a Federal tax on whiskey, imposed by Congress at Alexander Hamilton's suggestion. Two Virginians were key in suppressing the Whiskey Rebellion. Virginia Governor Henry "Light Horse Harry" Lee actually led the troops from Bedford, Pennsylvania into the western part of the state. Firewater. 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