Over the years the players involved in Blue Ridge moonshining developed many ways to avoid being caught. In the era prior to police two-way radios, hauler could possibly outrun the law with a fast vehicle. Some of the resulting chases are the stuff of Blue Ridge legend. Officers at times did shoot at the tires of their prey and revenuers and liquor haulers alike suffered car crashes. If the hauler was spotted, he might lose his pursuer on dark country roads. Some skilled drivers perfected the “bootleg turn”, a technique of spinning 180 degrees in a quick skid. With a flick of a special switch, a hauler could turn off his taillights and occasionally vehicles were fitted with bright rear-facing lights to blind pursuing revenuers.
If a hauler could not shake the agents, he might jump out of the car and run on foot into the woods, avoiding an arrest but losing both the vehicle and the liquor.
Haulers had no desire to draw attention to themselves by speeding or driving conspicuous vehicle. Special springs and shocks were installed on cars and trucks to hold the vehicles level when loaded. At times drivers switched license plates to avoid identification. Packed with 132 gallons of whiskey, the 1940 Ford coupe was the “runner’s” vehicle of choice into the 1950’s.
Edelbrock Manifold
Anonymous Builder
Franklin County, circa 1955
This manifold was part of a Cadillac motor in a 1955 Ford modified to haul illegal whiskey. The builder created three identical cars for this purpose. Cadillac motors were preferred by moonshiners because of their superior torque and performance under a heavy load. The three two-barrel carburetors had to be cut off so the car’s hood could close.
One of the most infamous stills ever to run the Blue Ridge was the cemetery still in Franklin county. It was raided in 1979, the operation included 18 800-gallon submarine outfits hidden beneath a fake cemetery. Painted cinderblocks stood as gravestones and steps were built from the road up to the graveyard. Moonshiners mowed the grass regularly and placed a dried arrangement against one of the headstones. At the time of the raid a truck sat loaded with 243 gallons of whiskey and agents found nearly 3,000 plastic jugs yet to be filled. The explosives used to destroy the still started a brush fire, but officers doused the blaze with some of the 11,200 gallons of mash on the site. Agents estimated the operation had been running up to two years before it was discovered.
Efforts to hide stills became more innovative after propane and oil burners replaced wood fires and stills no longer had to be outdoors. Walls were built to hide rooms in houses or garages. Stills were set up in underground chambers covered with sod. Franklin County moonshiners once dug out a room for a still in a field and covered it with grass and fake cemetery headstones. However, most indoor stills have simply been set up in sheds, garages and the like.
