CHASING THE GOOD OL’ BOYS AND GIRLS OF WILKES …

CHASING THE GOOD OL' BOYS AND GIRLS OF WILKES COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA

A Thesis by

AARON ENNIS LANCASTER

Submitted to the Graduate School at Appalachian State University

in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS

August 2013 Center for Appalachian Studies

CHASING THE GOOD OL' BOYS AND GIRLS OF WILKES COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA

A Thesis by

AARON ENNIS LANCASTER August 2013

APPROVED BY:

Bruce E. Stewart Chairperson, Thesis Committee

Susan E. Keefe Member, Thesis Committee

Patricia D. Beaver Member, Thesis Committee

Patricia D. Beaver Director, Center for Appalachian Studies

Edelma D. Huntley Dean, Cratis Williams Graduate School

Copyright by Aaron Ennis Lancaster 2013 All Rights Reserved

Abstract CHASING THE GOOD OL' BOYS AND GIRLS OF WILKES COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA

Aaron Lancaster B.A., Virginia Tech M.A., Appalachian State University

Chairperson: Bruce E. Stewart

In the 1950s, Wilkes County, North Carolina, was known as the "Moonshine Capital of America," a reputation of dubious distinction. Through integrated qualitative, empirical, and primary evidence, including personal interviews with former bootleggers, moonshiners, and their descendants, this thesis traces Wilkes County's ingrained culture of distillers from its late 18th century Scots-Irish settlers, through state and federal prohibition of the early 20th century, and finally to its diverse characters in "dry" Wilkes during the glory days of the 1950s.

Wilkes' moonshine culture developed from the Blue Ridge Mountains in the west, across the Brushy Mountains and through the piedmont to the east, crossing all socio-economic boundaries. As these resourceful moonshiners faced both natural and economic hardships through the centuries, they used the distilling resources available to them and the crops they raised, and perfected methods to preserve and transport their harvest. For men and women, blacks and whites, producing and selling distilled alcohol, without paying rigorous taxes, meant the difference between material poverty and economic survival.

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Less well known is the "unwritten code" that effectively discouraged violence between revenuers and bootleggers during the 1950s moonshining zenith. Although many wild chases between revenuers and bootleggers occurred, this thesis provides evidence of an exceptionally peaceful moonshine culture in Wilkes County during the lively heyday. Viewed through an interdisciplinary Appalachian Studies lens, this moonshine Mecca is studied with a new perspective, understanding, and appreciation.

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