One of my lifelong friends whose family has owned and operated a garage in the same location since 1970 bought a pretty nice 1962 Ford a few weeks ago It is not a show car, but is a very nice driver. It was a "406" car, but doesn't have the original engine. It does have a 427 CID Ford motor with 3-two barrel carburetors. The transmission is a three speed factory Ford with a steering column mounted shifter. It looks, runs, and rides great for a car of it's age. IMHO (my friends too), these cars are not the most eye-catching vehicle on the road now or even when it was new. My good friends reason for purchasing the car was sentimental. His daddy, who I will call Erskine, had a car just like this back in the day except Erskine's had the original 406 CID engine with a three speed on the column with overdrive that had been added and leaf springs on the rear end from a 3/4 ton truck. One might ask "why the heavy springs"? My friend's father was in the illegal whiskey trade as a moonshiner and hauler in the 1950's, 60's, and early 70's and this early muscle car is one of the vehicles he used. My friend's uncle who was also in the same business once told me "that every state trooper in the State of Alabama new Erskine's name".
Above is my friends new toy. Below is Erskine's car after being captured in a "trap" atop Wilson Dam in Florence, Alabama circa 1968. He was taken to jail and the car and liquor was confiscated. Erskine had a friend bid and buy the car back for him when it was sold at public auction. Between some "connections" and knowing the right people to pay off, Erskine avoided jail time. In all those years, Erskine never drank and this was the only time he was ever caught (he did serve a year and day in federal prison for being framed by a federal judge on whiskey charges after the judge grew tired of him constantly evading lawmen). I became acquainted with Erskine through his son. He was a good man and good friend too. I never passed up a chance to hear him talk about the old days. He is the kind of man who would give a stranger the shoes off his feet. In a time when most folks around where I live either grew a little cotton, cut timber, hauled logs, or worked at a sawmill as that was about all there was to do, some folks decided to make whiskey. Hardly anyone frowned on the vocation in those days,
I have no idea as to the name of the Alabama Beverage Control officer seen here pouring out whiskey. Note the 5 gallon cans are plastic. Most whiskey makers used surplus 5 gallon Jerry cans for years before and until the moonshine liquor business no longer was profitable. These plastic cans would have been much lighter and quieter carrying into and out of the woods. Also, the back seat has been removed from the Ford and cans could be stacked from the back of the front seat to the taillights either laying flat or standing. These men living and dead lived the life portrayed in movies then and now. I am sure they were exciting times. R.I.P. "Erskine". Your memory lives.
Watch the movie "Lawless" the book, "Wettest County in the World" about the Bondurant brothers which the movie is based off of is even better. My Daughter gave me the book years ago at Christmas.
I remember was a kid in the 60s we would go to the Dairy Queen on Atlanta Hwy on nice summer nights to get a burger, Coke, onion rings, and a fried apple pie. There were tables outside the DQ where we would sit, and on Friday and Saturday nights, the ridge runners would bring their deliveries driving black cars that had engines which thundered. Everyone knew them. Those cars sounds like music when they went by.
I have travelled many a time, over many, many years on Kingston Pike in the Bearden community; as mentioned in the song. I've never been certain how much of this story is true but, it's fun to imagine.
A friend grew up north of Huntsville and learned to drive in order to take his father’s whiskey into Huntsville. And my wife tells me that as a child she wondered why her grandfather left the house Friday evening with a fifty pound bag of sugar and on Sunday, after church, the Baptists would stop by and buy jars of water.
my dad ran shine thru eastern KY back in the early 1930's in a 1928 dodge touring car. until he got into a fight up in Ohio and left for the west coast. he never talked about it much, but my uncles sure did back in the 1960's often wonder why our last name was different from them,
My dad was born in 1935. His father, my grandfather, did time for making shine. He was given a choice. Serve the rest of his sentence or join the army. This was during WWII. He chose the army. Ended up getting wounded during the Battle of the Bulge. I was lucky to actually know him.
Give 'Copperhead Road' a listen, both the Steve Earle version https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvaEJzoaYZk and the sequel by Amy 'n Me https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jccnkfGSjm0
I went to high school in the region where Junior Johnson made his reputation, and the local paper featured "illicit non-tax-paid whiskey" distillery destruction twice a week. Most adult men either dabbled in the trade or had a family member who did, and like Jeffrey's friends, no one thought it a tainted profession.
I will add that when I was in the Navy I served with a pair of Twins from SC. Nice guys, one was a little "slow" and has brother took care of him. I ask them what they did before they joined the Navy. Made Shine, and would do so when they got out. Every 2 weeks they would get a shipment form home - a full box of Red Man.
Three blocks down a neighbor owns a unmolested fully correct '63 R-Code Galaxie. Borg T-10, quads/manifold, EVERY-thing correct to the car as built that was documented by Don Allen before he bought it. He swapped in a 352-4 last summer to preserve the original 427. The only thing he did was harden the exhaust valve seats to run unleaded Bucee's 95 octane near us unless 100LL from the airport to mix. Interior/exterior color is "Chestnut". Best of it he let me drive it early last year like 4 miles. Off the wall torque. A beast among beasts.
I had a great uncle who built cars for moonshiners in the 30's.The engine from one year,transmission from another,and the rear end from another.He had a junkyard in Elizabeth City N.C. where he got the parts.When the revenuers caught the runners,he's buy the car back at the public auctions they held for confiscated cars,repaint the car and sell it to another shiner.It was a profitable business.
We had an older neighbor,a retired Ford plant employee,who had a 62 identical(on the outside) to this car in Norfolk,Va.I helped him replace the starter in it around 1980.The starter was huge,and had the starter drive on a long shaft with the starter drive engaging the starter gear from behind the flywheel.It was a little tricky to install.I've never seen a starter like that before or since.It was a beautiful,near pristine car in appearance,but I never thought to ask him which engine was in it( he wasn't very talkative about things like that).
As a youngster in Oklahoma in the 1960's, my best friend and I were big fans of the movie "Thunder Road." Actually, we were nuts about all things V8 Ford. My friend has finally outdone me. We are both 75 this year, but he has seen the movie 27 times. I have only seen it 18 times. We still get together every once in a while and watch my VHS copy.
x brother-in-law had a '57 black ford with a 312 t-bird special back in the late 60's. always thought of that song and movie every time he gave me a ride in that car.
In high school, I drove a liquor car my dad bought from the ATF in the '60's. It had been built to run shine but was caught on it's maiden run. The ATF used it for years as a chase car, stakeout car, etc. until it was too old. Dad was in the garage/used car/junk business in NC and knew too many police and feds, so he able to buy it. We drove it for 5 or 6 more years before sending it on. That was a different era.
In 1955, we lived halfway between Harlan and Cumberland on the hill looking down upon the highway..
My brother and I could hear and see the the moonshiners roaring past with the lights off with just the twinkle of the moonlight reflecting off the chrome and windshields…
I was a 18 yr old Pfc at MCAS Beaufort in 1973. I was the one of the only guys in our shop who had a car. One of the other guys talked me into driving him “back home” for the weekend. He was from a little town north of Atlanta. I was driving a 65 VW bug. Our first stop was the moonshiner! We put a dozen gallon jugs in the car and off we went. I didn’t hardly drink then. I would be curious to give it a good taste now 50 years later. Looked like Dukes of Hazzard country to me. Good times! Paul J
My dad born in 1915, use to hang around bootleggers during the later 30's. I've got a pic of him in his '32 DeSoto roadster, a friend with his '33 Dodge coupe and the "Tanker" a '37 Lincoln Zephyr. The tanker could hold 25 gallons of shine he said.
They were usually the biggest tithers as well.
ReplyDeleteWatch the movie "Lawless" the book, "Wettest County in the World" about the Bondurant brothers which the movie is based off of is even better. My Daughter gave me the book years ago at Christmas.
My Dad's brother became a statie after the war. Dad's cousin told a story how my uncle would drop off a little confiscation to him when he could.
DeleteHi
DeleteI remember was a kid in the 60s we would go to the Dairy Queen on Atlanta Hwy on nice summer nights to get a burger, Coke, onion rings, and a fried apple pie. There were tables outside the DQ where we would sit, and on Friday and Saturday nights, the ridge runners would bring their deliveries driving black cars that had engines which thundered. Everyone knew them. Those cars sounds like music when they went by.
ReplyDeleteI have travelled many a time, over many, many years on Kingston Pike in the Bearden community; as mentioned in the song. I've never been certain how much of this story is true but, it's fun to imagine.
ReplyDeleteBayouwulf
Grew up on Kingston Pike.There is a curve west of Bearden were the locals say he left the road.
DeleteA friend grew up north of Huntsville and learned to drive in order to take his father’s whiskey into Huntsville. And my wife tells me that as a child she wondered why her grandfather left the house Friday evening with a fifty pound bag of sugar and on Sunday, after church, the Baptists would stop by and buy jars of water.
ReplyDeletemy dad ran shine thru eastern KY back in the early 1930's in a 1928 dodge touring car. until he got into a fight up in Ohio and left for the west coast. he never talked about it much, but my uncles sure did back in the 1960's
ReplyDeleteoften wonder why our last name was different from them,
My dad was born in 1935. His father, my grandfather, did time for making shine. He was given a choice. Serve the rest of his sentence or join the army. This was during WWII. He chose the army. Ended up getting wounded during the Battle of the Bulge. I was lucky to actually know him.
ReplyDeleteGive 'Copperhead Road' a listen, both the Steve Earle version https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvaEJzoaYZk
ReplyDeleteand the sequel by Amy 'n Me https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jccnkfGSjm0
Ha, owned the cassette. Still love hearing that song and many of his others.
DeleteI went to high school in the region where Junior Johnson made his reputation, and the local paper featured "illicit non-tax-paid whiskey" distillery destruction twice a week. Most adult men either dabbled in the trade or had a family member who did, and like Jeffrey's friends, no one thought it a tainted profession.
ReplyDeleteGuess you could point out where the swapping tree was, then :)
DeleteGood reference; you've been down that road, then.
DeleteAlways like the movie and Mitch singing the song.
ReplyDeleteI will add that when I was in the Navy I served with a pair of Twins from SC. Nice guys, one was a little "slow" and has brother took care of him. I ask them what they did before they joined the Navy. Made Shine, and would do so when they got out. Every 2 weeks they would get a shipment form home - a full box of Red Man.
ReplyDeleteThree blocks down a neighbor owns a unmolested fully correct '63 R-Code Galaxie. Borg T-10, quads/manifold, EVERY-thing correct to the car as built that was documented by Don Allen before he bought it. He swapped in a 352-4 last summer to preserve the original 427. The only thing he did was harden the exhaust valve seats to run unleaded Bucee's 95 octane near us unless 100LL from the airport to mix. Interior/exterior color is "Chestnut". Best of it he let me drive it early last year like 4 miles. Off the wall torque. A beast among beasts.
ReplyDeleteI had a great uncle who built cars for moonshiners in the 30's.The engine from one year,transmission from another,and the rear end from another.He had a junkyard in Elizabeth City N.C. where he got the parts.When the revenuers caught the runners,he's buy the car back at the public auctions they held for confiscated cars,repaint the car and sell it to another shiner.It was a profitable business.
ReplyDeleteWe had an older neighbor,a retired Ford plant employee,who had a 62 identical(on the outside) to this car in Norfolk,Va.I helped him replace the starter in it around 1980.The starter was huge,and had the starter drive on a long shaft with the starter drive engaging the starter gear from behind the flywheel.It was a little tricky to install.I've never seen a starter like that before or since.It was a beautiful,near pristine car in appearance,but I never thought to ask him which engine was in it( he wasn't very talkative about things like that).
ReplyDeleteAs a youngster in Oklahoma in the 1960's, my best friend and I were big fans of the movie "Thunder Road." Actually, we were nuts about all things V8 Ford. My friend has finally outdone me. We are both 75 this year, but he has seen the movie 27 times. I have only seen it 18 times. We still get together every once in a while and watch my VHS copy.
ReplyDeleteI watch it about once a year or whenever I see it on TCM. It is a classic.
Deletex brother-in-law had a '57 black ford with a 312 t-bird special back in the late 60's. always thought of that song and movie every time he gave me a ride in that car.
ReplyDeleteIn high school, I drove a liquor car my dad bought from the ATF in the '60's. It had been built to run shine but was caught on it's maiden run. The ATF used it for years as a chase car, stakeout car, etc. until it was too old. Dad was in the garage/used car/junk business in NC and knew too many police and feds, so he able to buy it. We drove it for 5 or 6 more years before sending it on.
ReplyDeleteThat was a different era.
Back in the day, a friend's cousin had a '62 galaxy. 390 with a 4speed. For such a big heavy car, that thing would shit-n-git!
ReplyDeleteIn 1955, we lived halfway between Harlan and Cumberland on the hill looking down upon the highway..
ReplyDeleteMy brother and I could hear and see the the moonshiners roaring past with the lights off with just the twinkle of the moonlight reflecting off the chrome and windshields…
I was a 18 yr old Pfc at MCAS Beaufort in 1973. I was the one of the only guys in our shop who had a car. One of the other guys talked me into driving him “back home” for the weekend.
ReplyDeleteHe was from a little town north of Atlanta. I was driving a 65 VW bug. Our first stop was the moonshiner! We put a dozen gallon jugs in the car and off we went. I didn’t hardly drink then.
I would be curious to give it a good taste now 50 years later.
Looked like Dukes of Hazzard country to me.
Good times!
Paul J
My dad born in 1915, use to hang around bootleggers during the later 30's. I've got a pic of him in his '32 DeSoto roadster, a friend with his '33 Dodge coupe and the "Tanker" a '37 Lincoln Zephyr. The tanker could hold 25 gallons of shine he said.
ReplyDelete