Moonshine Wars
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Old Huntsville Page 1 No. 318 August 2019 Moonshine Wars Also in this issue ohn enver - the Huntsville Connection et tips, Monster Trucks, Local Memories, Southern Recipes, and much more Old Huntsville Page 2 256-539-5777(256) 539-5777 Old Huntsville Page 3 “Every morning Mama would pack us a lunch of bis- Moonshine cuits and fatback and we would set out walking. We Wars had to walk about three or four miles to the still, but back then by Tom Carney it didn’t seem like a long way,” Old Huntsville, Inc. (USPS #8510) he remembers. 716 East Clinton Ave. The courtroom was silent as Huntsville, Al 35801 the judge shuffl ed his papers. The Brasemores had a repu- Finally, after taking a long look tation for making some of the (256) 534-0502 best liquor in the county and, at the man standing in front of Email - [email protected] of course, that made a lot of him, he asked: "Well, what do (Website) www.oldhuntsvillemag.com people jealous. you have to say for yourself?" Publisher - Cathey Carney The defendant, remember- “There was this family, Rick- etts I believe the name was, ing that his lawyer had told Advertising - (256) 534-0502 him to be honest and tell the that used to live close to us. The old man was what you would Sales & Mrktg. - Cathey Carney truth, replied: "Your Honor, Editor - Cheryl Tribble my name is Jim Brasemore call shiftless, never did a hard Consultant - Ron Eyestone and I make moonshine. Matter day’s work in his life. He used Gen. Manager - Sam Keith of fact, I make the best white to come around and buy liquor Copy Boy - Tom Carney whiskey in Madison County!" from us and then sell it to the (in memory) fi eld hands,” he recalls. Jim Brasemore was a moon- “ld Huntsville” magaine is shiner and he talks freely about “Of course before he sold it, he would cut it down ‘til a monthly publication. Annual it, now that the statute of limi- subscriptions are 28 per year. tations has run out. it didn’t even taste like good whiskey. Everybody knew or subscription change of address, He learned the art of whis- mail new information to the key-making from his father, it was Brasemore whiskey, above address. so they didn’t question it too who had learned it from his All material contained within is copyright much. When Daddy heard 2019 and may not be reproduced or copied in father. Young Jim started feed- any form without written permission of the about what Ricketts was doing, publisher. Old Huntsville, Inc. assumes no ing a fi rebox when he was only responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts seven or eight years old. he wouldn’t sell him anymore. or content of solicited articles.. "We had this groundhog still We had a reputation to main- out next to the Flint River," he tain, you understand.” says. A groundhog was a still Not long after that, the built into the side of a hill or Brasemores got to noticing that cliff. Such distilleries were hard someone was stealing from to detect. them. Some culprit would sneak into their “holding ar- Your Total indow eas” in the woods, where they Treatment rovider hat’s the most stashed their whiskey until it important thing to learn could be picked up by the haul- in Chemistry on’t ers. The whiskey started disap- lick the spoon. pearing, a couple of gallons at a time. L. Thomas Ryan, Jr. Attorney At Law 2319 Market Place, Suite B Huntsville, Alabama 35801 Telephone Fax (256) 533-1103 (256) 533-9711 ESTATE PLANNING, LIVING TRUSTS, WILLS, PROBATE “No Representation is made that the quality of the legal services to be performed is greater than the quality of legal services performed by other lawyers.” Old Huntsville Page 4 They put together a plan to meals standing up for a few key. Everybody knew what catch the thieves. weeks.” Mama was doing, so a lot of “One morning just after sun- When the younger Brase- people who didn’t even drink up, Daddy comes and wakes more was born in 1902, home- would stop and buy some. “For me up. We were ready to put made whiskey was a respect- medicine,”they would say.” our plan into action. We head- able and thriving industry in “On up in the morning a ed for the stash place and took Madison County, Although deputy came by and asked her along this old shotgun, a rab- many people today would what she thought she was do- bit-ears Parker. After we got to frown on the practice, at that ing.” the stash, we made us a hide- time many families depended “‘I’m gettin’ my man out of out under some brush.” on it for a living. The alterna- jail,” she replied. Back then no “On up in the morning, here tive was to work in the mills (if one messed with Mama. “Any- comes old man Ricketts, just they were lucky enough to fi nd thing else you want to know?” lumbering along like some old one that was hiring) or try to she asked the deputy. fat hog. We watched and sure survive as a dirt farmer. “No ma’am,” the deputy re- enough, he goes straight to the “Daddy got caught the fi rst plied sheepishly, “but I reckon whiskey and helps himself to a time in about 1916 or ‘17. The I’ll take a gallon if you got any couple gallons.” law was paying informers to left, my croup has been acting “Ricketts was just about the tell on people. They put his bail up lately.” They got their dad fattest man I ever knew, and bond at fi fty dollars. That was out of jail that day, but he didn’t when he bent over his ‘hind on a Friday, and we didn’t have stay free long. When his trial end looked like the broad side any money, so the next morn- came up, he was sentenced to of a barn. I reckon it was more ing Mama gets me to hitch up 12 months on the county farm. than Daddy could resist, ‘cause the mule and we loaded up the “Pickin” peas,” he called it. he cut loose with that old Park- wagon with what whiskey we “I was a pretty good size boy er and when he got done it had left. Back then, Saturday by then and with Daddy in jail looked like termites had gotten was the big trade day down- it was up to me to run the busi- hold of the rear end of Ricketts’ town and the streets would ness,” the younger Brasemore britches!” be so busy you could hardly “Fortunately, the gun was walk.” loaded with saltpeter and the “We tied the wagon in front shot wasn’t very dangerous, al- of the courthouse and just sat though Ricketts had to eat his there all day, selling whis- Old Huntsville Page 5 Through August 31, 2019 Old Huntsville Page 6 recalls. “Before he got caught, Daddy had hid the worm (copper condensation coil) and I got a neighbor to build me a pot.” “It wasn’t but just a couple of weeks ‘til I was back in business. When I run off my first batch they said the sheriff thought my father had escaped.” “Nobody makes whiskey that good,” the sheriff said, “except for old man Brasemore!” “I hadn’t forgotten about the cur dog that had informed on Daddy, though. Giles was his name. Him and the deputy that ar- rested Daddy were big drinking buddies. This deputy lived out next to Chase Nursery and every Sunday like clockwork, those two would pitch a big drunk.” “Some of my cousins helped me and we took this old worn-out still, it only had a ten-gallon pot, and we set it up out back of his house in a brush patch. First thing Sunday morning we loaded it with mash and started cooking. If you have ever been around a still, you know you can’t hide the smell, and sure enough, on up in the morning the deputy gets a strong whiff and decides to investigate.” “Well, here we are, me and my cousins are hiding in the brush, and the deputy and Giles are stretched out in front of the still sip- ping free whiskey and acting like they are in hog heaven.” “Next thing you know, there’s this big ruckus and when the deputy opened his eyes, there was the sheriff pointing this big pistol at him,” he relates. “You and Giles are under arrest for making whiskey,” the sheriff said. Seems as if someone had sent the sheriff a note. “Like I said, while Daddy was in jail I was running the busi- ness. One of the first things I did, after I got a little ahead, was to buy me a truck. Daddy wouldn’t have nothing to do with automo- biles, he had worked with a mule all of his life. Well I was bound and determined to impress him, so the day he was to get out I took the truck and loaded it down with as much whiskey as I could put on it. It hadn’t been picked up in a while and we had a siz- able load.” “Things didn’t work out the way I fig- ured and the truck broke down a couple of miles from the house.