Moonshiners and Prohibitionists: The Battle over Alcohol in Southern Appalachia

by Bruce E. Stewart

Overview

Homemade liquor has played a prominent role in the Appalachian economy for nearly two centuries. The region endured profound transformations during the extreme prohibition movements of the nineteenth century, when the manufacturing and sale of alcohol—an integral part of daily life for many Appalachians—was banned. In Moonshiners and Prohibitionists: The Battle over Alcohol in Southern Appalachia, Bruce E. Stewart chronicles the social tensions that accompanied the region's early transition from a rural to an urban-industrial economy. Stewart analyzes the dynamic relationship of the bootleggers and opponents of liquor sales in western North Carolina, as well as conflict driven by social and economic development that manifested in political discord. Stewart also explores the life of the moonshiner and the many myths that developed around hillbilly stereotypes. A welcome addition to the New Directions in Southern History series, Moonshiners and Prohibitionists addresses major economic, social, and cultural questions that are essential to the understanding of Appalachian history.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780813130170
Publisher:	University Press of Kentucky
Publication date:	04/22/2011
Series:	New Directions in Southern History
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	340
File size:	4 MB
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Bruce E. Stewart is associate professor of history at Appalachian State University.

Table of Contents

List of Tables and Illustrations
Preface
Introduction
Part I: The Beginnings of Antialcohol Reform, 1790–1860
1. "This Country Improves in Cultivation, Wickedness, Mills, and Still": Distilling and Drinking during the Antebellum Period
2. Select Men of Sober and Industrious Habits: Alcohol Reform and Social Conflict during the Late Antebellum Period
Part II: The Golden Age of Moonshining, 1861–1876
3. "Is There Any Way to Get at the Distillers?": The Fall and Rise of the Moonshiners, 1861–1868
4. "They Tax Us and Give Us Negro Civil Rights": Moonshiner Violence and the Politics of Federal Liquor Taxation, 1868–1876
Part III: The Road to Prohibition, 1870–1908
5. Civilization Requires Prohibition: The Beginning of the End for the Moonshiners, 1870–1882
6. "These Big-Boned, Semi-Barbarian People": Creation of the Myth of Violent Appalachia and Its Consequences, 1878–1890
7. "Afloat on the Tide of Improvement": The Uplift Movement and Rise of Prohibition Sentiment in Rural Communities, 1885–1900
8. "Wilt Thou Send the Revenues Down upon the Distillers": A Political History of Prohibition, 1882–1908
Conclusion
Notes
Bibliography
Index

Editorial Reviews

""Stewart uses the alcohol debate in southern Appalachia to add fresh insights into the understanding of southern history and expand the breadth of alcohol studies research."--Choice" --

""Stewart offers readers a unique perspective on the consequences of Appalachia's political, economic, and social transformation during the 19th century and its impact on the communities and residents of western North Carolina."--Appalachian Journal" --

""Though many historians have emphasized the role that outsiders played in developing popular Appalachian stereotypes, Stewart reveals that early anti-liquor crusaders in the region's towns contributed their share as well."--West Virginia History" --

""Stewart tracks important shifts in popular sentiment, politics, and laws about making and drinking alcohol from the early 1800s to the early 1900s."--Now and Then" --

""The author contends that distillers played a vital economic role in the isolated mountain communities. It was this geographical isolation that made moonshining profitable...Stewart does a fine job of telling his story."--The North Carolina Historical Review" --

""This insightful book is certain to serve as a model for future studies on the antiliquor movement."--The Journal of American History" --

""A fresh and insightful study that makes a significant contribution to our understanding of the Appalachian South, the antebellum and post-bellum temperance movements, and the wider South. This fascinating work will certainly generate lively discussions."--Journal of East Tennessee History" --

""In this masterly study Bruce E. Stewart explains a facet of the antiliquor crusade that scholars have ignored, namely, the changing perception people had of alcohol distillers: from manufacturers of a legitimate product to impediments to economic and social progress."--Journal of American History" --

""Sheds light on a region and a topic that have been egregiously under-examined. Regional studies such as his offer a more nuanced understanding of the historical liquor question in modern America."--American Historical Review" --

""Perhaps the greatest achievement of Moonshiners and Prohibitionists is that it wrestles with the topic of moonshine as a serious academic subject." --Gastronomica" --

""Moonshiners and Prohibitionists is a much-needed contribution to our understanding of the complex social, economic, religious, and cultural issues underlying the prohibition impulse that swept the South between 1880 and 1920." --Journal of Southern History" --

From the Publisher

This insightful book is certain to serve as a model for future studies on the antiliquor movement.

The Journal of American History

Though many historians have emphasized the role that outsiders played in developing popular Appalachian stereotypes, Stewart reveals that early anti-liquor crusaders in the region's towns contributed their share as well.

West Virginia History

Moonshiners and Prohibitionists is a much-needed contribution to our understanding of the complex social, economic, religious, and cultural issues underlying the prohibition impulse that swept the South between 1880 and 1920.

Journal of Southern History

The author contends that distillers played a vital economic role in the isolated mountain communities. It was this geographical isolation that made moonshining profitable...Stewart does a fine job of telling his story.

The North Carolina Historical Review

Stewart uses the alcohol debate in southern Appalachia to add fresh insights into the understanding of southern history and expand the breadth of alcohol studies research.

Choice

Stewart addresses major economic, social, and cultural questions that are central to our understanding of the history of Appalachia.

Gordon B. McKinney

Stewart tracks important shifts in popular sentiment, politics, and laws about making and drinking alcohol from the early 1800s to the early 1900s.

Now and Then

Perhaps the greatest achievement of Moonshiners and Prohibitionists is that it wrestles with the topic of moonshine as a serious academic subject.

Gastronomica

Stewart offers readers a unique perspective on the consequences of Appalachia's political, economic, and social transformation during the 19th century and its impact on the communities and residents of western North Carolina.

Appalachian Journal

A fresh and insightful study that makes a significant contribution to our understanding of the Appalachian South, the antebellum and post-bellum temperance movements, and the wider South. This fascinating work will certainly generate lively discussions.

Journal of East Tennessee History

Sheds light on a region and a topic that have been egregiously under-examined. Regional studies such as his offer a more nuanced understanding of the historical liquor question in modern America.

American Historical Review

What Moonshiners and Prohibitionists does most effectively is provide solid historical context for where we are today when it comes to the politics of alcohol in our communities. It's a little served area in historical research, and it's definitely worth a read for anyone interested in the subject matter.

Corbin News Journal