Prohibition ushered in an age of rule breakin’ and hooch makin’ in America, and the Cape Fear region played host to it all.
Illegal moonshining operations, public drunkenness and home speakeasies kept Wilmington-area Prohibition officers busy beginning in 1909 when North Carolina became a dry state – a full decade before the whole country followed suit.
On this week's season finale episode, we talk about why North Carolina was quick to pass Prohibition, how it eroded public adherence to authority, where its impacts are still felt today and what led to the brutal moonshine-related murder of two officers in 1924.
Joining the discussion is special guest Jan Davidson, the historian for the Cape Fear Museum.
Cape Fear Unearthed is written, edited and hosted by Hunter Ingram. Additional editing by Adam Fish.
Season three is sponsored by Northchase Family Dentistry and Tidewater Heating & Air Conditioning.
Sources:
-- "Prohibition in North Carolina," by Daniel Jay Whitener
-- "Last Call: The Rise and Fall of Prohibition," by Daniel Okrent
-- "Memories Yesteryear," by Dr. Robert M. Fales
-- "Moonshiners and Prohibitionists: The Battle Over Alcohol in Southern Appalachia," by Bruce Stewart
-- Research provided by Cape Fear Museum
-- Wilmington Morning Star editions, 1909-1924
Hurricane-Force History
Long Live Old Baldy
Cape Fear Classics, Vol. 2
Rebellion at Brunswick Town
The Downfall of Charles Town
Trouble Comes to Town
A Most Daring Escape
The Showboat Goes to War
Blood and Honor at Ten Paces
The Yellow Death
Still Burning: The Story of Firestarter
The Roots of the Azalea Festival
The Suicide Club
The Palace of Light
Wilmington in the Time of Nazis
Cape Fear Classics, Vol. 1
Ghosts of Gallows Hill
Massacre After Midnight
The Man, The Myth, The Hermit
The Lost Treasure of Money Island
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