The Harricane: Remnants of moonshine stills around Falls Lake hint at bootlegging history
If you've ever walked the trails of Falls Lake, you may be surprised to discover remnants of old moonshine stills from the 1950s era of bootlegging still glistening in the moonlight out in those woods. Those old backwoods hold the history of a community born out of storms, poverty and moonshine – a history largely forgotten by the area today.
The northern stretch of Wake County – as well as parts of Granville and Franklin – had a culture and mystery all its own. No one ever admitted to living there – according to tradition, if you asked where The Harricane was, people would always answer, "About a half-mile over yonder" or "A little down the road."
Historians consider the old Falls community, which was comprised of old mills and farms, to have been part of The Harricane. That community is mostly gone, disappeared into Falls Lake, which was created in the late 70s – around the same time bootlegging became less commonplace.
The area was heavily rural and impoverished, full of renegades, with red clay that couldn't grow crops. Many considered it dangerous to travel into that area of the county – but those who grew up in The Harricane considered it a place of tight-knit community and family. Everyone was kin, according to the oral history, and church was a cornerstone.
The land got its name from a wild storm, a hurricane that wasted the area in the 1800s. 'The Hurricane' was likely the intent of the original name, but strong southern accents caused it to be pronounced 'Hair-kin' or 'Hair-a-cun.' It's colloquially known as The Harricane by historians.
The Harricane: A land of bootleggers named by a renegade storm
None who are alive today remember the storm that first created The Harricane in the northern stretch of Wake County, but oral history describes it as "the day the stars fell."
"My grandmother was born in the 1872 hurricane. Her mother told her of seeing the stars fall as a child. The sky turned dark, and the mules came in thinking it was night. The people shouted and prayed, thinking it was the end of the world."
That northwestern corner of Wake County is still a little wild – and some locals with deep roots in the area feel it's sad to see it tamed into upper class suburban neighborhoods.
But that was just for the outsiders – those who grew up in that sliver of land, before it was destroyed by the creation of Falls Lake, remember the culture and pride of growing up there.
They will say people took care of each other. They will say their work in moonshine provided during a time when liquor was hard to come by. They'll call it God's country.
"I was born, grew up in the Harricaine’s. God’s country. Never ashamed of my heritage. You should see the area now. Nice houses, and people that have no idea of the history. I proudly sign my name Mary Helen Grissom Long," wrote one commenter on the an article about The Harricane on the Wake Forest Historical Museum's website.
Finding moonshine stills in The Harricane
Moonshine had many names: White lightening, rot-gut, mountain dew, hooch, corn liquor.
"The term moonshine is derived from the fact that most stills were located in the woods and run at night by the light of the moon to avoid detection," said Johnny C. Binkley, a historian and author who served in the ATF on the task force responsible for taking down moonshine stills. He spent his days working in that community.
"It's a history I fear is quickly being forgotten," said Binkley. "I wanted to write about it to make sure it's remembered for years to come."
In his book Moonshiners & Revenuers, Binkley recalls the areas around Franklin, Granville and northern Wake County having the most activity.
"Each little town and little crossroads had their own bootlegger," he said.
According to Binkley, moonshining peaked in 1956 and started decreasing in popularity since then. But that didn't mean he wasn't kept busy enough in the 1960s and 70s.
"The land was red clay. It was hard to grow crops and make money that way. We were coming out of The Depression," he said.
Liquor was expensive and harder to come by in those days.
"If you lived out in the country, you could drive all the way to Greensboro for an hour or two and pay more for your liquor, or you could drive just down the road to the bootleggers and pay less," he said.
Even though prohibition had been repealed, it took time for counties to open liquor stores and start selling. Binkley remembers you could drive from Raleigh to Charlotte and never pass a store where you could buy liquor or beer.
The end of The Harricane
In the 1970s, several major shifts signaled the end of the moonshine community.
First, Binkley said, as Raleigh grew and spread out, the moonshiners moved deeper into the surrounding counties.
Secondly, moonshine stills were legalized in the 1970s when a big gas shortage generated a need for stills that created 'gas-ohol.' The state began issuing permits to make 'gas-ohol,' and soon after, distilleries became legal.
Finally, Falls Lake was being built between 1978 and 1981. According to a book called 'The Battle for Falls Lake,' by historian Janet Steddum the community fought to save their houses, their stores and the land that held their heritage. However, the creation of the lake was likely one of the final straws in ending the moonshine and Harricane community in Wake County.
Binkley caught his last moonshine still in 1976.
He believes there are likely no more moonshine stills out there in those woods – but maybe a few remnants and scraps left behind.
"You might find some concrete blocks or the metal rings from around the barrel," he said.
But other people say there are a few stills hiding out there in secret and that the land still holds some of its renegade past. A few people who live in the area say they have seen abandoned stills nearby their homes, but it has not been confirmed. Just one more mystery for that stretch of land.
Today, northern Wake County is known for boating and hiking around Falls Lake. It's known for expensive suburban homes and a certain amount of wealth – and many living there don't realize how different things were even a few decades ago.
They don't realize they live in a land once shaped by a hurricane.
Photos and history are courtesy of Johnny Binkley's book Moonshiners & Revenuers, as well as the Wake Forest Historical Museum. Both are fantastic sources for more history on The Harricane.
