The Red Flannel Rag

Uncle Rob in his pickup with Ruby, Joyce, and Randy, three of his four children on the back. He had just bought this new pickup. He built a secret compartment in the back for hauling moonshine. He later lost this truck to the revenuers.

My mother, who was raised by Aunt Goldie and Uncle Rob mother stayed at

home many days to sell moonshine for him. One Sunday while Uncle Rob and Aunt

Goldie were at church, Mom sold $270.00 worth of moonshine by mid-afternoon. It

was 1936 and that was a great deal of money. “I got so scared having that much money

that I locked the house and ran up on the ridge to hide until Rob and Goldie came home

from church.” As she told me this story, she said, I wonder how much money I could

have made that day. I’ll bet I missed a lot of customers.”

Uncle Rob devised ways to haul his moonshine in secret chambers in his car or

truck for his weekly deliveries to his friends on the police force and local judges. He

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