WHITE LIGHTNING
- Program
- Subject
- Location
- Lat/Long
- Grant Recipient
-
Legends & Lore®
-
Folklore
- LA-146, Homer, LA 71040, USA
- 32.713204, -92.923332
-
Claiborne Parish Library
WHITE LIGHTNING
Inscription
WHITE LIGHTNINGNICKNAME FOR THIS INFAMOUS
WINDING ROAD, THE SITE OF
NUMEROUS ILLEGAL STILLS AND
MOONSHINING BEFORE, DURING,
AND EVEN AFTER PROHIBITION.
CENTER FOR LOUISIANA STUDIES
WILLIAM G. POMEROY FOUNDATION 2021
From Claiborne Parish Library’s grant application:
The White Lightning Road has a long history as a stagecoach road through a rural area once dotted with illegal moonshine stills. The road, now Louisiana Highway 146, runs from the small village of Vienna in Lincoln Parish to the small town of Homer in Claiborne Parish. It served as a major thoroughfare across north Louisiana prior to the arrival of the railroad. The White Lightning Road was the center point of the Ramsey-Tuggle Feud, a years-long battle between two local families that resulted in more deaths than the more famous Hatfield & McCoy Feud.
Local farmers who grew corn for livestock feed and family food reserved some for use in making “corn liquor.” The moonshine was sold to provide cash to the distillers, who usually failed to pay the federal excise tax on whiskey manufacture. Local ordinances also prohibited the production of alcohol for sale. Violations meant U.S. Marshals, federal revenue officers, and deputy sheriffs spent considerable time tracking down the stills.
