John Holdridge, Used Car Dealer, East River Rd, Morris, NY

Image courtesy of Rene Elliott. Comments by Rene Elliott and others.

Back when my Grandfather Holdridge was in the Used Car business c. 1950s, (Pegg Road was still called "East River Road" then). He sold a Ford F1 panel truck to some guys that insisted they wanted to keep the post mounted spotlight on it, and because of that they got pulled over on their way downstate by police looking for deer jackers, and found the van loaded with moonshine."

Scroll down below newspapers for more discussion.

Rene Elliott
Ken Cooke told me the house (in the "Ebenezer Chapel" or "Hayti" vicinity on the Pittsfield town line) had fallen in and there was just broken glass, etc. in the cellar hole.

Gary Fisher
Most likely part of the still on the hill operation located between Benny Wells farm and Hillsinger road in the late 1950's They strained the corn wiskey thru and old felt hat before it went into the bottle. I remember when it was discovered and dismantled, you could smell booze for miles.

Peggy Knapp McCrea
Are you sure you never visited that place first hand, Gary?

Gary Fisher
Never did, but we knew for weeks that the BCI aand NYS police were watching something in the area. They would eat lunch in Walkers Coffee Shop and we saw the binoculars on the front seat of their unmarked cars. It was a total surrise. They would fill the van with the booze and then fill the entire back of the van with bags of potatoes from Elliott's Potato farm before the run to the city.

Frank Rock
Probably Kurt Gunther from the B.C.I.

Peter Jacobsen
Gary, isn't that why it's called Shacktown Mt. ?

Gary Fisher
That is correct, but did not use Shacktown Mtn. as many Facebook users. would never know that that was and I don't think it is on the map, so they can't Google it. It is like Whippleville on the next ridge going toward Pittsfield.

Peter Jacobsen
I use to go travel to Whippleville when I was a very young boy. It was part of my ol' stomping grounds

Leona Shelley
Don't recall hearing of Whippleville, is that in the Ketchum area?

Gary Fisher
Shacktown mountain area close the the old still on the hill. This was in the late 1950's. They ran the corn wiskey back into NY city, Brooklyn and Queens. Did not pay taxes on any of it like Donald. Those were the good old days.

Rene M Elliott
Dead end road now off Pine Tree Road (turn by Edgerton's up that steep dirt road), Herb Whipple has written up the history of that area naturally, and supposedly there was a different still or bootleg operation there back back during Prohibition.

Rene M Elliott
My grandfather always wondered what kind of special flavor two old dirty felt hats would give the alcohol, and if that is what made Kentucky Bourbon "special"?

Peggy Knapp McCrea
Never heard this discussed around our kitchen table.....wonder why:)

Gary Fisher
It was rather hush, hush for weeks but there were quite a few of us that knew something was going on. So when the news broke they got the whole group. Including those selling it illegally in the city. They even knew where the sugar came from that went into the mash.

Leona Shelley
Were they local folks, or had they moved into area?

Gary Fisher
All out of towners from the city and downstate.

Leona Shelley
I see, thanks Gary Fisher.