NASCAR’s origins lie in the dark world of moonshine bootlegging during the Great Depression and Prohibition. It is the drivers who successfully evaded the police to deliver moonshine to their customers that later became the pioneers of stock car racing. One of the most iconic names to stem from this field is Junior Johnson.
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Johnson’s family settled in the Appalachia region even before the 1791 Whiskey Rebellion. Their ancestors were one of the first to create moonshine in the country, and 150 years later, Johnson, his father, and his brothers continued the tradition. Johnson was only eight or nine years old when he got into the business.
By age 14, he was delivering moonshine to customers living 20 or 30 miles away from home. His skills behind the wheel were unmatchable by the police, and a particular 180-degree turn that he used to make became infamous as the Bootleg U-Turn. It is no surprise that he was never caught when driving his car. But then, there was a reason for all the risk.
He was often quoted saying, “We weren’t doing anything wrong; we were just trying to survive, and we didn’t have any money to pay the taxes.” Making moonshine and delivering them was the only way they knew how to make a living, and they did it. Johnson’s unparalleled bootlegging skills eventually turned his attention to NASCAR racing.
When returning from a race in 1956, his father had asked him to go home and fire up the family still. It had to be fired up before the sun rose, or one of the neighbors would see the smoke and report it to the police. Unknown to him, 18 revenuers were already lying in wait for him to catch him in the act. And so, when he lit it up, he was caught and sent to jail.
Johnson’s arrest, return to racing, and the birth of Midnight Moon
For his infringement of the law, Johnson was sentenced to two years in prison. He was released after 11 months and he returned to racing cars. In 1955, his maiden NASCAR season, he had won 5 races and finished sixth in the overall rankings. This performance made his return a highly anticipated one, and he delivered. Again.
By 1959, he won 11 more races and established himself as the one to beat. He invented a racing trick that is today known as drafting and gained much fame for it. He retired from the job in 1966 with 50 wins under his belt. But his affiliation with NASCAR did not end there. The talented driver started his own racing team and found profound success with it.
President Ronald Reagan pardoned his arrest in December 1986 in honor of his contributions to motorsports. But the itch to continue his family’s legacy in the moonshine industry did not subside in him. And so, in 2007, he was back at it again. With the support of the law this time. Johnson partnered with Piedmont Distillers to make moonshine in the modern world.
He shared his family recipe with Joe Michalek, the founder of Piedmont, and Midnight Moon was born. The drink was sold in a clear flavor and three other fruit-infused flavors. 79 years old at the time, Johnson said, “Back in the old days, we’d put fruit in our moonshine. People always liked the fruit-flavored shine the best. I guess it’s because it was so easy to drink.”
Midnight Moon becomes one of the best-selling moonshine brands in the country
By 2013, Midnight Moon had grown to become one of the sought after moonshines in America. It was outrunning competition by a ratio of 2:1 and selling more than 500,000 nine litre cases annually. Johnson had come full-circle from being a teenage bootlegger to successfully selling moonshine in a completely legal manner.
Michalek said of the growth to PRN Newswire, “Midnight Moon follows the Johnson family moonshine traditions of handcrafting in small batches, including the additional time and expense required to hand-pack every jar with real fruit. This is how moonshine was meant to be made and the only way to truly make the best tasting moonshine.”
The driver traveled across states to stores that sold the moonshine and delighted fans. He signed bottles for them, took photographs with them, and absolutely riveled in their joy. Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2010, Johnson’s name was immortalized by the racing industry that he was so proud to be a part of.
He left the world in December, 2019, but his legacy lives on through the incredible journey that he made over the 88 years of his life. From illegally delivering liquor under the North Carolina moonlight with cops in chase to becoming a race car driver who made his family name fly high in the clouds for the very same act, Johnson came a long, long way.
