In the 1940’s-1950’s one of the many ways of earning an income was making and selling moonshine. My great-grandfather, Bill Edmonds, was one of the many moonshiners across Overton County. Many elders say he made the best moonshine and was one of the most discreet men about transferring the illegal substance from his still to his customers. Many people often wondered why he never got caught. Here’s why; he would take his daughters with him to deliver the alcohol. No one would have guessed that a grown man would take his children with him to deliver moonshine but Bill did. This is one of the many reasons he made and sold moonshine for over thirty years without getting caught by any police officials. It wasn’t until someone snitched on him…show more content… He grew up in poverty and had to quit elementary school just before he was supposed to eighth grade. He worked for his father on the family farm until he was old enough to buy a farm of his own. People often wondered where the money he purchased the farm came from but no one ever asked. He was a hard worker but he had discovered a way to make a lot more money and a faster way to do it. He began to make moonshine and sell it to local residents around his community. Bill Edmonds learned from a family friend how to produce moonshine. About six months later he built his own still, had his own secret plot of land and made his first batch of moonshine. He never knew how much money he could make by selling the alcohol to men in his community. The more that people talked about him making the moonshine, the longer his clientele list grew. He had to expand his business to two moonshine stills and eventually hired his brother to help him run his business. Although he still had cattle and ran a farm, his real income came from his side…show more content… That was the very last time he ever made a moonshine run and that was the last batch of moonshine he ever made. He went straight home to apologize to his wife and to his family. He spent several nights sleeping on the couch but he knew they would eventually forgive him. He came up with a new business venture six months after his court date. On September 5th, 1955, just three weeks after his idea came to his mind, Bill opened Edmond’s Paving Company. His business became one of the most popular businesses in Cookeville, Tennessee and still is