Willie Carter Sharpe Explained

Willie Carter Sharpe was a rum runner in Virginia during the prohibition of alcohol.

Early life

Sharpe was raised in a small mountain town, gaining employment in a cotton mill during her childhood.[1]

Criminal career

Sharpe had been arrested 13 times between 1921 and 1932 for driving offences. She began piloting bootleg runs in 1926; leading convoys of bootleggers transporting illicit spirits through Franklin County, Virginia,[2] as well as serving as a 'blocker'; hindering police attempts to intercept the convoys.[3]

Sharpe reportedly became one of the best-known rum runners in Virginia, having involvement in the movement of somewhere between 79,000 and 200,000 gallons of illicit liquor.[4] In 1932, Sharpe commenced a 3-year sentence in the Alderson Reformatory for Women for violations of the National Prohibition Act.

Sharpe testified at a federal grand jury investigating illicit liquor smuggling in Franklin county in November 1934,[5] and in 1935 testified as a witness in the trials of 34 persons accused of illicit liquor offences.[6] [7] Prior to the commencement of the trial, Sharpe was arrested in St Louis as a material witness.[8]

Following the 1935 trial, twenty of the accused were found guilty, three were acquitted, and eleven did not contest the allegations.[9] Sharpe's reliability as a witness was disputed during the trial.[10]

Samuel O. White, the federal agent whom arrested Sharpe and accepted a $50 reward for doing so, subsequently faced prosecution for accepting this gratuity.[11] [12] [13]

Personal life

Sharpe was married to Floyd Carter, the son of a bootlegger. They were divorced in 1925.

Sharpe achieved some notoriety for a diamond dental filling.[14]

References

  1. Book: Joyce, Jaime. Moonshine : a cultural history of America's infamous liquor. 2014. 978-1-62788-207-1. Minneapolis, MN. 880878520. 2021-02-13. 2021-08-30. https://web.archive.org/web/20210830103345/https://www.worldcat.org/title/moonshine-a-cultural-history-of-americas-infamous-liquor/oclc/880878520. live.
  2. News: 1935-05-24. Woman rum pilot tells experiences. 5. The Bristol News Bulletin. 2021-02-13. 2021-08-30. https://web.archive.org/web/20210830103345/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/70242382/woman-rum-pilot-tells-experiences/. live.
  3. News: 1935-02-08. Franklin's 'outlaw' heroin is caught in liquor ring net. 11. The Times Dispatch. 2021-02-13. 2021-08-30. https://web.archive.org/web/20210830103345/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/70283478/franklins-outlaw-heroin-is-caught-in/. live.
  4. News: 1935-02-08. 34 are indicted in Franklin County rum ring plot. 11. The Times Dispatch. 2021-02-13. 2021-08-30. https://web.archive.org/web/20210830103346/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/70283695/34-are-indicted-in-franklin-county-rum/. live.
  5. News: 1934-11-22. Probe liquor ring. 3. Tampa Bay Times. 2021-02-13. 2021-08-30. https://web.archive.org/web/20210830103346/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/70247920/probe-liquor-ring/. live.
  6. News: 1935-02-08. 34 Indicted by U.S jury in Franklin rum ring. 1. The Times Dispatch. 2021-02-13. 2021-08-30. https://web.archive.org/web/20210830103346/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/70283847/34-indicted-by-us-jury-in-franklin-rum/. live.
  7. News: 1935-05-13. US pushed for 'knockout' in rum trial. 18. The Times Dispatch. 2021-02-13. 2021-08-30. https://web.archive.org/web/20210830103410/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/70255503/us-pushed-for-knockout-in-rum-trial/. live.
  8. News: 1935-04-13. Fugitive witness permitted to start back in own auto. 3. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. 2021-02-13. 2021-08-30. https://web.archive.org/web/20210830103401/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/70252780/fugitive-witness-permitted-to-start/. live.
  9. News: 1935-07-02. Lee and two others are acquitted as jury finds twenty defendants guilty. 1. The News Leader. 2021-02-13. 2021-08-30. https://web.archive.org/web/20210830103347/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/70250497/lee-and-two-others-are-acquitted-as/. live.
  10. News: 1935-05-30. Characters of federal witnesses subject attack. 10. The Bristol News Bulletin. 2021-02-13. 2021-08-30. https://web.archive.org/web/20210830103418/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/70247022/characters-of-federal-witnesses-subject/. live.
  11. News: 1935-06-13. Federal Agent takes stand in own defense. 12. The Times Dispatch. 2021-02-13. 2021-08-30. https://web.archive.org/web/20210830103348/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/70249354/federal-agent-takes-stand-in-own-defense/. live.
  12. News: 1935-06-13. Former U.S. Agent defends actions. 9. The Bristol Herald Courier. 2021-02-13. 2021-08-30. https://web.archive.org/web/20210830103348/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/70250990/former-us-agent-defends-actions/. live.
  13. News: 1935-06-25. Court janitor's reputation is under hot fire. 10. The Times Dispatch. 2021-02-13. 2021-08-30. https://web.archive.org/web/20210830103348/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/70255172/court-janitors-reputation-is-under-hot/. live.
  14. News: 1935-05-20. Rum trial prosecution may rest this week. 13. The Times Dispatch. 2021-02-13. 2021-08-30. https://web.archive.org/web/20210830103349/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/70251577/rum-trial-prosecution-may-rest-this-week/. live.

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