Revenue Agents Were Nicknamed “Red-Legged Grasshoppers

When the federal government began enforcing liquor taxes in Western North Carolina after the Civil War, revenue officers were sent into the mountains to hunt down illegal stills and confiscate non-tax-paid liquor. These men were deeply resented by local citizens, even by people who were personally opposed to drinking. Mamie Jones notes that the early revenue agents were often viewed as spies and men of questionable character, and their presence was considered an invasion of local life. Governor Zeb Vance himself mockingly referred to them as “red-legged grasshoppers,” a nickname that stuck and reflected just how unwelcome they were in the region.