The Past Could Save You in the Future
The newspapers had many names for me throughout my life: Dentist, Saloon keeper, Entrepreneur, Coin stamper, Trader, and Troublemaker. What I have never been called is unprepared, because I learned long ago that the past contains lessons that may someday save your future.
When most people hear the word moonshine, they picture an outlaw hidden deep in the mountains, operating a still beneath the cover of darkness. The truth is that moonshine played a much larger role in American history than most people realize. For generations, moonshine was not simply a beverage—it was commerce, trade, and survival.
The word moonshine is believed to have originated from those who worked under the moonlight to avoid unwanted attention. Many of the early distillers were Scots-Irish settlers who carried their knowledge of distillation into the Appalachian Mountains during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. These people were not fools; they were entrepreneurs. Roads were poor, markets were distant, and corn was expensive to transport. A barrel of whiskey was easier to move and often worth far more than the grain used to make it. The old moonshiners understood value—a lesson worth remembering.
During my years operating Fort Wilkins in Pittsfield, I learned that a man who can create something useful will always have opportunities. Whether pulling teeth, selling bear oil, trading furs, advertising on coins, or operating various enterprises, the principle remained the same: "Knowledge creates value."
A copper still is one of the finest examples of that principle. Most people believe a still has only one purpose, but they are mistaken. A still can produce distilled water, essential oils, perfumes, botanical extracts, flavorings, soaps, and many other useful products. Throughout history, distillation has played an important role in medicine, agriculture, manufacturing, chemistry, and daily life.
The old moonshiners survived because they possessed skills. They understood how to adapt, solve problems, and create something valuable from ordinary materials. In a world where many people depend entirely upon others, those lessons remain as important today as they were two hundred years ago.
Gold has value, silver has value, land has value, but knowledge may be the most valuable asset of all. A man who possesses useful skills can create opportunity wherever he goes. That was true when the first settlers crossed the mountains, when I operated Fort Wilkins, and it remains true today. The world changes, but human nature does not. That is why the past may someday save your future.