Today, we remember Federal Prohibition Agent Jesse Leroy Youmans.
On this date in 1923, Federal Prohibition Agent Leroy Youmans was shot and killed by bootleggers near Hartsville.
He and several other prohibition agents had located a still and hid nearby under the cover of darkness to wait for the moonshiners to arrive. When the suspects appeared and began working on the still, one of the agents stepped on a twig, snapping it while shifting his position.
Upon hearing the noise, the moonshiners began searching the area. Agent Youmans stood up and announced the men were under arrest. One of the moonshiners shone a flashlight in his face, blinding him, and then fatally shot him.
