During the Prohibition era (1920-1933), American moonshiners developed clever tactics to avoid getting caught by law enforcement. One of the most unique methods was the invention of “cow shoes.” These were wooden blocks, shaped like cow hooves, that moonshiners attached to their shoes to disguise their footprints. By making it look as though cows, rather than people, had passed through the fields and forests, they successfully threw off police who were tracking illegal alcohol production.
The moonshine trade boomed under Prohibition laws, as the 18th Amendment banned the production and sale of alcohol. Law enforcement often relied on following human footprints to locate hidden stills, but moonshiners turned to creative solutions to avoid capture. Inspired by a Sherlock Holmes story, where a thief masked his horse’s tracks with fake cow hooves, moonshiners adapted the concept to protect their operations. The fake cow prints confused police, allowing the moonshiners to continue their activities unnoticed.
Although the authorities eventually discovered this trick, the ingenuity behind cow shoes reflects the resourcefulness of moonshiners during one of America’s most turbulent periods. The moonshine trade didn’t end with Prohibition’s repeal in 1933, but the inventive measures taken by bootleggers during the era left a lasting mark on American history.