Bootlegger Biplane Bombings (1926)

It’s November 11th. This day in 1926, members of the Shelton gang in southern Illinois commandeered a biplane to drop homemade bombs on the hideout of their main bootlegging rivals, the Birgers.

Jody, NIki, and Kellie discuss the scheme, how the Shelton-Birger feud reached this level, and where this story fits in to the history of aerial bombings on American soil.

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Our team: Jacob Feldman, Researcher/Producer; Brittani Brown, Producer; Khawla Nakua, Transcripts; music by Teen Daze and Blue Dot Sessions; Julie Shapiro, Executive Producer at Radiotopia