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Collection Number: P0015

Collection Title: Jack J. Kearins Collection, circa 1936-1990 (bulk 1940-1970)

This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held in the Wilson Library at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in our reading room, and not digitally available through the World Wide Web. See the Duplication Policy section for more information.

Image from the collection

View of an outdoor illicit distilling operation, circa March, 1954; P0015/0003, in the Jack J. Kearins Collection (P0015), North Carolina Collection Photographic Archives, The Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

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Size 1.5 feet of linear shelf space (approximately 145 items)
Abstract The collection of white United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms agent, Jack (John) J. Kearins consists of black-and-white photographic prints relating to Kearins career as an ATF agent. The images depict John Kearins; illegal liquor stills in North Carolina and their destruction by ATF agents; and a copy of Yankee Revenooer, Kearins’ 1969 book.
Creator Kearins, Jack J.
Curatorial Unit University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. North Carolina Collection Photographic Archives.
Language English
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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Information For Users

Restrictions to Access
No restrictions. Open for research.
Restrictions to Use
No usage restrictions.
Copyright Notice
Copyright is retained by University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], in the Jack J. Kearins Collection #P0015, North Carolina Collection Photographic Archives, The Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Acquisitions Information
Jack J. Kearins collected the photographs; Ruth Richard, Carrboro, N.C., donated the collection to the North Carolina Collection in March 1994 (Accession no. 30572).
Sensitive Materials Statement
Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations, the North Carolina Public Records Act (N.C.G.S. § 132 1 et seq.), and Article 7 of the North Carolina State Personnel Act (Privacy of State Employee Personnel Records, N.C.G.S. § 126-22 et seq.). Researchers are advised that the disclosure of certain information pertaining to identifiable living individuals represented in this collection without the consent of those individuals may have legal ramifications (e.g., a cause of action under common law for invasion of privacy may arise if facts concerning an individual's private life are published that would be deemed highly offensive to a reasonable person) for which the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill assumes no responsibility.
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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Processing Information

Processed by: North Carolina Collection Photographic Archives, 1998

Encoded by: Tracy M. Jackson, May 2010

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Subject Headings

The following terms from Library of Congress Subject Headings suggest topics, persons, geography, etc. interspersed through the entire collection; the terms do not usually represent discrete and easily identifiable portions of the collection--such as folders or items.

Clicking on a subject heading below will take you into the University Library's online catalog.

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Biographical Information

Jack (John) J. Kearins (1915-1993) of Raleigh, N.C., was an agent with the United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) and spent most of his career working in North Carolina. Kearins authored the book Yankee Revenooer , published by the Moore Publishing Company of Durham in 1969.

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expand/collapse Expand/collapse Scope and Content

The collection consists of negatives and prints, circa 1936-1990, collected by Jack (John) J. Kearins during his tenure with the United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF). Many of the photographs document illegal liquor stills in the state of North Carolina and their destruction by ATF agents. The collection also contains a copy of Kearins 1969 book, Yankee Revenooer.

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Contents list

expand/collapse Expand/collapse Jack J. Kearins collection, circa 1936-1990 (bulk 1940-1970).

About 145 items

Arrangement: Chronological

Photographs, about 1936 through 1990 (bulk about 1940-1970), and a copy of the book Yankee Revenooer. The materials cover the following subject categories:

  • Distilling, Illicit, North Carolina.
  • Liquor Industry, North Carolina.
  • Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, North Carolina.
Print Box 1

Black and White Photographic Print P0015/0001

Images of John Kearins, circa 1958-1990

Print Box 1

Black and White Photographic Print P0015/0002

Images from the field, circa 1936

Print Box 1

Black and White Photographic Print P0015/0003

Images from the field, circa 1947-1949

Print Box 1

Black and White Photographic Print P0015/0004

Images from the field, circa 1950s (1952, 1956-1959)

Print Box 1

Black and White Photographic Print P0015/0005

Images from the field, undated

Print Box 1

Black and White Photographic Print P0015/0006

Images of ATF field work copied/collected by Kearins, circa 1984

Print Box 2

Box P0015/0007

Copy of Yankee Revenooer (Durham, N.C., 1969)

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