Cascade History

Nat McWhorter

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The Blind Tiger King: The Life and Times of Nat McWhorter

Introduction: The Supply and the Demand

In the annals of Atlanta’s Prohibition era, the illicit liquor trade relied on a delicate ecosystem of rural supply and urban demand. While the dense woods and winding dirt paths of the Cascade district provided the perfect cover for manufacturing white lightning, the product ultimately needed a market. The rum-runners who engaged in high-speed shootouts along Cascade Road were racing toward the city center to supply protected speakeasies, known locally as “blind tigers.” The undisputed ruler of this downtown market was Nat McWhorter.

Known throughout the city as the “negro blind tiger king,” McWhorter operated a lucrative and highly protected network in the heart of Atlanta. His life was a chaotic blend of domestic brawls, stolen goods, musical smuggling, and high-stakes police corruption. While the farmers of the rural outskirts hid their stills in underground wells as detailed in the history of Bootleggers and Speakeasies, McWhorter ran his empire in plain sight, manipulating local detectives, city officials, and federal agents until his own explosive testimony brought his kingdom crashing down.1

Chapter 1: A Life of Larceny and Domestic Warfare

Nat McWhorter first appeared in the public record not as a criminal mastermind, but as a victim. In September 1919, he reported to police that a suit of clothes had been stolen from his residence at 94 Gilmer Street.2 However, his role quickly shifted from victim to perpetrator. By January 1921, McWhorter, then living at 43 Butler Street, was arrested and held under a $2,000 bond on charges of receiving stolen goods. Attorney Franklin S. Chalmers, representing the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company at 251 Peachtree Street, alleged that McWhorter had spent several months purchasing more than $2,000 worth of stolen tires from a Black drayman named Albert Harris.3

McWhorter’s domestic life was equally turbulent. On a Friday night in early March 1921, the screams of a woman caused a large crowd to gather outside his 43 Butler Street home. McWhorter was reportedly beating his wife, Daisy, unmercifully. Daisy’s mother rushed to police headquarters, reporting that Nat had barricaded himself inside and refused to let anyone enter. Ten detectives, headed by Robert L. Waggoner, arrived to find the house dark and the windows sealed. After failing to force an entry, Waggoner called out, “Nat, Nat, let Bob Waggoner in, he will treat you right.” McWhorter remained silent.4

The standoff ended when Special Call Officer Jim Doyle answered the emergency call and proceeded to physically tear down the door. Realizing Doyle meant business, McWhorter went to a side window and handed over the key to the rear door. Officers found Daisy with numerous bruises on her face and hands, and McWhorter was hauled to the station on a charge of disorderly conduct.5

The marital strife did not end there. In April 1921, he was arrested again for beating his wife, and then arrested at midnight the following Saturday for assaulting his wife’s sister, Molly Crawford. He was released on a $100 bond for the first charge and his own recognizance for the second. He then barricaded himself in his home at Butler and Gilmer streets, prompting a strong force of police to arrive. He surrendered only when he heard the police looking for him, claiming he had not been home all night.6 In August 1921, he was arrested with Daisy, released on a $50 bond, and charged with striking an unnamed woman.7 In September 1921, he was arrested yet again by Policeman Sam Mashburn for beating his wife.8

By October 1921, Daisy filed a formal peace warrant against her husband. Judge T. O. Hathcock ordered McWhorter held under a $2,000 bond to preserve the peace, smiling as he remarked, “I do not think a tiger can turn into a lamb.” Moments later, Daisy herself was released from jail by Judge L. Z. Rosser Jr. after answering a bail trover suit filed by Nat. He was seeking to recover a pair of diamond earrings that Daisy admitted to pawning for $300. McWhorter indignantly claimed the diamonds were actually worth $1,200.9

Chapter 2: The Musical Moonshine

McWhorter’s most famous, and perhaps most comical, arrest occurred in February 1921 at his rooming house located under the Courtland Street viaduct. A squad of city policemen, including Officer Stegall, was conducting a raid when they noticed a peculiar sound coming from a talking machine.10

Officer Stegall later testified that the canned music had a canny tone and simply did not sound truthful to him. Upon examining the phonograph, the officers made a fruitful discovery. Concealed directly under the instrument’s motor were four gallon cans of corn whisky, likely transported in from the rural stills of the city’s western outskirts. McWhorter was arrested and bound over to the state court under a $5,000 bond. When Recorder Johnson asked Officer Stegall what song the phonograph was playing to shield the liquor, Stegall famously replied, “How Dry I Am.”11

Chapter 3: The Courtland Street Network and Police Payoffs

McWhorter did not merely sell illicit liquor on the streets; he operated a highly organized, physical speakeasy known as Mack’s Place out of a rooming house located directly under the Courtland Street viaduct at the corner of Gilmer Street. As a “blind tiger” operator, he maintained a steady inventory of corn whisky on the premises and employed staff like Lucile Evans to help manage the daily business and handle the physical delivery of weekly protection bribes to city detectives. It was not a glamorous, high-society speakeasy with jazz bands, nor was it a simple retail storefront. Court testimonies paint a picture of a rough, multi-purpose illicit tavern and distribution hub. One witness in the trial described the actual point of sale as a “little cubby-hole of a place.” The on-site consumption was heavy and highly visible. Eugene R. Black, attorney for the citizens committee, noted that the drunkenness in the neighborhood was so severe that patrons routinely had to be wheelbarrowed away when they got too intoxicated. Others reported seeing men stumbling out of the establishment early on Sunday mornings looking as though they had slept there all night.12

The operation was so blatant that C. H. Carroll, a resident of the fourth ward and an employee of the Western Union Telegraph Company, testified that the neighborhood was the most disgraceful in the city. Carroll reported seeing uniformed police officers drinking near the viaduct and even spotted an automobile bearing the name of Police Chief Lamar Poole parked in front of McWhorter’s establishment.13

The secret to McWhorter’s brazen success was a massive bribery ring. In April 1921, McWhorter dropped a bombshell during a city council committee investigation into a local bunco ring. He testified that he had been paying City Detective W. L. Payne and his partner, Paul B. West, for protection against arrest. McWhorter claimed he paid the detectives upwards of $150 to $200 every week for nearly two years. The bribes clearly paid off for the officers; bank records showed Payne’s account increased from $1,300 to $3,000 between November and January, and he was known to drive a Stutz automobile and frequent the Chicken House on West Mitchell Street.14

The protection racket was ruthlessly enforced. Lucile Evans, a Black woman employed by McWhorter, testified that she physically handed the money to the detectives on several occasions. McWhorter’s wife, described in court as a great, buxom woman, was also called to the stand but emphatically denied paying the officers.15 McWhorter claimed the arrangement only fell apart because Detective Payne wanted to raise the bribe to $300 a week. When McWhorter refused to pay the increased extortion fee, Payne raided his establishment. McWhorter also testified that Payne threatened to kill him if he dared to tell the truth to the investigating committee. At the hearing, Payne stood in the doorway in a black slouch hat, glaring with drawn lips at the ashen-faced McWhorter.16

The corruption extended beyond the police force and into the city’s administrative offices. Court records from a later 1930 indictment revealed that McWhorter also paid a $100 bribe to a city official named Taylor to influence the prosecution of his prohibition violations.17 The network also eliminated competition through corrupt arrests. A neighboring soft drink stand operator testified that he was arrested for vagrancy simply for operating next door to McWhorter. The man claimed an associate told him the police chief wanted to see him, and upon visiting the chief, he was immediately locked up to eliminate competition for the blind tiger.18

Chapter 4: The Federal Feud and the Informant

Not content with exposing local police, McWhorter expanded his accusations to the federal level. In May 1921, he told a reporter that his affiliations extended into the federal prohibition department. He claimed that Prohibition Agent John W. Nation sold him whisky by the case and had once accepted a $250 bribe to release him from jail. He further alleged that Agents George Hicks and C. A. Kirkland had each borrowed $100 from him. Kirkland had even signed a note for $100 leaving the name blank so he could use McWhorter’s credit to buy an automobile before quitting the service on March 15. McWhorter added a touch of polite irony to his accusations, stating, “I want it understood that I am making no charges against Mr. Gantt or his assistant, Captain Hardeman, both of them are perfect gentlemen, but I am telling the truth about these agents.”19

Federal Prohibition Director D. J. Gantt issued vehement denials, calling McWhorter a liar and stating it was dangerous to offer immunity to criminals. Agent Hicks denied borrowing money, though he admitted Agent Kirkland, who had since left the service, might have borrowed money using a note Hicks had signed in blank to buy an automobile.20

Director Gantt then revealed the true nature of McWhorter’s federal relationship. McWhorter was not just a bootlegger; he was a federal informant. Gantt stated that McWhorter had rendered excellent service in turning up rival liquor cars and competing blind tigers. Jail records corroborated Gantt’s story, showing that just 25 minutes after one of McWhorter’s arrests, he provided information that allowed officers to catch a man named O. D. Wallace with a liquor car containing 26 gallons. McWhorter was held in the lobby of the tower during the raid and was released by Director Gantt as a reward for his informant work.21

Gantt detailed several specific busts orchestrated by McWhorter. Nat tipped off agents to H. Mitchell, who was caught in a $450 automobile with 35-gallon cans full of liquor. He put agents on the track of Walter Jolly, who was caught with three gallons in a Packard, leading to the arrest of four men. In March, Nat called Gantt to say a delivery was to be made before Detectives Payne and West came on duty at 8 o’clock, resulting in the arrest of two white men unloading 30 gallons of alcohol in a light truck. In another instance, two months after raiding Nat’s place on Courtland Street, Nat met Gantt in an alley and warned him to hurry. With other officers, Gantt found two white men unloading 30 gallons of liquor from a truck through a window in broad daylight.22

Chapter 5: The Empire Crumbles and the Masonic Scandal

McWhorter’s decision to testify against the police and federal agents proved to be his undoing. He soon complained that he was the victim of organized police prosecution, claiming he had been arrested no less than six times on trumped-up charges. “But what is the use for me to say all this, nobody believes what I say,” he lamented to a reporter, noting that he fully expected to be back in jail before dinner time. He also mentioned that his brother, Joe McWhorter, was currently incarcerated.23

The pressure mounted quickly. In May 1921, bondsmen P. P. Jackson and J. T. Davis surrendered Nat, withdrawing their $8,000 bond because they heard he was seeking new fields and his brother Joe had just fled the city. Nat managed to induce J. L. McChord to take the entire bond to secure his temporary freedom.24

McWhorter even attempted to buy his way out of the ensuing legal battles. E. C. Stigall, a former city detective working privately for Payne’s defense, later testified that McWhorter approached him and offered a $2,000 bribe to lay off the case. Stigall refused the money.25 In July 1921, John S. Highsmith was accused of attempted bribery of Patrolman Steve Felder on behalf of Nat McWhorter.26

The police retaliation was swift and bureaucratic. On a single Tuesday in July 1921, McWhorter was hauled before Recorder Johnson three separate times. He was fined $25 for disorderly conduct, $25 for failing to pull over to the curb when signaled by a traffic officer, and $7 for speeding. His bonds were repeatedly forfeited, and he was scheduled to appear in state court to answer yet another charge of violating the prohibition law.27

Despite the harassment, McWhorter’s testimony had a lasting impact. In August 1921, Detective W. L. Payne was found guilty of bribery, largely based on the testimony of McWhorter and Lucile Evans. Payne was sentenced to twelve months in the chaingang, six months in the county jail, and a $1,000 fine.28

The fallout from Payne’s conviction sent shockwaves through Atlanta’s high society, culminating in a bizarre scandal nearly two years later. In March 1923, the Lebanon Lodge of the Freemasons held a private trial for Detective Payne and cleared him of the bribery charges by a nearly unanimous vote. The lodge members were then instructed to appear as a body before the state Prison Commission to formally ask for Payne’s pardon.

This brazen attempt to subvert the justice system caught the attention of Joe P. Bowdain, the Masonic Grand Master of Georgia. Bowdain immediately arrested the charter of the Lebanon Lodge for un-Masonic conduct and suspended all its members. Acting Grand Marshal Sam Johnson confiscated all books, funds, and paraphernalia of the lodge, pending a final hearing at the Grand Lodge communication in Macon.29 In June 1923, Governor Hardwick commuted the sentence of W. L. Payne after the $1,000 fine was paid.30

However, the Blind Tiger King could not escape his own past. In November 1921, McWhorter was finally brought to trial before Judge R. N. Hardeman for the January charge of receiving stolen Firestone automobile tires. The jury found him guilty, and Nat McWhorter was sentenced to serve twelve months in the chaingang.31

Chapter 6: The Unrepentant King

McWhorter’s twelve-month sentence in the chaingang did not reform him. After his release, the former blind tiger king simply shifted his illicit enterprises. In May 1928, McWhorter was back in the spotlight, this time as a fugitive. Police headquarters in Macon issued a warrant for his arrest on charges of swindling. The alleged victim, a Macon woman, claimed that McWhorter had swindled her out of $1,000.32 The man who had once bought the loyalty of the city’s detectives, manipulated federal agents, and inadvertently brought down a Masonic lodge had been reduced to a common grifter, forever cementing his legacy as one of Atlanta’s most notorious characters.

Bibliography

  • The Atlanta Constitution. “‘TIGER’ PAID FOR ‘PROTECTION,’ SAY WITNESSES.” April 22, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “ACCUSED OFFICERS ATTEMPT TO PROVE SOLICITOR LAX IN GETTING INDICTMENTS AGAINST CRIMINALS.” April 30, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “BILL PAYNE BEGINS TERM IN CHAINGANG.” October 26, 1922.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “Bunco Probe Evidence Closed and Argument Opens This Afternoon.” May 19, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “Bunco Probe Pales Into Insignificance For Attorney Jones.” May 24, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “CLEMENCY IS DECLINED AS AN ACT OF KINDNESS: Elijah Minor Gets…” November 17, 1906.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “COMMUTE SENTENCE OF FORMER SLEUTH: W. L. Payne.” June 6, 1923.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “CRIMINAL CASES SET FOR NEXT WEEK.” July 22, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “Decrease Shown in Traffic Cases Docketed Sunday.” August 22, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “Detective W. L. Payne Found Guilty of Bribery.” August 8, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “Dry Laws Flouted, Says Christian Council.” February 11, 1922.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “Extry! Forecast Of Bunco Verdict By Principals.” May 27, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “FAILURE TO KEEP IN CLOSE TOUCH WITH WORKERS IN DETECTIVE DEPARTMENT ADMITTED BY BEAVERS.” May 4, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “Hairbreadth Harrold Defies Death.” April 28, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “HEARING IS HELD ON PAYNE PARDON.” March 7, 1923.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “IN AND OUT AGAIN NOW DAILY RECORD FOR ‘TIGER’ KING.” May 15, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “JURY DEADLOCKED FOR NINE HOURS IN PAYNE TRIAL.” August 7, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “KING OF ‘TIGERS’ CHARGES GRAFT TO ‘DRY’ AGENTS.” May 18, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “M’WHORTER CHARGED WITH BEATING WIFE.” September 22, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “M’WHORTER SENT TO CHAINGANG.” November 11, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “MEN DEMORALIZED BY BUNCO PROBE, DECLARES GANTT.” May 18, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “McWhorter Held Under $2,000 Peace Bond.” October 9, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “NAT M’WHORTER AGAIN ARRESTED ON WIFE’S CHARGE.” May 14, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “NOTORIOUS BLIND TIGER TELLS POLICE PROBERS HE PAID $200 EVERY WEEK TO DETECTIVE PAYNE.” April 23, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “Nat Mc Whorter Not Worried Now By ‘Protection’.” April 24, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “Near Battle Royal Thrills Judge Johnson’s Night Court.” August 17, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “PAYNE ATTORNEY LOSES OBJECTIONS.” August 5, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “PAYNE WILL ASK FOR NEW TRIAL.” August 9, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “PAYNE WILL FACE JURY WEDNESDAY.” July 21, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “PAYNE’S NEW TRIAL HEARING POSTPONED.” August 28, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “POLICE ASSAILED AT CIVIC FORUM BY JAMES WELLS.” August 13, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “POLICE BOARD WILL CONSIDER BUNCO REPORT.” August 9, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “Police Blamed for Operations of Blind Tigers.” May 12, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “Police Department Rapped and Lauded In Bunco Arguments.” May 24, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “Prayer Backed by Action.” September 10, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “SHAW, PAYNE AND WEST SUSPENDED FROM FORCE FOLLOWING INDICTMENTS BY FULTON GRAND JURY.” June 19, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “SOLICITOR BOYKIN ‘SETTLED’ $2,000 LARCENY BOND FOR SUM OF $1,000, BUNCO PROBE WITNESS ASSERTS.” April 29, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “The screams of a woman caused a large crowd.” March 5, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “Traffic in Whisky And Martin’s Cafe Principals in Probe.” May 13, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “W. L. Payne, Ex-Sleuth, Is Denied New Trial by Judge John Humphries.” January 14, 1922.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “Zerbst Mentioned for Chief of Police, Says Clay.” May 25, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Constitution. “Poole Blames Boykin For Failure of Police To Snare Bunco Gang.” May 11, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Journal. “‘How Dry I Am,’ Wails Phonograph, Shielding 4 Gallons.” February 16, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Journal. “City Detective W. L. Payne.” May 15, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Journal. “DRY AGENTS DENY M’WHORTER CHARGE.” May 18, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Journal. “I am going after more evidence.” April 28, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Journal. “JUDGE HOWARD GIVES DETAILS OF RULING IN TAYLOR CASE.” April 23, 1930.
  • The Atlanta Journal. “Nat McWhorter, 94 Gilmer street. Suit of clothes stolen.” September 17, 1919.
  • The Atlanta Journal. “Nat McWhorter, Negro Blind Tiger, Is Fined Three Times Tuesday.” July 5, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Journal. “Nat McWhorter, negro, of 43 Butler street.” January 29, 1921.
  • The Atlanta Journal. “One of Atlanta’s notorious negro characters, Nat McWhorter.” May 16, 1928.
  • The Atlanta Journal. “Stigall’s Story of Slaying.” September 21, 1923.
  • The New York Times. “MASONS SUSPENDED FOR AIDING CONVICT.” March 6, 1923.
  1. “NOTORIOUS BLIND TIGER TELLS POLICE PROBERS HE PAID $200 EVERY WEEK TO DETECTIVE PAYNE,” The Atlanta Constitution, April 23, 1921.
  2. “Nat McWhorter, 94 Gilmer street. Suit of clothes stolen,” The Atlanta Journal, September 17, 1919.
  3. “Nat McWhorter, negro, of 43 Butler street,” The Atlanta Journal, January 29, 1921.
  4. “The screams of a woman caused a large crowd,” The Atlanta Constitution, March 5, 1921.
  5. “The screams of a woman caused a large crowd,” The Atlanta Constitution, March 5, 1921.
  6. “Nat Mc Whorter Not Worried Now By ‘Protection’,” The Atlanta Constitution, April 24, 1921.
  7. “Decrease Shown in Traffic Cases Docketed Sunday,” The Atlanta Constitution, August 22, 1921.
  8. “M’WHORTER CHARGED WITH BEATING WIFE,” The Atlanta Constitution, September 22, 1921.
  9. “McWhorter Held Under $2,000 Peace Bond,” The Atlanta Constitution, October 9, 1921.
  10. “‘How Dry I Am,’ Wails Phonograph, Shielding 4 Gallons,” The Atlanta Journal, February 16, 1921.
  11. “‘How Dry I Am,’ Wails Phonograph, Shielding 4 Gallons,” The Atlanta Journal, February 16, 1921.
  12. “Police Blamed for Operations of Blind Tigers,” The Atlanta Constitution, May 12, 1921.
  13. “Traffic in Whisky And Martin’s Cafe Principals in Probe,” The Atlanta Constitution, May 13, 1921.
  14. “‘TIGER’ PAID FOR ‘PROTECTION,’ SAY WITNESSES,” The Atlanta Constitution, April 22, 1921.
  15. “NOTORIOUS BLIND TIGER TELLS POLICE PROBERS HE PAID $200 EVERY WEEK TO DETECTIVE PAYNE,” The Atlanta Constitution, April 23, 1921.
  16. “PAYNE ATTORNEY LOSES OBJECTIONS,” The Atlanta Constitution, August 5, 1921.
  17. “JUDGE HOWARD GIVES DETAILS OF RULING IN TAYLOR CASE,” The Atlanta Journal, April 23, 1930.
  18. “Traffic in Whisky And Martin’s Cafe Principals in Probe,” The Atlanta Constitution, May 13, 1921.
  19. “DRY AGENTS DENY M’WHORTER CHARGE,” The Atlanta Journal, May 18, 1921.
  20. “DRY AGENTS DENY M’WHORTER CHARGE,” The Atlanta Journal, May 18, 1921.
  21. “DRY AGENTS DENY M’WHORTER CHARGE,” The Atlanta Journal, May 18, 1921.
  22. “KING OF ‘TIGERS’ CHARGES GRAFT TO ‘DRY’ AGENTS,” The Atlanta Constitution, May 18, 1921.
  23. “IN AND OUT AGAIN NOW DAILY RECORD FOR ‘TIGER’ KING,” The Atlanta Constitution, May 15, 1921.
  24. “Stigall’s Story of Slaying,” The Atlanta Journal, September 21, 1923.
  25. “CRIMINAL CASES SET FOR NEXT WEEK,” The Atlanta Constitution, July 22, 1921.
  26. “Nat McWhorter, Negro Blind Tiger, Is Fined Three Times Tuesday,” The Atlanta Journal, July 5, 1921.
  27. “PAYNE’S NEW TRIAL HEARING POSTPONED,” The Atlanta Constitution, August 28, 1921.
  28. “MASONS SUSPENDED FOR AIDING CONVICT,” The New York Times, March 6, 1923.
  29. “COMMUTE SENTENCE OF FORMER SLEUTH: W. L. Payne,” The Atlanta Constitution, June 6, 1923.
  30. “COMMUTE SENTENCE OF FORMER SLEUTH: W. L. Payne,” The Atlanta Constitution, June 6, 1923.
  31. “M’WHORTER SENT TO CHAINGANG,” The Atlanta Constitution, November 11, 1921.
  32. “One of Atlanta’s notorious negro characters, Nat McWhorter,” The Atlanta Journal, May 16, 1928.
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