by Paula S. Thompson

Created on: February 23, 2010

When the first class of inductees for the NASCAR Hall of Fame were announced, four personalities were considered by most shoo-ins: NASCAR founder Bill France Sr., his son Bill France Jr., and seven-time champions Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt Sr.  Spot #5 was up for grabs, and when it was announced, it was a welcome surprise for many long-time NASCAR fans: legendary driver and car owner Robert Glenn "Junior" Johnson.

Born in 1931 in Wilkes County, North Carolina, Johnson spent his youth on the family farm, and like many early racers, his skills as a driver developed from running moonshine - and outrunning the local police and federal agents.  Legend has it Johnson often ran deliveries with purchased "lights and sirens" to get through police roadblocks.

In 1955, Johnson traded in moonshine deliveries for the legal career of NASCAR racing.  Johnson won five races and finished sixth in the Grand National (now Sprint Cup) points standings that year, translating his moonshine-running skills to the high banks of NASCAR.  In 1956, however, Johnson was found working at his father's moonshine still by federal tax agents and arrested; his conviction sent him to federal prison in Ohio, where he served 11 months of a two-year sentence.  In 1986, President Ronald Reagan pardoned Johnson on the conviction, restoring Johnson's right to vote and hold a passport. 

Johnson returned to NASCAR in 1958, going on to win 45 more races, including 11 on NASCAR's "superspeedways," before he retired in 1966; he would never win a NASCAR championship.  The year before his retirement, in 1965, Johnson became an owner/driver; in addition to his own cars, he funded teams for legendary drivers like Bobby Isaac, A.J. Foyt, Gordon Johncock, Curtis Turner, and Fred Lorenzen.  From 1967 to 1995, Johnson's teams won 139 races (third to Petty Enterprises and Hendrick Motorsports all-time) and six Cup Series championships - three with Cale Yarborough (1976-1978) and three with Darrell Waltrip (1981, 1982, and 1985).  Among the other drivers who worked for Johnson: Neil Bonnett, Terry Labonte, Geoff Bodine, Sterling Marlin, Bill Elliott, and Jimmy Spencer.

Among Johnson's many accolades, besides his recent NASCAR Hall of Fame induction: he was named one of NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers in 1998; had a stretch of U.S. Highway 421 (from the Yalkin/Wilkes County line to the Windy Gap exit) named Junior Johnson Highway in 2004; and was a 1991 inductee into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America.  In recent years, Johnson has gone back to the moonshine business - legally this time.  Johnson is part owner of Piedmont Distillers, the only legal distiller in North Carolina; its products - Catdaddy and Midnight Moon - are available in eight states.

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