Moonshiner made weapon that helped Allies win World War II. He died 50 years ago in NC
A moonshiner tinkered with gun parts in prison, then made weapons that helped the Allies win World War II.
David “Carbine” Williams of North Carolina died Jan. 8, 1975, leaving behind a complicated legacy, historians said.
During a raid on his illegal whiskey distilling operation in 1921, Williams was accused of killing a deputy. After he got out of prison, he helped to design a gun that armed soldiers during World War II, according to the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.
Here’s what we know about the inventor on the 50-year anniversary of his death:
Serving time in prison
Williams was born in 1900 in Cumberland County, a roughly 70-mile drive south from Raleigh. His life was full of “dramatic twists and turns,” starting when he ran a moonshine operation during Prohibition, according to state historians and the N.C. History Museum.
“Williams worked for a railroad for a time while operating several illegal distilleries,” historians wrote in a blog post. “In 1921, law enforcement officers raided one of those distilleries and, in the ensuing gunfight, a deputy was shot to death.”
Williams, who reportedly said he didn’t kill Deputy Al Pate, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder. While in solitary confinement at Caledonia prison in Halifax County, he thought of ways to improve weapons.
“Later, while working in the prison blacksmith shop, he used scrap iron and wood to make gun parts,” the Raleigh-based museum wrote. “His clever inventions impressed the warden, who allowed him to continue his work.”
Inventing the crucial weapon
Williams, who in 1929 was released from prison early, later started making firearms for Winchester. At the dawn of World War II, he helped create the M-1 carbine, which featured his signature short-stroke piston.
The .30 caliber weapon was 3 pounds “lighter than the infantryman’s M1 Garand rifle and offered comparable range and accuracy.” The invention also solidified his “Carbine” nickname, according to historians and East Carolina University Libraries.
“Williams, a colorful character with his long sideburns, Stetson hat, and cigar, became wealthy and patented over 50 inventions,” historians wrote. “More than 8 million Allied soldiers carried the M-1 carbine, a light, semiautomatic rifle, in World War II. General Douglas MacArthur described the weapon as ‘one of the strongest contributing factors to our victory in the Pacific.’”
The Allies — including the United States, Britain and other countries — won the war in 1945. The M-1 carbine also was used in the Korean War and early in the Vietnam War.
Over the years, historians said Pate’s family “objected publicly to honors brought to Williams.” The inventor had been recognized in several ways, including with a legislative resolution. His gun workshop became a popular exhibit at the history museum before the building closed for renovations in late 2024.
The inventor’s story also was featured in “Carbine Williams,” a film starring Jimmy Stewart in the lead role. Williams was at the movie’s premiere years before he died in Raleigh in 1975.
This story was originally published January 8, 2025 at 6:02 AM with the headline "Moonshiner made weapon that helped Allies win World War II. He died 50 years ago in NC."
