The Mystery of Uncle Zip

Everyone, it seems, knew Zip. Even if they didn’t know who he was, exactly.  

Who Was Uncle Zip?

What was known was that a man who only referred to himself as “Zip” purchased a plot of land just south of Jelloway, paying in cash. He never referred to himself as anything other than “Zip” – no surname, just “Zip”. 

Zip was described as being a bit eccentric, but harmless. The word pious is also often used. Every Sunday, he would show up at the local church and sit quietly in one of the seats, wearing the best clothes he owned. He probably had some of the best clothes in town anyway, so that fact usually got noticed. 

They said he was a very friendly guy, just not one for small talk or socializing.  

There are two schools of thought on why they called him Uncle Zip. The first being that he was an older male, not so much of a father figure to anyone – more like he was the town’s (weird) uncle. The other theory is that while the town was trying to figure out his full name, he received a piece of mail at the Jelloway Post Office. It was addressed to “Uncle Zip”.  

One Sunday, as the locals were hanging out at the inn (or maybe the railroad depot) they were delighted to see Uncle Zip join them. He isn’t talkative much, but at least he makes an effort. 

During their little conversation, he pulls a flask out of his jacket pocket and takes a swig before passing the bottle around. 

This act might not seem important, except that this happened in the height of prohibition and a lot of the moonshine being secretly sold wasn’t exactly quality stuff.  

Uncle Zip’s whiskey (or whatever it was) was such a good quality, though – people really wanted to know where he had gotten it from. All he would say at first, however, was that he brewed it himself. A little later he would also comment that every Sunday, after he left for Church, someone would go onto his property and pick up barrels of the stuff, leaving bags of money behind. 

Most people could see that Uncle Zip had more money than anyone else in town. So they had to wonder – is this where all his cash had come from? 

Not that they cared, much – as long as he could get them more of this fabulous drink! 

Nevertheless, it was hard for them to equate this quiet, unassuming, pious church-going fellow with a massive bootlegger, so that deepened the mystery of who this guy was in the first place. 

Over time, townsfolk developed a few theories. One of the more prevailing ones was that he operated an illegal distillery (perhaps down in Kentucky or Tennessee) and moved to smalltown Ohio once the authorities were starting to get close or had already gotten onto him. Another theory was that he created an underground (literal and figurative) facility somewhere nearby although nobody had the slightest clue of where that might have been. 

Uncle Zip lived in Jelloway for several years, then just as mysteriously as he arrived in town – he abruptly left. All he said as he was packing his bags was that the last of his shipments had been made and he was returning home to Kentucky. 

Nobody was all that sure that’s where he had come from, or where he went once he left town. The only thing that is certain is that nobody from Jelloway ever heard from him again. 

The Myth – The Legend 

One hundred (or so) years later, it’s kind of hard to tell how much of the story of Uncle Zip is Myth, how much is Legend, and how much (if any) is rooted in historical fact. Let’s just say that the historical record from this period of history is rather thin. 

Legends like this also evolve over time. Sometimes new information is added while others taken away. 

Maybe someday, the identity of Uncle Zip will become known. Until then, it can still be fun to speculate.