Legislating Temperance: Prohibition

The Problems of Alcohol.

The evils of alcoholism and heavy drinking were well known from the earliest days of American society. In the 1830s Americans were consuming 7.1 gallons of alcohol per capita on an annual basis. Since many abstained, and most women, children, and slaves consumed much less than those who regularly "tippled," the alcohol consumption of regular drinkers must have been much higher than the statistics suggest. One historian refers to the United States as "the alcoholic republic." In 1851 a Maine law outlawed the manufacture and sale of intoxicating liquors in that state, and by 1855 thirteen states had adopted such laws. Many believed that outlawing drinking was the only way to curtail the family violence, recklessness, and workplace problems all too common across the country. Protestant congregations and women's groups led the Prohibition movement, while it was opposed by many working-class men, Catholics, and...

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