Prohibition (T1) Flashcards
When was the Eighteenth Amendment introduced?
1918
What was the Eighteenth Amendment?
Banned the sale, transportation and manufacture of intoxicating liquor in the USA.
What did the separate Volstead Act define intoxicating liquor as?
Any drink containing more than 0.5% alcohol.
Who was the first Prohibition commissioner?
John F. Kramer.
What was a reason for Prohibition? (Women groups)
Many women’s groups saw alcohol as a means by which men oppressed them.
What was another reason for Prohibition (Businesses)?
Big businesses saw drunkenness as leading to danger and inefficiency in the workplace.
Which two businesses were big supporters of Prohibition?
The Rockefeller Corporation and Heinz.
What was a final reason for Prohibition (Religious groups)?
Many religious groups believed alcohol was the work of the devil and was overwhelmingly responsible for sin and undoing.
Who tended to be supporters of Prohibition?
Overwhelmingly Protestant, live in small towns in the South and West, and vote Republican.
Who tended to be opponents of Prohibition?
Likely to be urban, of non-northern European ethnic origin, Roman Catholic and vote Democrat.
By 1917 how many states had passed Prohibition laws?
27, and there were ‘dry’ counties where alcohol was not allowed in several other states.
What two factors led to the increased popularity of Prohibition?
- Impact of the war
- Disorganisation of the opposition
How did WW1 change attitude towards alcohol?
- Grain was used in the production of alcoholic drinks was needed for food instead.
- Many people felt patriotic to do without alcohol.
Who were the largest brewers at the time?
Ruppert, Pabst and Leiber were all of German origin.
How did the war impact peoples feelings towards these companies?
Anti-German feeling led many not to buy alcohol from these companies.
What did people believe alcohol was doing?
Led young soldiers, who were away from home for the first time, into temptation and sinful ways - so best to remove it from their grasp.
How was there disorganisation of the opposition?
There was a march and rally in New York City, a parade in Baltimore and a resolution against taking away the working man’s beer by the American Federation of Labour.
Was there any significant protest against Prohibition?
No, other than this there was little protest.
How much did the Anti-Saloon League estimate for an appropriate budget for Prohibition?
$5 million to enforce it successfully.
How much was Commissioner Kramer given to enforce Prohibition?
$2 million
How many miles of coastline and land border does the USA have?
18,700 miles
What was ‘rum row’?
The waters just outside the national limits.
How much of smuggled alcohol was intercepted?
Only about 5% of alcohol coming into the country illegally.
How much alcohol was seized in 1924?
$40 million
How much was the volume of alcohol business measured to be?
$800 million
Who were ‘bootleggers’?
People who went into business as producers and distributers of illegal alcohol.
Who was the ‘King of Bootleggers’?
George Remus
What did George Remus do?
Bought up various breweries on the eve of Prohibition for the manufacture of medicinal alcohol.
How did Remus maintain order?
Hired an army of 3,000 gangsters to hijack his products and divert them to the illegal stills of the big cities.
How much did Remus make in 5 years?
$5 million
What was industrial alcohol?
Was easily diverted and redistilled to turn it into an alcoholic drink.
What was ‘moonshine’?
Illegal alcohol, named because it was manufactured in remote areas by the light of the moon.
What were the dangers of producing ‘moonshine’?
- Poisoning from wood alcohol, although not common, did happen during this period.
- 34 people died in NYC due to this.
How many Treasury agents were deployed to enforce Prohibition?
3,000
How much were Treasury agents paid?
$2,500 to shut down an illegal industry whose profits were estimated at $2 billion.
What is an example of a Treasury agent going corrupt?
One federal agent was said to have made $7 million selling illegal licenses and pardons to bootleggers.
What is an example of divisons among supporters?
The Anti-Saloon League was bitterly divided.
What was the division in the Anti-Saloon League?
Some members sought stricter enforcement laws, believing the League should actually be given power over appointment of officers.
What was the opposition in the Ant-Saloon League?
Others emphasised education programmes to deter people from drinking in the first place.
How did the role of the government lead to the failure of Prohibition?
No one in government seemed to be prepared to say openly that Prohibition could not be enforced.
How does the role of the government relate to the context of 1920s America?
This was a period of reduced role by federal government, and most state governments were at best lukewarm in enforcement.
How was there a shift in attitude for Americans?
For many Americans, particularly those living in the cities, their main aim in life became having a good time.
How did the popularity of ‘speakeasies’ grow?
Illegal drinking in gangster-run speakeasies became popular with fashionable city dwellers.
What did Prohibition lead to?
A huge growth in organised crime and gangsterism.
What did mobsters do?
Controlled territories by force and established monopolies in the manufacture and sale of alcohol.
Why were these territories defended violently?
Potentially huge profitable enterprises were involved.
Who was John Torrio?
Ran most of the illegal alcohol business in Chicago and retired with $30 million.
Who was Al Capone?
Torrio’s chosen successor, saw himself as embodying the spirit of free competition and enterprise in the USA.
How much business had Al Capone done by 1932?
It was estimated his gang had done $70 million worth of business.
How was Capone violent in protecting his business?
He built up an army of 700 gangsters who committed over 300 murders.
What was the St. Valentines Day Massacre?
Five of Capone’s men, dressed as policemen, ‘arrested’ seven of the rival ‘Bugs Moran’ gang and shot over 100 bullets into them.
How was there a growth in lack of support for Prohibition?
- Illegal drinking made criminals of a good percentage of the population.
- Prohibition worked to the detriment of the poor.
How was there still support for Prohibition?
- Supporters argued that alcohol fell from 2.6 gallons per person per year to 1 gallon.
- Arrests for drunkenness fell, as did deaths from alcoholism.
When did Prohibition come to an end?
President Roosevelt finally abolished Prohibition in 1933.
What was one of the reasons for Prohibition come to an end?
A report set up by Hoover estimated that trying to enforce Prohibition took up 66% of the entire law enforcement budget.
