The uncomfortable acceptance of legal alcohol after the end of Prohibition in the United States


The United States made alcohol, including hard liquor, beer, and wine, an illegal substance during the era of Prohibition, which began in 1920 and ended in 1933. And there's been uncomfortable acceptance of this drug (because after all, that's what it is) since then. Seeing big ads like this in 1937 must have felt a bit strange to people who had been law-abiding citizens all through the 1920s.

Nowadays whiskey is perfectly legal, you can buy it at grocery stores, you can order it at restaurants. In fact, it's a huge industry that generates a lot of revenue. But there is a bit of discomfort related to it. Here on Blogger, I'm aware of their rules and restrictions, and even though I'm writing a history blog I'm aware that the Google 'bots will be seeing keywords, and wondering what I'm talking about. Hopefully some human being will see that I'm not in violation.


The more I learn about American history, the more I'm convinced that drinking whiskey was very commonplace. And since most of it is made from corn, and America has always had a LOT of corn, it was plentiful and inexpensive. There are times when I wonder if some people in America ever even drew a sober breath? Whiskey was used to relieve pain, it was rubbed on baby's teeth. Everyone's grandma kept a bottle for medicinal purposes, and those medicinal purposes could be just about anything.

When I time-travel in my imagination I often wonder how much whiskey I would be expected to drink, as a full-grown man. I've experimented with it, and have found about two jiggers-full to be plenty for me. I find it soothing, and its effect on me is to make me more talkative (I talk a lot anyway!) and then I want to sleep. I have a feeling that I would be considered a wimp by the standards of the people in 1937.

No more for me, thank you! That's all.

Image from the Duke University Library Digital Collections.
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