American Temperance Movement Essay

Prohibition had been tried from a lot of time as temperance movements, the movements that tried to stop the alcohol consumption started in the latest 1700’s. The first group that wanted temperance was made by a group of Litchfield, Connecticut in 1789. Evangelical Protestants mainly formed these groups; however, they wanted moderation for preventing drunkenness. The ones who were most affected by

Not everyone approved of drinking. Many Protestant groups, including the Methodists and Lutherans had strong antidrink traditions based upon religious teachings. Prohibition was first tried in America to protect colonial settlers from the attacks of I The earliest reformers called for moderation, not total abstinence, but as their movement gained strength it demanded a complete prohibition of all beer, wine, and liquor. The first temperance legislation was passed in Massachusetts in 1838. Called the Many

“By 1830, the average American over 15 years old consumed nearly seven gallons of pure alcohol a year – three times as much as we drink today” (PBS, nd). The result was the temperance movement. The Temperance movement was an anti-movement that swept across the country in the 1830s and 40s. The abolitionists tried to show that drinking alcohol was a sin and that the country needed to be cleansed. They called for a prohibition of alcohol. On January 17th, 1920, an amendment to the constitution was passed that banned the making, transporting, and selling of alcohol and other intoxicating beverages.

In his book, The Alcoholic Republic: An American Tradition, William J. Rorabaugh makes the argument that early American society was a place where alcohol flowed freely through every level of society. Americans in the late eighteenth century and into the nineteenth century partook in so widely it was one of the defining characteristics of the culture of the early United States. Using data collected from censuses, surveys, and reports from those who traveled across the country in its early years, Rorabaugh concludes that the drinking in the United States found no barriers with age, sex, race, class, or location. But his assumptions and conclusion are not proved strongly enough by hard evidence and data to be considered a reliable narrative of the early America.

The temperance societies were religious groups whose main focus was ridding American society from alcohol, because they believed it was the cause of all their misfortunes. Soon enough, this group became a powerful political force, campaigning on the state level for prohibition (prohibiting all sale, manufacture and transportation of intoxicating liquors for the use as beverages).4 In December 1917, Congress passed the 18th Amendment of prohibition and was sent to states for ratification.4 Two years later on January 29, 1919, the 18th Amendment receives the three-fourths majority of state ratification.4 Prohibition took effect in January 1920.

In the early parts of the 20th Century, Canada experimented with banning alcohol consumption. There were some exceptions to this, but most of Canada’s Provincial governments issued some sort of prohibitory laws. The exception being Québec who only prohibited hard liquor, meaning that they allowed the production and consumption of beverages, such as, beer. This drive towards prohibition started during the mid-19th Century. It all started during the Temperance Movement, when proponents voluntarily abstained from alcohol. This abstention was due to alcohol’s, perceived, moral downfalls. However, slowly, the various provinces reversed their restrictions on alcohol and moved from prohibition to system of coordination. There were several

During the era of 1920-1933 could best be characterized as the path to a sober nation. This time of history consisted of the eighteenth amendment which was passed on October 28th 1919; Volstead Act. The Volstead act was created to carry out the movement of prohibition. In addition, Prohibition is the legal prohibiting of the manufacture and sale of alcoholic drinks for common consumption according to dictionary.com. Furthermore, this amendment concurs that alcohol beverages could not be made, transported, or sold legally in the United States. People started to trust that drinking would demolish ones character, change politics, and created crime. On the other hand, the prohibition amendment did lower alcohol consequences outcomes, in the end this amendment should never have been passed as it caused more organized crime and an increase of problems with our economy.

During the earlier 1800s, Americans were drinking more than five gallons of alcohol per person per year . This is the highest level that it has ever reached and retains that status even today. This time period was the start of westward expansion and with it, Americans brought their alcohol. This led to the creation of the saloon. The saloon has been a symbol of American drinking since it was created. At the end of the 19th century, the Anti-Saloon League started to pick up steam resulting in the saloons and alcohol coming under attack. These actions culminated into the beginning of what would be known as the Temperance movement. Even in the face of Americans who liked their liquor, the Anti-Saloon League was

Temperance became the biggest reform movement in the early 1800’s. Alcohol abuse was a cause of many factors such as spousal abuse, unemployment (poverty), crime, and family neglect. Alcoholic spirits were being produced at a large rate of 25 million gallons a year. To me this seems like a small rate to what we drink in our day and age but I could be wrong. The Temperance movement was brought to attention by Benjamin Rush. Rush fought for Temperance and was one of the founding fathers of the United States (which I did not know); he signed the Declaration of Independence and served as Surgeon General in the Continental army. Rush talks about the effects of Alcohol abuse and what it does to the human system. Later he forms a community to try

     Prohibition had become an issue long before its eventual induction as the 18th amendment in 1920. Organizations came about for the sole purpose of an alcohol free America. In 1833, an estimated one million Americans belonged to some type of temperance association (Behr 12). Many believed the absence of alcohol would help the poor as well as big business. Lower class people would put more money into savings accounts and productivity would increase among workers (Hanson 27). More importantly the “noble experiment”—was undertaken to reduce crime and corruption, solve social problems, and improve the health and hygiene in America” (Thorton 1).

In the mid 1600’s, colonial laws attempted to control alcohol consumption, but drinking per se was not remonstrated. Between

One major movement was the temperance movement. In colonial America, informal social controls in the home and community helped maintain the expectation that the abuse of alcohol was unacceptable. There was a clear consensus that while alcohol was a gift form God its abuse was from the Devil. As the colonies grew from a rural society into a more urban one, drinking patterns began to change. As the American

The prohibition of liquor began when the use of alcoholic beverages rose after the American Revolution. In order to stop this many “societies” were organized to support the movement which attempted to convince people to

Prohibition, referred to as the “Noble Experiment” by President Herbert Hoover did not suddenly pounce upon the unsuspecting American public. “It had been for a long time, menacing and noisily, lumbering in for the kill “ (Allsop 24). For about a hundred years up to the end of the eighteenth century, liquor, “the good creation of God” as it was referred to in Colonial ordinances was as accepted in the routine of life as bread or money. “It functioned as money for rum was the principle barter in the slave trade, and whisky was a profitable way of marketing grain” (Allsop 25). Spirits were an integral part of colonial economy and prosperity. They were routinely drunk by every one of all ages and sexes. Physicians prescribed rum and it was sipped in all households throughout the day. Crying babies were few because their bottles were laced with rum to keep them pacified (Behr 7). Even the Puritans who preached against all fleshly pleasures allowed alcohol. The Puritans merely condemned

All of these Christian denominations believed that alcohol was a gift from God, but to “…get drunk with wine,” (New International Version, Eph 5.18) was to sin. For the next few hundred years, alcohol consumption was seen as an act for moderation. The nineteenth century marks the beginning of a great push for temperance during the Second Great Awakening; this was founded upon an increased level of alcoholism in Europe and America during a time of Industrialization that called for the need of reliable workers (Holt). The Puritan push for temperance became stronger, and in 1826, the Society for the Promotion of Temperance was formed with over five thousand chapters across the United States; this group was partly responsible for the implementation of the illegality of buying alcohol in many states on a Sunday (Indiana is the only state in which this law remains in effect) and for the movement that preceded the Prohibition in 1920 (Holt). The Prohibition disallowed Americans to produce, import, transport, or sell alcoholic beverages; it lasted for thirteen years until the twenty-first amendment ended it because of the reaction it sparked (Holt). In the twenty-first century, the minimum drinking age in all fifty states in America is 21 years old. The science of alcohol, the social science of alcohol, and the international usage of alcohol factor into the controversy of this magic number: 21.