Today in History: Temperance & Prohibition

Today in History–October 28–the Library of Congress features temperance and prohibition. On this day in 1919, Congress passed the Volstead Act which allowed for enforcement of the Eighteenth Amendment to the Constitution. Lauded by temperance societies and referred to as the Prohibition Amendment, the Eighteenth Amendment prohibited the “manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors” in the United States. Learn more by visiting the Today in History section then click the links below to access more related primary sources.

Amendments 18 and 21 | Inside Adams: Science, Technology & Business

Temperance

• Temperance images
• Temperance sheet music
• Temperance song recordings
  • The Drunkard’s dream
  • The Drunkard’s child
  • The Drunkard’s doom
• Temperance map
• Temperance broadsides & correspondence
• Temperance Talk (periodical)
• Ruined by Rum (1877 book)
• The Bases of the Temperance Reform (1873 book)
• Text-book of Temperance (1869)
• More temperance books & other texts
• Temperance: historical newspaper articles and advertisements
• Carrie Nation, temperance advocate
• American Temperance Society resources
• American Temperance Society: historical newspaper coverage
• Temperance background info & primary source texts (California State University Northridge)

Prohibition

• Prohibition books and other texts
• Selected newspaper articles: prohibition
• Volstead Act historical newspaper coverage
• Prohibition cartoons
• Prohibition images
• Oral histories mentioning prohibition from the American Life Histories collection
• Prohibition sheet music
• Prohibition songs
• Dinnie Donohue, on Prohibition (audio recording, monologue)