As a counselor for online alcohol school, I like to learn about societal behavior and the laws that govern the consumption of fermented beverages. Recently, I was reading about the Prohibition era and learned some interesting information.
Did you know that the Volstead Act (the definitive law that outlawed fermented beverages) was remarkably vague? The law was named for Andrew J. Volstead, a senator from Minnesota whose most distinguishing attribute was a spectacular mustache that hung from his upper lip like a bearskin rug.
Though he did not imbibe, Volstead certainly did not mind that others did and personally never would have sought a national ban on alcohol. His name was attached because he was the chairman of the Judiciary Committee and helped draft the law.
Being associated with a ban on alcohol did nothing to support Volstead's favor in his home state – he was promptly voted out of office in the next election.
Unfortunately for the millions of Americans who were drinkers, the Volstead Act survived for many more years. Enacted in 1919, it stayed in effect until 1933.
We will continue to look at a few interesting tid bits on the Volstead act and the Prohibition Era in the next installment of the onlinealcoholclass.com blog.