Prohibition Begins: Eighteenth Amendment Ratified
Bootleggers just got their business plan. The Eighteenth Amendment would turn every basement, barn, and bathtub into a secret liquor factory—transforming ordinary Americans into underground brewers and smugglers. Suddenly, "dry" meant something entirely different: not thirsty, but criminally creative. And the timing? Hilarious. Just after World War I, when people desperately needed a drink, the government decided alcohol was the real enemy. Speakeasies would soon become America's most popular underground social clubs, with passwords, hidden doors, and jazz playing behind thick walls.
January 16, 1919
107 years ago
Key Figures & Places
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