Maine Memory Network

Rum, Riot, and Reform - A Call to Temperance

"… of drinkers in a Clay Cove (Portland waterfront) saloon, clearly depicts Irish-Americans in a cartoon style with the hat and pipe still used to…"

Rum, Riot, and Reform - Business as Usual

"… Society While it was illegal to sell alcohol and saloons did not advertise, saloonkeepers continued to list themselves as such long after Maine…"

Prohibition in Maine in the 1920s

Federal Prohibition took hold of America in 1920 with the passing of the Volstead Act that banned the sale and consumption of all alcohol in the US. However, Maine had the Temperance movement long before anyone was prohibited from taking part in one of America's most popular past times. Starting in 1851, the struggles between the "drys" and the "wets" of Maine lasted for 82 years, a period of time that was everything but dry and rife with nothing but illegal activity.

Rum, Riot, and Reform - Overview & Introduction

"… the zealous temperance crusader—a god-fearing, saloon bashing woman with an ax in her hand—and there's the prohibition-era wise guy, drinking his…"

Rum, Riot, and Reform - Women Leaders and Temperance

"Nation (1846-1911), was known for attacking saloons with her hatchet and made at least one visit to Bangor."

Rum, Riot, and Reform - 1919 to 1934: The Nation Follows Maine Into Prohibition

"Pushed forward by the Anti-Saloon League and the Woman's Christian Temperance Union, the 18th amendment was submitted in 1917."

Rum, Riot, and Reform - 1865 to 1919: The Drys Gain New Adherents and Leaders

"… liquor traffic." If it was the Ohio-based Anti-Saloon League, founded in 1893, that eventually tipped the nation's voters into supporting…"

Rum, Riot, and Reform - Quenching the Thirst

"… place east of Boston where you can enter a gilded saloon and get an honest drink of pure liquor." Meanwhile, Portland claimed to be dry but had…"

Promoting Rockland Through a Stereopticon, 1875

Frank Crockett and photographer J.P. Armbrust took stereo views of Rockland's downtown, industry, and notable homes in the 1870s as a way to promote tourism to the town.

A Riot of Words: Ballads, Posters, Proclamations and Broadsides

Imagine a day 150 years ago. Looking down a side street, you see the buildings are covered with posters and signs.