Rum, Riot, and Reform

Maine played a central role in the United States' gradual—and sometimes riotous—move towards drinking reform. This web site is a reproduction of the exhibition that documented these events and was on display at the Maine Historical Society during the Summer and Fall of 1998.

This exhibition covers a period from 1620–1934, highlighting the role that drink played in Maine's social, economic and political history, and profiling the events and leaders in Maine that catalyzed other States' and eventually the Nation's prohibition of alcohol.

Read about the issues that framed the temperance debate and establish the framework for this exhibit. Also, browse profiles of four key time periods and view the artifacts that appeared in the original exhibit.

See complete Rum, Riot, and Reform Exhibition Printed Catalog .

Introduction

Mention the topic of alcohol reform in America and two semi-comical stereotypes usually take the stage. There's 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 fill under the nose of the law. Stereotypes like these point to truths, of course, but they also mask a history that is more interesting and more important. The drive to reform the abuse of alcohol was one of the great moral and social controversies of the 19th and early 20th centuries.

Temperance and prohibition movements, like the fight to abolish slavery and the struggle for women's suffrage, engaged the nation's full attention. Passions ran high and the political conflicts--exacerbated by economic, class, ethnic, gender, and religious differences--an deep. Maine was at the center of alcohol reform in America, especially in the 19th century. Its legislation and its leaders help set the national agenda; its love of drink and resistance to change mirrored the national experience.

Rum, Riot, and Reform, which was on display at Maine Historical Society from May to November 1998, is a first step toward the history of Maine's role in the era of alcohol reform. It is an outline, an exploration of local connections, an invitation to new discoveries. It is also, in a sense, a prelude to the history of our own day, in which the issue of substance abuse and the limits of social control are still matters for hot debate. We hope you find it instructive.

Rum, Riot, and Reform was made possible by Anheuser-Busch Inc., National Distributors, the Edward H. Davis is Benevolent Fund, and the Lincoln National Foundation, Inc.

See other acknowledgements