"Bone Dry" Liquor Law of 1917
The Arkansas State Liquor Law of 1917, commonly called the "Bone Dry" Liquor Law of 1917, passed in January 1917 and outlawed "the transportation, delivery, and storage of liquor, excepting only alcohols used for scientific, religious, and medical purposes."
The "Bone Dry" law followed on the heels of an 1885 law closing saloons on Sunday, an 1899 law outlawing sale of alcohol from one person to another, a 1913 Arkansas law that made the entire state officially dry, and the Newberry Act of 1915, which outlawed the manufacture and sale of alcohol within state borders. The Governor of Arkansas at the time, Charles Brough, was a major supporter of the 1917 act, as well as a supporter of the Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution.
The residents of Arkansas had been fighting to legislate the sale of alcohol since 1874. Many counties had already made themselves "dry." In 1913, anti-prohibitionists claimed a small victory in that the Arkansas Liquor Law of 1913 still allowed saloons and bars to petition county courts for licenses, much like Arkansas bars and clubs do today. The "Bone Dry" Law finally finished off "wet" supporters in Arkansas by attempting to completely eliminate alcohol sales in the state. The only victory left for them to claim was a Supreme Court decision that the "Bone Dry" Law did not prevent individuals from crossing into the state with alcohol.
The full intention of the "Bone Dry" Liquor Law of 1917 came to a climax in 1919 when Arkansas ratified the Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, making the sale of alcohol illegal in the entire United States. Prohibition laws in general made clandestine drinking and bootlegging much more popular. Prohibition ended in failure. Fifty-nine percent of Arkansans voted for successful repeal of the Eighteenth Amendment in 1933. An interesting footnote to the Prohibition fight in Arkansas is that many of the successes could be attributed to prominent African-Americans in the state urging blacks with voting rights to pass prohibition measures.
References
- Tom Dillard, "How's About a Drink?" Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, July 18, 2010.
