Drinking in America: A History

Abstract

This well-written book offers an interesting and enlightening account of alcohol in American history. The first chapter deals with alcohol in early colonial America, the second covers the period between 1790 and 1860, the third reviews the developments between 1860 and 1920, the fourth covers the period between 1920 and the repeal of Prohibition and the epilogue covers the period since then. This book is valuable because it helps rectify the commonplace images of the roots of alcohol use in American history. The authors trace the origin and development of American drinking behavior over the centuries and attitudes toward alcohol consumption. While most of those who analyze the history of Prohibition and the Temperance Movement emphasize their origins in religion and social class, this book is more comprehensive. The authors cite demographic, economic, political and social developments to provide insightful explanations for and commentary on the prevalent norms regarding alcohol use. By organizing the history of alcohol into four distinct periods, they are able to delineate the various sociocultural milieus in which American drinking behavior and attitudes evolved. Instead of cursorily attributing the variations in ethnic drinking to their origins, they demonstrate how the social conditions of the new land affected alcohol use and attitudes among the immigrants. The first chapter deals with what the authors call the republican period. They reveal that the founding fathers were less than Puritan in their alcohol-related conduct. Not only did they travel and arrive with a large supply of alcoholic beverages but, for practical reasons, they quickly adapted their knowledge of brewing to the new environment. By conservative estimates, these colonists consumed about six gallons of absolute alcohol per year (compared with three gallons in modern times). Yet, their views and use of alcohol were temperate. Drinking was a social affair with many latent communal functions and was an integral part of hearth and home. It smoothened the relationship among farm workers and their employers. It contributed to a sense of community--New England citizens were required to attend church ordinaries, the weekly communal gatherings to pray, eat, drink and gossip. Alcohol was always present at such social gatherings as weddings, funerals, baptisms, ordinations, holidays and musters. In addition, the tavern, as in Europe, fulfilled a variety of social needs--to feed and lodge travelers, and to accommodate various political, religious and other gatherings.