San Antonio College Library

In the early days of the nation, men drink cider and beer all day long and at nearly every occasion, from barn-raisings and baptisms to funerals and public hangings. But as hard whiskey becomes increasingly affordable and saloons turn more and more drunks into the gutter, America seems to have become a nation of drunkards. Unable to vote, women in Ohio shut down taverns by praying on their doorsteps. In Kansas, Carrie Nation attacks hotel bars with...