User:Grattonp/Rum running in windsor

Prohibition 1919-1933

 * Eighteenth Amendment, 1916
 * Volstead Act, 1920


 * Canada had passed a Wartime Resource Act prohibiting the manufacture, sale or consumption of alcoholic beverages. When it expired on January 1st 1927, Canada passed legislation authorizing each province to decide if prohibition would continue. Like most provinces Ontario chose to be dry.  Because the Federal government was in charge of regulating the manufacture, importation, and exportation of alcoholic beverages it approved liquor production in all the provinces. Two years later gang violence erupted and Detroiters were murdered daily for their involvement. Michigan adopted statewide prohibition in 1916; alcohol was smuggled from Ohio until the prohibition became national in 1919.  From then the city of Windsor became a major site for alcohol smuggling and gang activity. One of the major contributors to the manufacture and distribution of alcohol during this time was the city of Windsor and the waterways between Ontario and Michigan.

The Volstead Act and "Near Beer"

 * The Volstead Act defined intoxicating liquors as any liquor containing more than 0.5 percent alcohol. It permitted the manufacture of non-intoxicating cider and fruit juices for home use, and it allowed the sale of alcoholic beverages for medicinal, sacramental, and industrial purposes. The Volstead act in 1920 allowed breweries to produce “near beer” up to 0.5%.  To make near beer, distilleries had to produce actual beer and then let it sit to eliminate most of its alcoholic content.  This allowed them to produce virtually unlimited amounts of beer.   The Volstead Act also meant that local families could ferment wine for private consumption.

"Joe Sent Me"

 * This popular saying was used to enter speakeasies, blind pigs, clubs or joints. By 1928 there was anywhere from 16,000 to 25,000 in the Windsor-Detroit area.  There was a club for everyone. There were some in the slums and some in Detroit’s most prestigious neighborhoods.  Different drinks varied depending on the club you were accepted to.   Criminal gangs often owned the clubs and provided protection from police and other gangs.  Independent stills still needed to pay most criminals for protection and insurance that their delivery would arrive from Canada.
 * Some even offered food, at times for free with the purchase of a beverage to encourage customers. Even though police were bribed to protect against raids, they would intervene if the stills were prone to violence and food poisoning.  Gambling also played a significant role in speakeasies; the one arm bandit, poker, blackjack and roulette were popular among higher-class blind pigs.
 * The lure and attraction of speakeasies during the prohibition is not difficult to understand. The commonly accepted attitude towards drinking and minimal penalties for drinking made it worth consuming.  The thrill of it appealed to the young and they were rarely embarrassed to have their names in the paper.  Blind pigs generally went unnoticed; those near churches and school were often targeted because of their proximity to children.  Drinking on campuses were usually in sororities and fraternities.  The 18th amendment allowed people to obtain liquor by prescription.  That liquor was diluted and often sold for huge profits.

Rum-Running

 * The waterways that separate Windsor and Detroit saw 75% of the alcohol that was consumed in the United States during the Prohibition. The numerous islands that dot the 30-mile stretch from lake Erie to lake St. Clair provided the necesary hiding spots to evade officials (Bois Blanc, grosse ile, fighting island, Belle Island). The river was narrow and could easily be crossed in less than 5 minutes by boat.  Many people on both ends of the river had private boathouse and docks.  Many of these facilities were connected by underground tunnels. An estimated 25% of Windsor’s citizens were involved in smuggling during the 1920s and made large sums of profit.  Windsor residents capitalized and many became millionaires building some of the most prestige mansions in Windsor. Once the Ambassador Bridge and the Windsor-Detroit Tunnel were constructed the flow of alcohol saw a dramatic increase.
 * The city of Windsor also became exporters of alcohol to Barbados, Cuba, Mexico and other foreign countries. Ironically the booze shipped was usually re distributed by smugglers on the southern end of the United States. The flow of whiskey continued and merely 5% of the alcohol shipped from Ontario was ever seized.

Dry's Vs. Wet's

 * The "Dry's" were referred to those that were generally well financed and organized, with the support of influential people. Argued on the “high moral road” and believed in the Prohibition.  These figures included those like Billy Sunday who offered a Booze Sermon in hope of inspiring the "water wagon". The people that agreed with the prohibition often argued that the winners were the American family, churches, schools, workers and the American political system.  The losers were seen as criminals, drunks and corrupt politicians.
 * The "Wet's" were poorly organized and were recognized opponents of the prohibition. Saloons keepers, brewers, and distillers were viewed as corruptors of state.  People in Detroit during the 1920s frequently visited speakeasies and blind pigs for something to do.  They were generally not afraid to be arrested and considered it a status symbol. As the United States entered World War II it became an important factor in winning support for prohibition.  Rationing was widely accepted as a necessary ingredient of the American war effort.  The use of grain for alcohol production was seen as wasteful.

How They Did It

 * Most alcohol was smuggled across the border by everyday people. They continuously designed new devices to hide the alcohol as they rode the ferry from one side to the other.  People used Rubber belts, false breasts, chest protectors, loaf of bread, Suitcases and anyway of transporting it. Many took children and travelled in families to avoid detection.  Children were taught to cry and shout to create confusion and avoid long searches by officials.
 * Criminal gangs also developed sophisticated methods to signal across the border to avoid raids and arrests. The system was like clock work, one group arranged the purchase of liquor on Windsor's docks, and another team transported it across. Then a third team would transport it to a warehouse where a final team organized the distribution.  Gangs with strong financial backgrounds would often bribe federal, state and local officials.  Police would often call in sick as requested by the gangs, and in the end hundreds were indicted. They eventually began to use airplanes after the prohibition navy became effective.  Railways were also used extensively, 2 tunnels and loads of space and short staff made it easy.  Railways were responsible for around 800 cases of beer daily.  Customs officers noticed that after the Volstead act there was a sharp increase in the application of motorboat licenses. During the mid 1920s, the narrow Detroit River and highways running farther inland could quench the thirst of millions of mid westerners.
 * After 1923 gangs controlled a large percentage of alcohol and their facilities and acquired huge profits. The purple gang was very powerful, made up of several Jewish hoodlums.  They became a major supplier to al Capone and his Chicago Empire. The Purple gang fell in 1929 after many leaders were arrested and murdered.
 * Italian mafia, Licavoli, Vitalie, Giannolos, the gangs divided the waterways into sections and if crossed all out warfare would follow. Gangs were financially stable and it allowed them to control state officials and police.  They would hire anyone to transport alcohol, families, men, women and young teenagers.

The Outcome

 * Customs officers and police official were overwhelmed with smuggling, not only did the sheer number of people doing it but they miscalculated Canada's commitment. The prohibition movement lacked organization and smugglers often had better routes and better technology for outrunning the police.  Police introduced new vessels and the prohibition navy.  Once the prohibition navy was established rumrunners began using aircrafts. Canada’s failure to enforce prohibition laws made it easily available; Canada was reluctant to close distilleries because of tax revenues and the potential loss of thousands of jobs.
 * The United States was growing tired of the violence involved with smuggling; the unemployment rate was a staggering 46% in 1931. In 1933 it was argued that the legalization of liquor would reduce crime, lawlessness and gangs.   The amendment was repealed by the 21st amendment on December 5 1933.