From Pharmacies to Liquor Dispensaries in the US South, 1893–1907: Thinking through One Adaptation of the Gothenburg System

Abstract

This article explores the political and social factors behind the adoption of liquor dispensaries in the US South between 1893 and 1907. This wave of state and municipal liquor stores emphasized off-site consumption, a feature that was relatively unique for the time period. Once southern political leaders found that prohibition did little to prohibit the saloon and not wanting to see its return, they sought a middle ground. I argue that it was the presence of pharmacies and the broader acceptance of medicinal liquor as an exception to prohibition that made these off-site arrangements appealing to reformers.