NEWS @ NOON: Prohibition Exhibit Now Open In St. Paul [INTERVIEW]

ST. PAUL - A new exhibit about Prohibition is open at the Minnesota History Museum in St. Paul.

“American Spirits: The Rise and Fall of Prohibition” follows the Temperance movement of the early 1800s through the “Roaring ’20s” to the repeal of the constitutional amendment that outlawed the manufacture, sale or transportation of alcohol in the U.S.

The exhibit also looks at Minnesota’s role in Prohibition. Congressman Andrew Volstead of Granite Falls authored the Volstead Act, which defined how Prohibition would be enforced. “Jazz Age” writer F. Scott Fitzgerald and his flamboyant wife, Zelda, lived and partied in St. Paul. St. Paul also became a hideout for mobsters.

Minnesota History Center Director Dan Spock was on the New @ Noon Show on WJON today (Monday) talking about the exhibit.

Spock also talks about the difficulty local law enforcement agencies had trying to enforce prohibition for those 13 years.

The exhibit features more than 100 rare artifacts. It runs through March 16, 2014.

And another note on the topic of Prohibition: The Stearns History Museum is hosting its Stills and Swills – A Taste of Prohibition event at Anton’s Restaurant on Monday November 18th.