View from North at the intersection of Grove and Plum St, in the heart of Temperance Row.
1916 photograph of members of the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union with WCTU’s President Anna Gordon (second from right) in Helena, MT.
Photo courtesy of Wikimedia
In 1909, Westerville, Ohio, became the headquarters of the Anti-Saloon League of America (ASLA). Purley Baker, General Superintendent of ASLA, purchased 11 acres of land within Westerville with a vision to construct a residential neighborhood for himself and members of ASLA, aptly named Temperance Row. The Craftsman-style architecture of Baker’s home inspired others within Temperance Row to design their homes in a similar manner. Between 1910 and 1935, ASLA created an aesthetically cohesive neighborhood. Westerville became home to key ASLA leaders such as Howard Hyde Russell and Ernest H. Cherrington along with families of ASLA field agents, managers and bureau associates. ASLA created a community within ‘the Dry Capitol of the World’ that lived and worked together in their crusade for Prohibition. [1]
Founded in 1893, ASLA was a national temperance organization with a mission to utilize government policy and business practices to abolish alcohol production and consumption in the United States. Before ASLA, prohibition organizations in the early to mid-19th century used religious morals as a method of persuading communities to close bars and resist consuming alcohol. With effective political lobbying, ASLA was fundamental in the ratification of the 18th Amendment to the United States Constitution in 1919, leading to the Prohibition era (1920–1933). [2]
View from North at the intersection of Grove and Plum St, in the heart of Temperance Row.
Why were organizations like ASLA so persistent in the war against alcohol, and who was driving this century-long pursuit for a ‘dry’ America? Starting in the early 1800s, the temperance movement sought to limit drinking under the belief that alcohol led to violence, immoral behavior and destruction of families. Women took particular interest in the movement, believing that alcoholism had a direct and negative impact on wives and mothers in the form of domestic violence. [3]
Political cartoon “Goliath’s Pride” by Russell Henderson personifying Prohibition as the Biblical character David and alcohol as Goliath being struck down.
At the beginning of the movement, women volunteers powered the creation of the early temperance platform, which was rooted in Protestant morals, and by the end of the 1800s, women began taking up leadership roles and founding organizations like the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU). The late 1800s also brought a shift in tactics from religious to political, empowering both men and women to contribute with more direct approaches, including protesting, lobbying and advocacy. WCTU took advantage of this shift to train women in skills such as public speaking and politics, improving not only WCTU’s position but women’s employment opportunities. Unfortunately, these opportunities were presented mostly to women with privileged social and financial standings. [4]
By the early 1900s, prohibition was inching closer to becoming a national reality, and women's active roles were being overshadowed. Their lack of voting rights seemed to weaken their position as prohibition was debated on Capitol Hill. Organizations with majority male leadership, like Anti-Saloon League of America, utilized their more socially privileged male cohort to push their prohibition efforts to center stage. [5]
1921 Photograph of Anti-Saloon League national officers.
Without a doubt, Temperance Row and the entire movement found success through women’s contributions. When in Westerville, visit both Temperance Row and Westerville Public Library to learn more about Prohibition and the leaders behind the movement.
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