Reprinted here by special permission of the author, Cindy Beckman, a retired Conway High School history teacher who writes local history.

After the saloons closed in 1888, Faulkner County was “dry” for 45 years. In 1919, temperance movements across the nation succeeded in getting the 18th Amendment to the Constitution ratified so on January 1, 1920, the entire nation banned the production, sale and distribution of alcohol.

But by 1933, Prohibition, as this era of American history became known, became highly unpopular. Crime rates and violence rose Continue reading →