The 18th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, a progressive effort
to enforce social reform via expanded federal power and popularly known as Prohibition, was ratified on this day in history, Jan. 16,
1919. 

The amendment stated, "The manufacture, sale, or transportation
of intoxicating liquors within, the importation thereof into, or the exportation thereof from the United States and all the territory
subject to the jurisdiction thereof for beverage purposes is
hereby prohibited.”  

Prohibition ended with the ratification of the Twenty-first
Amendment, which repealed the Eighteenth Amendment
on December 5, 1933.

A dramatic battle in the Tennessee House of Representatives
ended with the state ratifying the 19th Amendment to the
United States Constitution on August 18, 1920. After decades
of struggle and protest by suffragettes across the country,
the decisive vote is cast by a 24-year-old representative who
reputedly changed his vote after receiving a note from his
mother.

Signing of the 19th Amendment.

July 28, 1868: Following its ratification by the necessary three-
quarters of U.S. states, the 14th Amendment, granting citizenship 
to all persons born or naturalized in the United States—including formerly enslaved people—was officially adopted into the U.S. Constitution. Secretary of State William Seward issues a
proclamation certifying the amendment. 

William Henry Seward
(May 16, 1801 – October 10, 1872)

The 18th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, prohibiting the “manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors for
beverage purposes,” was ratified by the requisite number of
states on January 16, 1919.

The movement for the prohibition of alcohol began in the early
19th century, when Americans concerned about the adverse
effects of drinking began forming temperance societies. By the
late 19th century, these groups had become a powerful political
force, campaigning on the state level and calling for total national abstinence. In December 1917, the 18th Amendment, also known
as the Prohibition Amendment, was passed by Congress and
sent to the states for ratification.

The Orange County (California) Sheriff dumping bootleg alcohol,
circa 1925.

A dramatic battle in the Tennessee House of Representatives ends with
the state ratifying the 19th Amendment to the United States Constitution
on August 18, 1920. After decades of struggle and protest by suffragettes
across the country, the decisive vote was cast by a young representative
who reputedly changed his vote after receiving a note from his mother.