The Hampton History Museum special year-long exhibit, Teetotalers and Moonshiners, and Hampton’s Prohibition Story, features a myriad of items that tell Hampton’s Prohibition story.
The exhibit opens to the public on Feb. 4. It includes dozens of photographs; numerous bottles, jugs and other containers; games, smoking accoutrements, beverage dispenser, signs and materials of saloon culture; service ware, promotional items and memorabilia from Point Comfort resorts, Phoebus police and fire department items, doctor bag and instruments; and moonshine still components on loan from the Museum of the Albemarle.
Curated by Hampton History Museum Historian Beth Austin, and Museum Aide Willow Pell, it begins with the earliest days of Virginia’s relationship with alcohol. Colonial Americans consumed vast amounts of liquor during a time when water sources couldn’t be trusted. As a bustling port, the alcohol trade was big business in Hampton, and taverns catering to seafarers.
The exhibit combines content from the Virginia Library’s 2017 exhibit “Teetotalers and Moonshiners: Virginia’s Prohibition Experiment” with research and artifacts from the Hampton History Museum on the local experience.
Virginia Breweries and distilleries closed their doors in November 1916, as the state began a grand experiment in Prohibition. From that date until 1933, state inspectors and federal agents attempted to stem the flow of illicit alcohol to a thirsty populace. In many ways, Hampton’s relationship with alcohol mirrors Virginia’s as a whole. But, Hampton’s own Prohibition story differs in distinct and unexpected ways.
Major tensions surrounding alcohol emerged during the mid-and-late 19th century in the Phoebus area. These increased with the growth of the saloon culture of nearby Phoebus garnered it the nickname of “Little Chicago.”
Even before Prohibition, as early as 1908, Phoebus leaders sought to “clean up” the town by driving out brothels and banning music and free lunches in saloons. These steps led to many saloons to close. Pre-Prohibition alcohol restrictions slashed the number of saloons in 1907 to 1916—from 27 to 15 in Phoebus, and from 12 to 5 in Hampton. The restrictions disproportionately impacted African American saloon owners with fines and license revocations.
Museum visitors are sure to enjoy this exciting exhibit as they dive into the history of this storied period.
Teetotalers and Moonshiners, and Hampton’s Prohibition Story continues through Feb. 4, 2024.
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