Cheers to History: 12 Entertaining and Surprising Facts About the 21st Amendment

1. Mississippi: The Late Party Pooper

Oh, the things you can't "bar"gain for: Prohibition in the US may have ended with the Twenty-first Amendment in 1933, but Mississippi held onto its party pooper status until 1966, and Kansas didn't let the good times roll at public bars until 1987!
Source => reaganlibrary.gov

2. Turtle-paced Pub Crawl

They say slow and steady wins the race, but Mississippi took that motto to a whole new level with a turtle-paced pub crawl: The 21st Amendment may have ended Prohibition in 1933, but it took Mississippi until 1966 to finally repeal its statewide Prohibition law, making it the last state to do so, and allowing possession of alcohol in every county effective January 1, 2021.
Source => washingtonpost.com

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=> Fun Facts about The-Constitution

3. Constitutional Conga Line

While the 21st Amendment wasn't exactly a party animal, it definitely knew how to shake things up in the constitutional conga line: It's the only amendment in U.S. history to be ratified through state ratifying conventions rather than the usual state legislature method.
Source => reaganlibrary.gov

4. Doctor's (Boozy) Orders

During the great "Dry Spell" of Prohibition, Americans suddenly discovered an undying love for "doctor's orders" and an unwavering trust in medical advice: This led to a boom in the consumption of alcohol, as doctors could and did prescribe it for "medicinal purposes only," giving rise to an influx of homebrew remedies, fruit wines, and shady patents that did wonders for the nation's collective "health."
Source => history.com

5. Congress' Secret Speakeasy

While you were busy boozing it up with your buddies, Congress was having its own secret speakeasy: George L. Cassiday, known as the "Man in the Green Hat," served 20-25 Congressmen daily with illegal alcohol from a hidden room in the House Office Building during Prohibition. Caught and jailed in 1930, but not deterred, Cassiday used his arrest to expose congressional hypocrisy and influenced the 1930 elections, contributing to the eventual ratification of the 21st Amendment in 1933.
Source => hulr.org

6. Loophole Cheers

Hold onto your wine glasses and raise a toast to the law that didn't exactly go bottoms up: Although the 21st Amendment was ratified on December 5, 1933, it took several more months and the Cullen-Harrison Act before low-alcohol content beverages like beer and wine became legal again, officially lifting the Prohibition era's ban on manufacturing, sales, and transport of alcohol across the United States. Cheers to responsible loopholes!
Source => constitutioncenter.org

7. Bootleggers to NASCAR Racers

Shifting gears from moonshine to finish line, these bootleggers steered clear of a brewing trouble: The 21st Amendment gave rise to skilled drivers who transported illegal liquor during Prohibition, eventually becoming racing professionals. Early NASCAR talents can be traced back to those who dodged the law and honed their speed skills, taking their passion for breakneck chases all the way to the racetrack.
Source => prohibition.themobmuseum.org

8. Economy's Pajama Party Crash

While we all imagine flappers and dapper gents joy-riding as wardrobe and home goods merchants scrooge-like clutch their expanding wallets, the Prohibition era didn't exactly dress up the economy like a cat's pajamas: In fact, it caused job losses in brewing, hospitality, and entertainment industries, pocketing the national tax revenue with a kick in the shins of $11 billion, and leaving a $300 million tab for enforcement that Uncle Sam couldn't drown his sorrows away with.
Source => pbs.org

9. National Repeal Day

Toast like it's 1933 and party like Gatsby: The 21st Amendment, which made it legal to booze again and ended the prohibition era on December 5, 1933, is the sole amendment-turned-national-holiday celebrated as National Repeal Day, sparking a nationwide flurry of nostalgic, 1920s-themed shindigs!
Source => nationaltoday.com

10. Clydesdales' Boozy Delivery

Thirsty for change, America welcomed back the temptress of the bottle with open arms and a trotting celebration: The Cullen-Harrison Act allowed for the legal consumption of low-alcohol content beer and wine about 10 months before the 21st Amendment was ratified, prompting the Budweiser Clydesdales to hoof it to the White House with a ceremonial case of beer for President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
Source => constitutioncenter.org

11. Land of Tipsy Laws

Once upon a time in the Land of the Tipsy, the great 21st Amendment shook things up in a tavern of confusion: It gave states the power to control alcohol sales and transport, resulting in a bizarre cocktail of "dry" states, strict regulations, and taxes, creating the intoxicating patchwork of alcohol laws we stumble through today.
Source => constitution.findlaw.com

12. Flappers and Fedoras Law Mix

Ladies and gentlemen, grab your flapper dresses and fedoras, because it's time for a "roaring" good fact: The 21st Amendment, ratified on December 5, 1933, repealed Prohibition but allowed individual states to call the shots on alcohol regulation, leading to a colorful cocktail of laws from dry counties to strict liquor licensing that still exist today.
Source => en.wikipedia.org