Leaves, S’Mores, and More

Its that time of year again, a time when the trees change their colors, days get colder, and the nights get longer. Its fall in Scott County, though the recent weather might have some of us confused. Despite unseasonable weather fall is here, and for a few days now actually (the first day of fall is officially September 23^rd). Fall is my favorite season of the year, it’s a season of bon-fires with friends, strolling down leaf covered sidewalks with my wife, and camping. My family always seemed to go camping later in the year than everyone else.

The weather lately has been warmer, muggier, and generally unfall-like. Still, I wanted to give everyone a glimpse of our past (and future) with a photo gallery of Scott County in Fall. Look forward to these images in a neighborhood near you, soon!

Written by Dave Nichols, Curator of Collections

Prohibition in Scott County

 

In January 1920, Prohibition started and the nation would never be the same. Minnesota as a whole was in favor of prohibition; in fact the guidelines for it were put down by a Minnesota Congressman, Andrew Volstead. In Scott County, however, Prohibition was far from favored. It’s no surprise that the heavy German population in the county would be opposed to the law. In fact, prior to 1917 and World War I, Germans made up a large front in the anti-prohibition movement.

Jordan was a hotbed for Volstead violations during prohibition. Even those who were supposedly following the law often found themselves caught for selling liquor. In raids in the early 1920s, Jordan had the entirety of the soft-drink bar owners cited for violations. Soft-drinks are not necessarily the soda pop we think of today, it also included mixed drinks with things like simple syrups. As early as 1922, the Jordan Commercial Club sent a message to the US Congress demanding Prohibition’s repeal.

Jordan was not the only source of violations in the county. Shakopee had its fair share, and even New Market had a famous incident reported in in 1921. The story goes that a New Market man had made so much moonshine in the year and half since Prohibition that he had earn $16,000, that almost $250,000 today. It’s no surprise then, that not long after a night at the bar of him bragging of his success that the Prohibition agents raided his farm.
Raids in Scott County became quite frequent, occurring at least once a month in the early years and then becoming about a bi-monthly occurrence in the later years of Prohibition. A report in 1921 from the Jordan Independent mentioned a raid in March of that year that took Prohibition raids from a joke to a very real reality.

Prohibition impacted the county in many different ways, from the changing of livelihoods, to the increase in technically criminal activity; one could say Scott County is a good test case for the impact of Prohibition as a whole. If you want to learn more about how the county weathered the 18^th Amendment be sure to visit us when we reopen in the spring for our new exhibit on the subject.

Written by Dave Nichols, Curator of Collections