History Spotlight
Prohibition Finally Ends in Marple Written by Doug Humes
P
rohibition ended for most of the United States in 1933. But things move more slowly in Marple Township. Prohibition just ended in Marple with the recent opening of the Marple Public House. In the 19th century, the place to purchase your liquor by the glass in Marple was the Drove Tavern on West Chester Pike (immediately west of what is today Armenian Delight). The tavern served drovers, who would drive livestock from the country to the city for sale at the larger markets in Philadelphia. The Lamb Tavern provided the same beverages for the southern end of the township. All of that came to an end with the adoption of the 18th Amendment, prohibiting “the manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors” in the U.S. Liquor was driven underground. The supply chain was taken over by gangsters and bred more violent crime. People still gathered and drank in illegal speakeasies. Like the drug wars of today, people were arrested and some were jailed for
The old Drove Tavern, which blocked the path of Sproul Road Marple Historical Society
non-violent acts like having a beer with their friends. It was a noble experiment to deal with a social problem. And it failed. In 1933, the 21st Amendment made alcohol legal. States were allowed to pass their own regulations. Pennsylvania decided that the state itself would control liquor sales from “state stores,” with a “local option” that permitted each township to decide for itself whether to ban liquor, beer and bars within
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