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PROHIBITION IN EL PASO
Prohibition in El Paso began on January 5,
1918, during a routine county commissioners' court meeting. On this Saturday
evening, several petitions calling for a local option election in Precinct One of El Paso
were introduced, while another petition demanded an election covering the entire
city. The following Monday, it was decided that the local option election, that
would include all of El Paso County, would be held on January 30, 1918. With this
date set, a twenty-five day period of campaigning followed. Two groups were then
established, the "drys" who supported prohibition and the "wets" who
opposed it. The Wets and the Drys were in constant disagreement.
As the deciding day approached,
both campaigns scurried to gain last-minute support. The "drys" retired on
January 29,1918, assured that victory was theirs.
On January 31, 1918, the El Paso Times
heralded a startling headline: "EL PASO CITY AND COUNTY DEFINITELY REJECT
PROHIBITION. " RESULTS OF THE EL PASO COUNTY LOCAL OPTION
ELECTION- 1918
|
WET |
DRY |
Ysleta |
79 |
81 |
Socorro |
36 |
57 |
San Elizario |
46 |
71 |
El Paso |
2,436 |
2,190 |
Clint |
29 |
25 |
Fabens |
23 |
17 |
Island |
0 |
8 |
TOTAL |
2,649 |
2,449 |
Saloons in El Paso were
to survive only two and a half more months, though. On February 25, 1918, statewide
prohibition ninety days after enactment was proposed. On March 5, 1918, the
Eighteenth Amendment (prohibition) was ratified in Congress. For the first time in
history, El Paso's saloons turned out the lights and closed their doors. On the following
day, they reopened in Juarez. John Barleycorn became the best tourist agent in
Juarez. Gambling casinos such as the Trivai opened. Bars and restaurants named
Big Kid, Palace, Bagdad, Central, and Mint all catered to those with a particularly fine
thirst. Trains that had ignored El Paso on cross-country trips suddenly began making
stops. El Paso hotels did a thriving business, as did taxis. Gambling casinos soon
became a common site in the El Paso area.
With liquor so readily available in Juarez, it seemed odd that a
thriving smuggling business would have taken place across the international line.
Yet each night had its gun fights, and many a smuggler or revenue agent laid down his life
in the cold river mud. Cordova Island became a notorious site for smuggling, as there was
no river to cross, just a brush-strewn imaginary line. The island also became the
location for the "Hole-in-the-Wall," a combination saloon and gambling
parlor. It flourished just a few yards south of the boundary, and neither
country had any success in closing it. I t was finally torn down in January, 1931.
By then prohibition had nearly run its course, and the time of the Great Depression was at
hand.
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