The Twenty-First Amendment

"Section 1. The eighteenth article of amendment to the Constitution of the United States is hereby repealed.

Section 2. The transportation or importation into any State, Territory, or possession of the United States for delivery or use therein of intoxicating liquors, in violation of the laws thereof, is hereby prohibited.

Section 3. This article shall be inoperative unless it shall have been ratified as an amendment ot the Constitution by conventions in the several States, as provided in the Constitution, within seven years from the date of the submission here of to the States by the Congress."

The fourteen year long wait was finally over, on December 5 of 1933, the Eighteenth Amendment was repealed by the Twenty-first Amendment.  Section one of the Amendment states, "The eighteenth article of amendment to the Constitution of the United States is hereby repealed."  Section two of the article expands on the first section, "The transportation or importation into any State, Territory, or possession of the United States for delivery or use therein of intoxicating liquors, in violation of the laws thereof, is hereby prohibited."  Despite popular belief, the Twenty-first Amendment did not establish a national drinking age of 21.  One might find it interesting that companies such as Anheuser-Busch and Jack Daniels continued to stay in business during those long fourteen years, but somehow they did.  Above is a video by the Anheuser-Busch company celebrating the end of prohibition.  

The photograph above is one of my all times favorites.  The photographer perfectly captured the excitement in the face of this gentleman, and looks about as happy as he has ever been.  Beer was back and that was just fine with him.  This photograph was taken directly after the Twenty-first Amendment was ratified and ended prohibition.  The young man's face here captures the emotion of the entire country.  Everyone was sick and tired of prohibition and just wanted to be able to drink and purchase alcohol again.  Even those whom at first supported it were now against it; crime in America was at an all-time high because people would do just about anything to get their hands on alcohol.