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A Guide to the

Affidavits for Ardent Spirits Collection, 1916-1917

SC# 2035

Compiled by: Don Lambert, February 1987;

Revised Jan. 2010 by Tiffany W. Cole

Descriptive Summary

Repository: Special Collections, Carrier Library, James Madison University

Title: Affidavits for Ardent Spirits Collection, 1916-1917

Collection No.: SC# 2035

Creator: Unknown

Extent: One Hollinger box, .42 linear feet

Language: English

Abstract: 

The Affadavits for Ardent Spirits Collection, 1916-1917, consists of one Hollinger box of records documenting the inventory, sale, and transport of alcohol for medicinal purposes in Rockingham County.  The collection references carrier companies such as Southern Express, Adams Express, and Wells Fargo, and local pharmacies and druggists such as Elkton Bottling Co., Aldhizer & Son Druggists, and Fletcher's Pharmacy.

Administrative Information

Access Restrictions:

None.

Use Restrictions:

None.

Preferred Citation: 

Affidavits for Ardent Spirits Collection, 1916-1917, SC# 2035, Special Collections, Carrier Library, James Madison University, Harrisonburg, Va.

Acquisition Information:

The collection is on deposit from the Harrisonburg-Rockingham Historical Society.

Historical Note

On March 10, 1916, the General Assembly of Virginia passed Chapter 146, an act foreshadowing the Eighteenth Amendment of 1920.  In this act, the General Assembly defined ardent spirits and went on to prohibit their manufacture, sale, transportation for sale, and general distribution.  It further regulated the sale of alcohol for medicinal purposes by requiring those business who were allowed, by court license, to sell alcohol to file a monthly report, or inventory, of their alcohol on hand.  This act was not written to prevent manufacture for consumption; it was intended to stimulate Virginia's temperance movement.

Chapter 146 was strengthened on March 19, 1918 with the passage of Chapter 388, which required that common carriers of ardent spirits be required to keep their records of quantities transported in an alphabetical file box.  This was to include affidavits attesting to whom the alcohol was shipped, the amount and kind received, the date of delivery, and the cosignee.  Both of these acts were repealed, however, with the passage of Chapter 403, section 504 (March 20, 1920), which required that the clerk of the circuit court of each county keep these affidavits in an alphabetically arranged book; therefore relieving the transportation companies of the duty.

Scope and Content

The Affadivts for Ardent Spirits Collection, 1916-1917, consists of one Hollinger box of records arranged in two series: Affadavits and General Documents.

Series I, Affadavits, 1916-1917, documents to whom the alcohol was shipped, the amount and kind received, the date of delivery, and the cosignee.  Most affadavits are from the carrier companies Southern Express, Adams Express, and Wells Fargo.  They are alphabetically arranged by county locale and further organized chronoglically.  Due to their smaller size (4" x 6"), they are filed vertically and separated by tabs in lieu of folders.  Oversize affidavits are foldered separately.

Series II, General Documents, 1916-1917, consist of a single folder of monthly alcohol inventories from pharmacies and druggists such as Elkton Lithia Bottling Co., Aldhizer & Sons Druggists, and Fletcher's Pharmacy.

Arrangement

The collection is arranged in two series:

I. Affidavits, 1916-1917

II. General Documents, 1916-1917

Bibliography

Acts and Joint Resolutions of the General Assembly of the State of Virginia, Sessions of 1916, 1918, 1920.  Richmond:  Davis Bottom, Superintendent of Public Printing, 1916, 1918, 1920, respectively.  LAW:  Laws, Statutes, Codes.

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