Ontario Temperance Act

Ontario Temperance Act

Ontario Temperance Act was a law passed in Ontario in 1916 to prohibit the sale of alcohol, a period known as Prohibition. This meant the province remained dry in legal terms, but smugglers continued to import alcohol into the province. The cause was the demand of religious elements led by women. Specifically they were pietistic Protestants, especially Methodists, seeking to eliminate what they considered the evil effects of liquor, especially violence, family abuse, and political corruption. Barron (1980) shows that the Ontario movement was modelled on the prohibition movement in the United States.

Contents

History

Prior the Act there was two failed attempts made to control or eliminate sale of alcohol in the province. The plebiscite 1894 failed due to federal disapproval of provincial control on importation of alcohol. Another attempt in 1902 failed due to low voter turnout.

Tennyson (1963) reports that that Ontario had had "local option" since 1876; one after another many municipalities went "dry" by 1914. Supporters of the World War called for temperance to reduce waste, inefficiency and distractions. Premier William Hearst emphasized the need in 1914, despite complaints from wet elements of his own Conservative Party.

Following the passage of act, a follow-up referendum showed approval of the ban in 1919. In 1921 another referendum showed a slight slip in support, but the province was bone dry and was attempting again to ban importation (and failed due to federal disapproval). By 1924 the provincial government began to press for lighter restriction and call for sale by the province. The 1924 referendum showed even support for and against the Act. Premier Ferguson began the steps to repeal the act by ending regular referendums and pressure on the Legislature to decide on the future of the Act.

Repeal and Government as alcohol retailer

The Act was finally repealed in 1927, but some communities maintained a ban on the sale of liquor under local option until the 1970s and one part of The Junction neighbourhood of Toronto remained "dry" until 2000, largely due to the efforts of socialist, and former Ontario CCF Member of Provincial Parliament for High Park, William Temple. The act was replaced by the Liquor Licence Act (Ontario) in March 1927.[1]

The Act had failed due to the inability of the provincial government to effectively control consumption and importation of alcohol into the province. The lack of federal support also lead the Act's demise.

See also

References

  1. ^ http://www.surveillance-and-society.org/Articles4(1)/alcohol.pdf

Further reading

  • Barron, F. L. "The American origins of the Temperance Movement in Ontario," Canadian Review of American Studies, 1980, p131-150
  • Tennyson, Brian. "Sir Wiliam Hearst and the Ontario Temperance Act," Ontario History, Dec 1963, Vol. 55 Issue 4, pp 233-245



Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Canada Temperance Act — The Canada Temperance Act was an Act of the Parliament of Canada in 1878, which provided for an option for municipalities to opt in by plebiscite to a prohibitionary scheme. It was often known as the Scott Act, on account of its sponsor Sir… …   Wikipedia

  • Ontario (Attorney General) v. Canada Temperance Federation — (1946) was a famous Canadian constitutional decision of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council and was among the first cases to examine the peace, order, and good government (p.o.g.g.) power of the Constitution Act, 1867. This was the first… …   Wikipedia

  • Ontario prohibition referendum, 1919 — An Ontario prohibition referendum was held on October 20, 1919 (in conjunction with the 15th provincial election), on the repeal of the prohibition of alcoholic beverages. Prohibition had been passed by the provincial government in 1916 under the …   Wikipedia

  • Ontario prohibition referendum, 1924 — An Ontario prohibition referendum was held on October 23, 1924 on the repeal of the Ontario Temperance Act. The referendum was brought about by a clause in the Act, which permitted the possible repeal of prohibition by a majority vote. Contents 1 …   Wikipedia

  • Ontario — This article is about the Canadian province. For other uses, see Ontario (disambiguation). Ontario …   Wikipedia

  • Ontario general election, 1926 — The Ontario general election, 1926 was the 17th general election held in the Province of Ontario, Canada. It was held on December 1, 1926, to elect the 112 Members of the 17th Legislative Assembly of Ontario ( MLAs ). The Ontario Conservative… …   Wikipedia

  • Ontario Provincial Police — O.P.P. redirects here. For the Naughty by Nature song, see O.P.P. (song). Ontario Provincial Police Police provinciale de l Ontario Abbreviation OPP …   Wikipedia

  • Temperance Movements — • Covers the history in Europe, the United States, and Canada Catholic Encyclopedia. Kevin Knight. 2006. Temperance Movements     Temperance Movements      …   Catholic encyclopedia

  • Ontario prohibition referendum, 1921 — An Ontario prohibition referendum was held on April 18, 1921 concerning a ban on the importation of alcoholic beverages into Ontario. Contents 1 Referendum question 2 History 3 Results 4 See also …   Wikipedia

  • Ontario prohibition referendum, 1902 — An Ontario prohibition referendum was held on December 4, 1902, under the Liquor Act, on the legality of alcoholic beverages and the implementation of prohibition in the province. Though the referendum passed, a majority of half of the voters in… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”