Lingo from the Prohibition era
Among many other legacies, Prohibition left a colorful imprint on the American language. Some coinages from the temperance era still in use today include:
Blind tiger (also Blind pig) – noun: an establishment engaged in the illegal sale of intoxicating beverages. Originating in the 19th century, the term described establishments that circumvented local bans on the sale of liquor by charging customers to see a sideshow curiosity, such as an unusual animal, and offered a complimentary drink with each ticket.
Bootlegger – noun: a smuggler of alcoholic beverages. During the run-up to Prohibition, when many states passed short-lived laws against alcohol, bootleggers satisfied illicit thirsts by selling sips of whiskey from flasks hidden in their high boots.
Scofflaw – noun: a person who flouts the law. The word was the winning submission in a 1923 contest in which readers of a Boston newspaper were asked to provide a name for “a lawless drinker of illegally made or illegally obtained liquor.” More than 20,000 people participated in the contest and two of them came up with scofflaw.
Skid Row – noun: a disreputable part of town. Originally “skid road,” the term specifically referred to a section of Seattle where loggers used to skid or drag timber to the harbor. During prohibition the neighborhood became a center of the underground liquor trade.
Speakeasy – noun: an illegal saloon. According to one common story, the word was first used in 1888 in McKeesport, PA, where the proprietor of an unlicensed bar urged patrons to “speak easy, boys” so as to avoid unwelcome attention. Certainly “speak easy” is what customers of countless Prohibition-era watering holes learned to do when ordering cocktails.
Teetotaler – noun: a person who refuses to drink any and all forms of alcohol, derived from the temperance movement’s endorsement of “total with a capital T,” or T-total, abstinence. Has nothing to do with the mild brewed beverage associated with crumpets.
Ÿ USA WEEKEND contributing editor Ken Burns’ newest film. “Prohibition,” premieres October 2-4 at 8 p.m. on PBS. Check local listings.