Minnesota 13 Summary

The book I decided to do a review on is called ‘Wet’ Wild Prohibition Days-Minnesota 13. This book was written by Elaine Davis and has a copyright date of 2007. The book is about the days of prohibition that happened back in 1920-1933. The focus is on the high quality illegal whiskey that was being made in Stearns County Minnesota that became known as “Minnesota 13”. Minnesota 13 was a quality aged whiskey that was both strong and safe to drink. It was such a good whiskey that it became known nationwide and could be found in high class “speakeasies”(establishment that illegally sold alcohol) from Los Angeles to New York. Minnesota 13 was considered to be the “Dom Perignon” of moonshine and was in high demand across the Midwest and beyond. The book also describes the times of prohibition enforcement and how it affected families involved, both legally and financially.

This law made it illegal to manufacture, sell, barter, transport, import, export, deliver, furnish or possess intoxicating liquor except for sweet cider and vinegar. Prohibition started as far back as 1830’s and in 1846 Maine was the first state to have a dry law. In 1853 Minnesota passed the same law that was known as the “Maine law” but it was invalid. In the late 1800’s and into the early 1900’s there were dry laws in Kansas, North Dakota and Iowa. It was also illegal to sell to the Native Americans in the 19th century because the fur traders were getting them drunk, then buying their pelts from them for less than value. In 1920 the eighteenth amendment to the U.S. Constitution was passed that made alcohol illegal throughout the United States. There was to be no alcohol more than ½ of 1% and all liquor licenses were to be void. Little did the government know at the time, that this would be the most disobeyed law throughout the country and it also created the largest do-it-yourself home project in