National Prohibition (1920-1933)
The 18th Amendment banned the manufacture, sale, and transport of alcohol nationwide in 1920. Speakeasies and illegal distilling flourished for 13 years.
Prohibition proved unenforceable and was repealed in 1933.
The end of Prohibition created the state-level permit systems that still govern alcohol sales.
Texas's requirement that a venue hold a TABC licence descends directly from this post-Prohibition state-control framework.
