Good morning.
Whitewater’s Friday looks to be mostly sunny, with a high of seventy-four, and a chance of showers in the early evening.
More today on Janesville’s liquor laws of the 1950s, from the Wisconsin Historical Society. On this day in 1954,
Janesville Residents Debate Liquor Laws
On this date Janesville residents participated in a public forum at the Janesville Public Library. The topic of discussion was whether Janesville should allow women to be served at the bar, in taverns. Residents also debated whether dancing should be allowed in taverns. Speaking to lift the bans was Erv Lacey, field director of the Tavern League of Wisconsin. Lacey noted that the law against women being served was discriminatory and contended that Janesville taverns lose business because of the laws. The Rev. Frank Dauner, pastor of United Brethren Church, said the strict prohibitions should remain intact because alcohol threatened public health, safety and peaceful domestic life. [Source: Janesville Gazette]
These many years later, this debate’s ongoing, but with efforts at additional restrictions (for men and women equally) advocated to restore state control long since ceded.