163 9th Ave
Granite Falls, MN 56241, USA

Andrew John Volstead House

The Andrew John Volstead House is the historic house in Granite Falls, Minnesota, of ten-term United States Congressman Andrew Volstead (1860–1947). It is now managed as a museum and the organizational headquarters of the Granite Falls Historical Society. Volstead became nationally synonymous with Prohibition in 1919 when, as chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, he was obliged to author the Volstead Act, enabling enforcement of the recently ratified Eighteenth Amendment. Volstead was a moderate progressive who coauthored the Capper–Volstead Act in 1922, which legalized agricultural cooperatives.

The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974 for having national significance in the areas of agriculture, politics/government, and social history. Two years later the house was declared a National Historical Landmark.

The 1878 home is a wood-frame structure with a large two-story stairwell tower that was added on by Volstead shortly after he purchased the property in 1894. During Volstead's time, the first floor had a large screened porch; this has now been replaced by an open porch. The interior is adorned with oak woodwork and stained glass. Volstead moved to a new home in Granite Falls in 1930. The first Volstead House remained privately owned until 1974, when it was listed on the National Register and converted into a historic house museum. Five years later it was donated to the city.

National Register of Historic Places - Andrew John Volstead House

Statement of Significance:

"For most Americans [Andrew] Volstead," says his biographer Ari Hoogenboom, "personified prohibition." 1 As chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, he drafted the 1919 National Prohibition Enforcement Act, better known as the Volstead Act, which proved to be the chief vehicle for enforcing the newly ratified 18th amendment. Rather extensive in scope, the act forbade the manufacture of any beverage with an alcohol content of more than .5 percent; divided enforcement between the Federal and State Governments so as not to set aside more stringent State laws; contained a rather drastic search and seizure clause; and provided for the use of injunctions and padlocking against individuals and businesses violating the law. At the same time, however, certain provisions—like those providing for the manufacture of industrial alcohol, use of alcoholic beverages in religious observances, prescription by doctors for reasons of health, and home manufacture of light wines and cider—led to abuses that made enforcement almost impossible. Matters were made even more difficult, says historian Andrew Sinclair, "due to administrative stupidity, political graft, the federal structure of the United States, [and] an “antiquated legal system."2 in terms of national significance, though, ‘the Volstead Act's "loopholes" were as important as its enforcement provisions, for it was the combination of the two that gave the unique 14-year Prohibition Era its distinctive characteristics.

Before turning his attention to prohibition, Volstead had earned a reputation as a moderate progressive supporting measures like railroad regulation, the extension of workmen's compensation laws, the woman suffrage amendment, and a Federal antilynching law. In 1922 he helped author the Capper-Volstead Act, sometimes called the "Magna Carta of cooperative marketing."3 This law was highly significant, says Volstead biographer Ari Hogeboom, because it "enabled farmers to organize marketing and bargaining cooperatives and exempted them from homesteader and energetically guarded the interests of western Minnesota wheat farmers," opposing proposals like reciprocity for Canadian wheat.5 Moderately progressive, he supported measures like railroad regulation, the extension of workmen's compensation laws, the woman suffrage amendment, and a Federal antilynching law. In 1913 Volstead he came rank Inn; Republican on the House Judiciary Committee and soon exhibited intense partisanship in his opposition to much of the domestic legislation proposed by Woodrow Wilson. Volstead believed that the Underwood Tariff discriminated against the farmer, that the Federal Reserve Act benefited large city banks, and that the Clayten Act had legalized holding companies and exempted labor from practically every Federal law.

After Republicans won control of Congress in 1918, Volstead became chairman of the House Judiciary Committee. Shortly before he assumed this post in 1919, the 1.8th amendment was ratified by the States, and it became the duty of Volstead and his committee to draft a prohibition enforcement act. Working alone, Volstead drafted a bill patterned in part after one advocated by the Anti-Saloon League but less drastic and designed, says historian Andrew Sinclair, "to secure as much enforcement as the country could endure, [but] not total enforcement" that might cause "a public revulsion against national prohibition."^ Rather extensive in scope, Volstead"1 s bill forbade the manufacture of any beverage with an alcohol content of more than .5 percent; divided enforcement between the Federal and State Governments so is not to set aside more stringent State laws; contained a rather drastic search and seizure clause; and provided for the use of injunctions and padlocking against individuals and businesses violating the law. One of the most controversial revisions was the section keeping the wartime prohibition law; in effect. Thin paragraph caused Woodrow Wilson to veto the bill, says historian Paul L. Murphy, because "it merged enforcement based on war powers with that based on the Constitutional amendment."? Congress, however, easily mustered the two-thirds vote necessary to override.

Despite its scope, the Volstead Act contained several fatal flaws. In terms of national significance, though, these "loopholes" were as important as the enforcement provisions, for it was the combination of the two that grave the unique 14-year Prohibition Era its distinctive characteristics.

Provisions like those providing for manufacture of industrial alcohol, use of alcoholic beverages in religious observances, prescription by doctors for reasons of health, and home manufacture of light wines and cider led to abuses which made enforcement almost impossible. Matters were made even more difficult, says historian Andrew Sinclair, "due to administrative stupidity, political graft, the federal structure of the United States, [and] an antiquated legal system."" By 1933 these weaknesses and a new climate of public opinion had led to repeal of the 18th amendment,

Because of his agricultural constituency, Volstead in 1922 helped author the Capper-Volstead Act which, according to Theodore Saloutos and John D. Hicks, "legalized cooperative marketing associations and defined the terms under which producers engaged in interstate commerce could organize."9 Despite his role in getting this important legislation passed, Volstead was defeated for reelection in 1922 largely because of low farm prices and strong opposition from wets and the newly organized Farmer-Labor Party.

After leaving office, Volstead was deluged with offers to write and lecture on prohibition, but he turned these down as unethical. In 1924 he became legal advisor for the Northwest Prohibition Enforcement District headquartered in St. Paul, Minn., and served in this capacity until 19-31. He then returned to Granite Falls, where on January 20, he suffered a coronary occlusion and died at age 86.

Andrew John Volstead House, 163 Ninth Ave Granite Falls, Yellow Medicine County, MN

Home of the man who "personified prohibition." Volstead served in the House of Representatives (1903-23) where as chairman of the House Judiciary Committee he drafted the 1919 National Prohibition Enforcement Act, better known as the "Volstead Act."