The Reign of Rum

The Reign of Rum

New York Saloons

Jacob Riis discussed the large number of saloons where there were 111 places of worship and 4,065 saloons below Fourteenth Street. Patrons were interracial men and women. Young boys frequented the saloons, picking up beer for their elders even though laws prohibited selling beer to children. The saloons often were owned by local politicians and located in the tenement neighborhoods and even in the residents’ buildings. This saloon atmosphere eventually became part of Maggie’s life with Pete.

Jacob Riis

Riis, Jacob. How the Other Half Lives. 1890. New York: Dover Publications, Inc., 1971. 164-169. Print.

Dover Publications, Inc.

December 9, 2015

Gary Guy

1880s-1890