Public Watch Dogs

August 16, 1923, Appleton Post-Crescent

I found this curious item while perusing newspapers and began to think, why would this be an issue?  Well, it readily became apparent when I realized it was the height of Prohibition and what would become known as the Roaring Twenties.  Couple this with a newfound freedom in fashion, motion pictures, and literature and it spelled trouble with a capital T in River City...er, Menasha.  Saloons that couldn't make it due to the outlaw of alcohol quickly became other businesses- pool halls, and dance joints and you can be sure as your Aunt Nellie's knickers that the local church groups would get energized enough to influence their friends on local city councils to do a thing about it.  Hence, the public moral watchdogs.  The newspapers of the 20's are rife with stories and mentions of having formal dances in the "traditional way."  None of that flapper stuff that Hollywood was promoting.  And Menasha wasn't alone.  The local papers delighted in long recitations of public decency laws for Oshkosh and Grand Chute/Appleton.  Here are some other local crackdowns on vice or its potential.

July 18, 1923, Appleton Post-Crescent

December 22, 1923, Appleton Post-Crescent