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3 “More Money than Since or Before”: How John Labatt’s Brewery Prospered during the Canada Temperance Act, 1878–89

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Brewed in the North
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Judge Macdonald: “Did you find the manufacture of malt liquors decrease?” John Labatt: “No, I made more money during the Scott Act time [the periodof the Canada Temperance Act, 1878–89] than I ever did since or before.“~ Royal Commission on the Liquor Traffic, Minutes of Evidence1On 8May 1878, the Canadian federal government of Alexander Mackenzie at-tempted to restrict the production and consumption of alcohol by passing theCanada Temperance Act. Known popularly as the Scott Act for its sponsor,Richard William Scott, leader of the government in the Senate, it gave municipaland county governments the legal authority to go “dry” if a majority of local in-habitants voted in favour of prohibiting the retailing of “intoxicating liquors.”Supporters of the Act hoped that the law would put brewers of the nation out ofbusiness. While the Act remained law until 1946, when it was successfully chal-lenged and deemed unconstitutional by the Judicial Committee of the PrivyCouncil, it was only widely embraced during the period 1878to 1889. The ScottAct represented an unprecedented external shock to those, like John Labatt, whomade a living from liquor trafficking. How did John Labatt manage to not onlysurvive but also prosper during a period of local-option prohibition? “More Money than Since or Before”How John Labatt’s Brewery Prospered during the Canada Temperance Act, 1878–893
© McGill-Queen's University Press

Judge Macdonald: “Did you find the manufacture of malt liquors decrease?” John Labatt: “No, I made more money during the Scott Act time [the periodof the Canada Temperance Act, 1878–89] than I ever did since or before.“~ Royal Commission on the Liquor Traffic, Minutes of Evidence1On 8May 1878, the Canadian federal government of Alexander Mackenzie at-tempted to restrict the production and consumption of alcohol by passing theCanada Temperance Act. Known popularly as the Scott Act for its sponsor,Richard William Scott, leader of the government in the Senate, it gave municipaland county governments the legal authority to go “dry” if a majority of local in-habitants voted in favour of prohibiting the retailing of “intoxicating liquors.”Supporters of the Act hoped that the law would put brewers of the nation out ofbusiness. While the Act remained law until 1946, when it was successfully chal-lenged and deemed unconstitutional by the Judicial Committee of the PrivyCouncil, it was only widely embraced during the period 1878to 1889. The ScottAct represented an unprecedented external shock to those, like John Labatt, whomade a living from liquor trafficking. How did John Labatt manage to not onlysurvive but also prosper during a period of local-option prohibition? “More Money than Since or Before”How John Labatt’s Brewery Prospered during the Canada Temperance Act, 1878–893
© McGill-Queen's University Press

Chapters in this book

  1. Front Matter i
  2. Contents v
  3. Tables and Figures vii
  4. Acknowledgments xi
  5. Introduction 3
  6. Family Firm to Managerial Enterprise
  7. Out of the Blue: The Birth of John Labatt’s Brewery, 1847–55 27
  8. Steaming into the Age of Rail and Pale Ale, 1855–77 53
  9. “More Money than Since or Before”: How John Labatt’s Brewery Prospered during the Canada Temperance Act, 1878–89 74
  10. John Labatt Blows In and Out of the Windy City: Entrepreneurship and the Legacy of a Failure, 1889–1913 92
  11. “No Frolic about This Contest”: At War with Labatt, 1914–18 114
  12. State Regulation and Expansion
  13. “Something Very Unforeseen”: How a Bootlegging Manager-Entrepreneur Saved Labatt from Prohibition, 1921–28 139
  14. “A Still Wetter Oasis”: Kidnapping, Public Drinking, and the Corporate Quest for Legitimacy, 1929–39 156
  15. “To Ensure the Continued Life of the Industry”: The Public Relations Campaign of Labatt and Its Allies during the Second World War 187
  16. Fast Following into the “Big Three”: Labatt and the Emergence of a National Brewing Oligopoly, 1945–62 210
  17. Multinationals and Globalization
  18. Le Défi américain, 1962–67 241
  19. The Quest for Popular Brands, 1959–82 261
  20. Less Beer, More Wine, and Other “Sexy” Things: Labatt’s Diversification Drive, 1967–90 289
  21. Into the Blue: The Takeover of John Labatt Limited, 1990–95 311
  22. Conclusion 345
  23. Notes 355
  24. Bibliography 409
  25. Index 439
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https://doi.org/10.1515/9780773559653-006

Chapters in this book

  1. Front Matter i
  2. Contents v
  3. Tables and Figures vii
  4. Acknowledgments xi
  5. Introduction 3
  6. Family Firm to Managerial Enterprise
  7. Out of the Blue: The Birth of John Labatt’s Brewery, 1847–55 27
  8. Steaming into the Age of Rail and Pale Ale, 1855–77 53
  9. “More Money than Since or Before”: How John Labatt’s Brewery Prospered during the Canada Temperance Act, 1878–89 74
  10. John Labatt Blows In and Out of the Windy City: Entrepreneurship and the Legacy of a Failure, 1889–1913 92
  11. “No Frolic about This Contest”: At War with Labatt, 1914–18 114
  12. State Regulation and Expansion
  13. “Something Very Unforeseen”: How a Bootlegging Manager-Entrepreneur Saved Labatt from Prohibition, 1921–28 139
  14. “A Still Wetter Oasis”: Kidnapping, Public Drinking, and the Corporate Quest for Legitimacy, 1929–39 156
  15. “To Ensure the Continued Life of the Industry”: The Public Relations Campaign of Labatt and Its Allies during the Second World War 187
  16. Fast Following into the “Big Three”: Labatt and the Emergence of a National Brewing Oligopoly, 1945–62 210
  17. Multinationals and Globalization
  18. Le Défi américain, 1962–67 241
  19. The Quest for Popular Brands, 1959–82 261
  20. Less Beer, More Wine, and Other “Sexy” Things: Labatt’s Diversification Drive, 1967–90 289
  21. Into the Blue: The Takeover of John Labatt Limited, 1990–95 311
  22. Conclusion 345
  23. Notes 355
  24. Bibliography 409
  25. Index 439
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