Prohibition & Kentucky On Display at the Museum of Whiskey History.

“Lips that touch liquor shall not touch ours,” reads the sign in front of 10 stern-faced women. One can almost feel the disapproval of these soldiers of sobriety.

The sign is part of the newly opened “Prohibition and Kentucky” exhibit at the Oscar Getz Museum of Whiskey History in Bardstown, KY. On loan from Louisville’s Frazier Museum, the exhibit brings the Jazz Age to life and shows how millions of otherwise law-abiding Americans chose to violate the national alcohol ban to quench the country’s thirst for illegal booze.

With two full-sized bars, an event-ready Speakeasy with lighted stage, and flapper dresses around every corner, “Prohibition and Kentucky” stands ready for a party. In 1920, you needed a doctor’s prescription or a Speakeasy password to get your lips on some liquor. Today, both the great stories, and the spirits, are much easier to come by.

Trace the rise of the temperance movement, organized crime and the repeal of the 18th Amendment in 1933 as you tour through the museum, home to a 5,000-piece permanent collection relating to the American whiskey industry that spans pre-Colonial days to post-Prohibition years. The free-admission museum is located within the circa 1826 Spalding Hall, once a Civil War hospital for both North and South.

Collection highlights include exhibits on Presidents George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, an authentic moonshine still captured in the hills of Kentucky, antique bottles and jugs, medicinal whiskey bottles, advertising art, novelty whiskey containers and more. See a circa 1898 Hayner combination-lock bar bottle, an 1840 E.G. Booze Bottle and life-sized murals from 1940s-era liquor stores.

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A 600-piece decanter and bottle collection that dates from the 1930s to the present shows off designs both stunning and quirky (and replicas of many of these are available in the gift shop), along with Prohibition-era “prescriptions” and a display about hatchet-swinging temperance warrior Carry Nation.

It is the perfect backdrop to give context to an exhibit narrating the story of America’s so-called “Noble Experiment.” As the Bourbon Capital of the World, Bardstown is a fitting location to share such a story. Learn more about those tight-lipped ladies of the temperance movement and other fun facts, then visit the distilleries nearby: Barton 1792 and Willett Distillery and Heaven Hill, Maker’s Mark, Jim Beam and Four Roses – all on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail®.

Get immersed in the fun of “Prohibition and Kentucky” and book an overnight in the jail cell at The Jailer’s Inn Bed and Breakfast Inn, formerly the Old Nelson County Jail property. Encompassing the “Old Jail,” constructed in 1819, and the “New Jail,” built in 1874, the inn gives guests a taste of the fate that might have befallen those rounded-up in raids during the Prohibition years.

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Enter the jail cell guestroom with its solid steel door, exposed brick walls (what else?!) and two original bunk beds and shower. A full breakfast is included, which moves outdoors, to the inmate’s former exercise area, now a beautiful private flower-filled courtyard, during the summer.

Plan Your Travels

The Oscar Getz Museum of Whiskey History is located at Spalding Hall, 114 North Fifth Street,
Bardstown, KY. Guided tours are available. Visit the website for more details.

For information about traveling to Bardstown, KY, the Bourbon Capital of the World, and touring and tasting at its bourbon distilleries, visit www.visitbardstown.com.

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PHOTOS

<banner>“Prohibition and Kentucky” exhibit opened mid-April in Bardstown, KY, and will remain for two years.
Photo: Oscar Getz Museum of Whiskey History

<lips>Don’t even think about trying to kiss one of these ladies if you’ve been hitting the sauce.
Photo: Oscar Getz Museum of Whiskey History

<bar>Visit the barkeep at the “Prohibition and Kentucky” exhibit.
Photo: Oscar Getz Museum of Whiskey History

<axe>See the tribute to Carrie Nation, who struck fear in the hearts of men with her axe-swinging temperance tirades.
Photo: Oscar Getz Museum of Whiskey History

<collectionpieces>The Oscar Getz Museum of Whiskey History is a Whisky Magazine “Whiskey Visitor Attraction of the Year.”
Photo: Visit Bardstown