Broom Brigade Battles "Demon Alcohol"

The Woman’s Christian Temperance Union led the battle against “Demon Alcohol” from the 1880s into the 20th Century.  The WCTU even used occasions such as Ashland’s summer Chautauqua to bring its message about the dangers of alcohol to family and society.  The Chautauqua was a national traveling program of lectures, seminars and entertainment, and Ashland had been selected in 1893 as the location in Southern Oregon.
An unusual aspect of the temperance movement’s fight was the creation of the Broom Brigade.  A drill manual—written by Joseph H. Barnett—showed how young people should use the discipline of physical activity to ward off the evils of alcohol and tobacco.  The girls drilled with brooms and the instructions directed them to shout a loud “BANG” when given the order to fire.
Dressed in high-necked, bustled, two-colored dresses, the women marched in support of absolute temperance.  One picture of Jacksonville’s Broom Brigade and Fan Drill shows eight women, four standing and four kneeling, brooms supported like rifles and pointed directly at the photographer.  Their eyes are unflinching and ready for battle. 
Today’s episode of As It Was was written by Dennis M. Powers, the program producer is Raymond Scully.  I’m Shirley Patton.  As It Was is a co-production of JPR and the Southern Oregon Historical Society.  To share stories or to learn more about the series, visit asitwas – dot.org.
Sources: Barnett, Joseph H., Barnett’s Broome Brigade Tactics and Fan Drill, 5th Edition, Chicago: David C. Cook, 1890;  Richardson, Paul A., “From Trails to Rails, Jackson County, 1880-1900,” p. 50-51, in Land in Common, Southern Oregon Historical Society, 1993.