Video: 'Prohibition in the United States: National Ban of Alcohol'

(Tuesday, October 28, 1919, afternoon EST) — The U.S. Congress today passed the Volstead Act over President Woodrow Wilson’s veto, enforcing the constitutional amendment prohibiting the use of alcoholic beverages.

This rang in the era of bootleg liquor when people whispered passwords through speak-easy doors, flappers ruled the dance floor and mobsters like Al Capone made millions from a thirsty public.

The ban on booze lasted more than a decade until Congress repealed the law in 1933.