Virginia Anti-Saloon League Collection
SC 203

Summary Information

Repository
McConnell Library Archives and Special Collections
Title
Virginia Anti-Saloon League Collection
ID
SC 203
Date [bulk]
Bulk, 1927-1937
Date [inclusive]
1842-1937
Extent
2.5 Linear feet
Location
Located in locked compact shelving, level 1.
Language
English
Abstract
In addition to his duties as President of Radford University, John Preston McConnell was an avowed prohibitionist and served as President of the Virginia Anti-Saloon League from 1922-1930. After resigning his post as President of the Virginia Anti-Saloon League he continued as a member of its Executive Committee. McConnell served as a strong financial and moral supporter of the movement until his resignation from the office of President at Radford due to failing health. This collection contains correspondence between McConnell and various Prohibition leaders, politicians, civic and religious leaders, educators, and average citizens as well as newspaper articles, pamphlets, and other publications relating to Prohibition and the activities of the Virginia Anti-Saloon League.

Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], Virginia Anti-Saloon League Collection, McConnell Library, Radford University, Radford, VA.

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Scope and Contents

John Preston McConnell, first president of Radford University, was a staunch supporter of the prohibition of alcohol. In addition to his tenure as president at Radford, he also served as president of the Virginia Anti-Saloon League, a group dedicated to the cause of Prohibition in Virginia, from 1922-1930. During his presidency McConnell corresponded with a number of Prohibition leaders and advocates; he also collected numerous books, articles, and other writings related to the cause of Prohibition. After resigning from the position of president, McConnell continued to be active in the League by donating moral and financial support, stopping only when his health no longer permitted him to continue.

The Virginia Anti-Saloon League Collection contains numerous letters of correspondence between John Preston McConnell and Virginia Anti-Saloon League leaders, Prohibition leaders, civic and religious leaders, educators, and average citizens, all at local, state, and national levels. These letters reflect on McConnell’s sentiments towards the prohibition of alcohol and help shape a better understanding of the activities of the Virginia Anti-Saloon League. These letters were written in the years during and following his role as president of the League and span from 1922-1937.

In addition to correspondence, the collection also contains a number of books, monographs, articles, and other publications printed by the Virginia Anti-Saloon League, the Woman’s Christian Temperance Movement, and various other groups and individuals around the United States. The books and monographs span from 1835 to 1931 and discuss topics relating to alcohol consumption and the movement towards alcohol prohibition. The collection contains pamphlets, songs, and articles published by prohibitionists that document the temperance movement and encourage sobriety and the illegalization of alcohol. Additionally, the collection includes various other ephemera relating to the Virginia Anti-Saloon League, the Woman’s Christian Temperance Movement, and Prohibition in general.

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Arrangement Note

Contains personal correspondence of John Preston McConnell with leaders of the Virginia Anti-Saloon League, national and regional prohibition leaders, government officials, Democratic Party officials, citizens, and ministers throughout the Commonwealth. Contains publications of the Virginia Anti-Saloon League, the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union of Virginia and other regional and national prohibition groups, as well as newspaper clippings, books, and ephemera.

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Administrative Information

Publication Information

McConnell Library Archives and Special Collections

McConnell Library
PO Box 6881
Radford, Virginia
540-831-5692
archives@radford.edu

Restrictions to Access

An appointment for research is required. The collection is open for research. No interlibrary loan.

Accruals Note

Additional accruals are not expected.

Processing Note

Originally part of the John Preston McConnell Official Papers. Moved to Special Collections and processed by Gene Hyde and Adrian Whicker, 2012.

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Collection Inventory

Box 1: Correspondence 1922-1933 1922-1933  (Bulk, 1927-1933)   Contains personal correspondence of John Preston McConnell with leaders of the Virginia Anti-Saloon League, national and regional prohibition leaders, government officials, Democratic Party officials, citizens, and ministers throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia from 1922-1933.

Folder 1: Virginia Anti-Saloon League Correspondence-1922-1927 1922-1927  (Bulk, 1927)   0.05 Linear feet

Folder 2: Virginia Anti-Saloon League Correspondence- 1928 1928 

Folder 3: Virginia Anti-Saloon League Correspondence-1929 1929   Contains personal correspondence of John Preston McConnell with leaders of the Virginia Anti-Saloon League, national and regional prohibition leaders, government officials, Democratic Party officials, citizens, and ministers throughout the Commonwealth for 1929.

Folder 4: Virginia Anti-Saloon League Correspondence-1930 1930 

Folder 5: Virginia Anti-Saloon League Correspondence- 1931 1931 

Folder 6: Virginia Anti-Saloon League Correspondence-1932 1932 

Folder 7: Virginia Anti-Saloon League Correspondence-1933 1933 

Box 2: Correspondence 1934-1937 and other materials 1910-1937  (Bulk, 1934-1937)   Contains personal correspondence of John Preston McConnell with leaders of the Virginia Anti-Saloon League, national and regional prohibition leaders, government officials, Democratic Party officials, citizens, and ministers throughout the Commonwealth. Contains publications of the Virginia Anti-Saloon League, the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union of Virginia and other regional and national prohibition groups, as well as newspaper clippings, and ephemera from the period 1910-1937.

Folder 1: Virginia Anti-Saloon League Correspondence- 1934 1934 

Folder 2: Virginia Anti-Saloon League Correspondence-1935 1935 

Folder 3: Virginia Anti-Saloon League Correspondence-1936 1936 

Folder 4: Virginia Anti-Saloon League Correspondence-1937 1937 

Folder 5: Virginia Anti-Saloon League Publications 1922-1933  (Bulk, 1928-1930)

Folder 6: Virginia Anti-Saloon League Publications 1927-1935 

Folder 7: Virginia Anti-Saloon League Ephemera 1914-1928  (Bulk, 1928)

Folder 8: Women's Christian Temperence Union Correspondence-1929-1937 1929-1937 

Box 3: Pamphlets and a Songbook 

Folder 1: The philosophy of temperance: an address before the Temperance Society of the University of Vermont, October 18, 1842 by Rev. Zena Bliss 1842 

Folder 2: The battle cry: a new collection of temperance and prohibition songs by H.S. Taylor and Dr. J.B. Herbert 1887 

Folder 3: Life of Charles A. Gunder: saved by the blood from a drunkard's hell 1909 

Folder 4: Can the water be made fine? an essay on Southern politics: primaries, Prohibition, labor, the negro question and remedy by William Henry Gravely 1921 

Folder 5: Temperance Hand-Book of Virginia, 1910, published by the Anti-Saloon League of Virginia 

Books and monographs 1835-1931  (Bulk, 1909-1931)   8.0 Linear feet

Permanent temperance documents of the American Temperance Society 1835 

The beautiful life of Frances E. Willard by Anna A. Gordon 1898 

Reminiscences of Neal Dow: an autobiography (shelved with Rare Book Collection) 1898 

The law relating to intoxicating liquors by Howard C. Joyce 1910 

Frances Willard: her life and work by Ray Strachey (shelved in Rare Book Collection) 1913 

Prohibition: modification of the Volstead Law by Lamar T. Beman 1924 

The evolution of Prohibition in the United States of America by Ernest H. Cherrington 1920 

Anti-Saloon League yearbooks: 1909-13, 1915. 1917, 1920, 1922-26, 1929-31 1929 

Book: Andrew Trayton: A Novel of Modern Life, by Albert O. Boschen. 1928. Description: A pro-Prohibition novel, set among Virginia moonshiners. 1930 

When at state goes dry: a brief study in law enforcement, by Frederick O. Blue, State Tax Commissioner of West Virginia. 1916