In 1922, the Westport Hotel at the corner of Main Street and the Post Road was raided for violating prohibition laws. Learn more from Westport Museum for History & Culture
In 1926, a servant of local industrialist and teetotaler ET Bedford was arrested for making bathtub gin on the estate. Learn more from Westport Museum for History & Culture
Before it was the Penguin, it was the Miramar. It was a speakeasy during Prohibition. There were white tablecloths and a crystal chandelier, and George Raft and James Cagney were frequent guests. Continue reading from 06880
Westporters began the twentieth century filled with pride in their past and optimism about their future...Westporters wanted to start the new century with a clean slate. Among the reforms launched in the new century was a revival of the Puritan perception of alcohol as a vice. Although the dialogue on prohibition did not reach a national crescendo until the World War I period, there were early signs indicating just how important this issue would become in Westport. For example, on May 20, 1900, the Westporter-Herald reported on the Women's Christian Temperance Union's discussion of some "alarming statements" made by a New York doctor, Dr. M. Stewart. The doctor, an expert on heredity, had stated that drinking was becoming more widespread and that the largest increase was occurring among women. This habit, he said, was a "symptom of degeneracy." Talk like this undoubtedly was what led people in Westport to hold a temperance rally. Continue reading from Klein, 149-150
One of the major issues confronting every town in America in this period was prohibition. After much discussion, in September 1917, the controversial topic was put to the test in Westport. By a solid vote of 355 to 256, the voters rejected prohibition. Nonetheless, nationally the Eighteenth Amendment was ratified on January 29, 1919. Despite the law - and perhaps because of it - parties galore were held in Westport. The artist, Robert Lambdin, was quoted in a local newspaper saying that, as a result of prohibition, there was more drinking in Westport than ever before. It was no secret that prohibition challenged people and produced a lot of bootlegging.
One place that never became dry, according to some accounts, was the Penguin Hotel on Hillspoint Road, which was then known as the Miramar nightclub and was reportedly a famous speakeasy in the 1920s. Chroniclers of the time described it as "attracting affluent people from the larger metropolitan area. "It had a marine motif - it was shaped like a boat, with life preservers, portholes, and other boating decor, white tablecloths, and a crystal chandelier in the upstairs dining room. Hollywood stars such as George Raft and James Cagney were said to have frequented it. It later served as an apartment building, until it was eventually torn down and replaced by a condominium development. Continue reading from Klein, 174
E. T. Bedford erected his estate on Beachside Avenue at the turn of the twentieth century, his extensive grounds including a race track. Bedford would become a major benefactor of the Town of Westport, financing school buildings, a fire station and the YMCA building during the first part of the twentieth century. While Beachside Avenue had become an exclusive residential community by 1920, a more modest cottage resort community was constructed overlooking Long Island Sound at Compo Beach. A bathing pavilion was erected there in 1919, and in 1927 an expansive beach compound was completed with dining and dance halls, bath houses and lifeguard facilities. Soon a yacht basin was dredged. A similar compound of bungalows soon emerged in the Compo/Owenoke area. The Miramar, a luxurious 1920s speakeasy, was erected on Hillspoint Road in 1919, but no longer stands. This is also the era that saw Westport become one of the premier artists’ communities in the United States. The Westport Country Playhouse, for instance, has been active since 1930. Continue reading from Westport Historic District Commission Handbook, 2-5
WESTPORT BOOTLEGGER CHARGED WITH MAKING HARTFORD SHIPMENTS: Whiskey, Gin and Wine Delivered to Dealers Throughout State by Jacob Levy (1920, Nov 19). The Hartford Courant (1887-1922). (Proquest)
Big Bootleg Plant Seized On Estate of E.T. Bedford: Owner Discharges Employee Held as Operator at Westport, Conn (1926, Dec 16). New York Herald Tribune (1926-1962). (Proquest)
