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Sunday, January 16, 2022

On January 16, 1920, The Eighteenth Amendment was officially made into law, effectively outlawing the sale and consumption of alcohol in the United States. On December 5, 1933, the amendment was repealed. The time in-between produced a colorful period defined by outlaws, moonshiners and smugglers. Although Washington had been dry for four years, the international border with Canada become a hotbed of smuggling, as the passage from Vancouver Island to Washington was a favored route for rum runners. West Whidbey Island was a favorite dumping ground for the smugglers, from there the booze could be transferred to the east side of the island where a boat could then transport the contraband into Seattle and further. The escapades of these smuggling crews made nearly weekly headlines in the Anacortes American, sometimes being caught and sometimes "escaping in a shower of bullets."