11/3/2012:
North Dakota came into the Union in 1889 as a dry state, so it was not until the end of federal prohibition that alcohol was allowed. North Dakotans were evidently quite thirsty, for sales of alcoholic beverages skyrocketed. On this date in 1956, people were mulling over the news from Bernard Larson of the State Alcoholism Commission that in 1955 over forty-five million dollars was spent on alcohol in North Dakota.
Based on weight per gallon, over 37,000 tons were consumed – enough to float a battleship, said Larson. For example, the USS North Dakota, a battleship commissioned in 1910 with a displacement of a mere 20,000 tons, would leave a lot of booze to spare. Kind of makes a man thirsty thinking about it.
Dakota Datebook written by Jim Davis
Source:
The Ransom County Gazette November 1, 1956