# Dry Counties? Wait, what century is this? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [April 23, 2005, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dry-counties-wait-what-century-is-this/300779 "2005-04-23T18:03:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![capybara](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/capybara/32/202_2.png) [@capybara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/capybara)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2005, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dry-counties-wait-what-century-is-this/300779/41 "2005-04-24T04:05:22Z")
Ok, ok, so now I know that Richmond is the iniquity capital of central Kentucky. Hooray. But still. Dry counties. The concept. This still stands. Really. ---
**Author:** ![brianjedi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3be4f8/32.png) [@brianjedi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brianjedi)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2005, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dry-counties-wait-what-century-is-this/300779/42 "2005-04-24T04:34:12Z")
> [@AugestWest](#): > > I’m pretty sure Oldham county is at least split now. There’s been mucho growth that direction and I’m almost positive you can buy booze in LaGrange. > > Hardin County is now wet (or at least moist – E-Town and Radcliff are both wet). > > Is the OP’er moving to Berea? Is this thread actually all about whether or not alcohol is available within 10 miles of _Richmond_??? Yeah, that map’s out of date, since Graves and Calloway counties are split now (Murray and Mayfield both allow by-the-drink, but not package.) And forget Richmond, it’s not THAT far to Lexington. Ah, the wonder that is Liquor Barn. It’s amazing, the variety of beer that can be purchased in Lexington. ---
**Author:** ![user\_hostile](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/user_hostile/32/474_2.png) [@user\_hostile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/user_hostile)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2005, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dry-counties-wait-what-century-is-this/300779/43 "2005-04-24T23:23:31Z")
> [@iamthewalrus(:3=](#): > > Wouldn’t that goal also be solved by laws that allowed liquor stores only? Then the residents wouldn’t be put out. There are three beer outlets in Johnson County. One store is just short of the Carter County line (Ever pay $8.00 for six pack of Coors?). Another one is located in or just outside Mountain City and apparently was grandfathered in when wet-era came in to being. The location of the other store escapes me. (I think Mountain City is actually a dry, whereas the county may wet. But as you will see, that doesn’t make a lot difference As to liquor stores? They would be under the guise of state’s ABC anyway. But I can assure you greed is alive and thriving in Johnson County. If they could bring it in they would do so at a heart beat–one county family is so powerful it stopped the straightening and lane expansion of a federal route (421), which would cut the drive time to Bristol, TN/VA from an hour to 30 minutes. In the meanwhile, they’ve been trying to buy up as much property by the current highway as possible they inform the congressional representative that it’s now okay to build. What’s stopping them and a few other Snidely Whiplashes? See the following statistics: Johnson County (last I remember) has something like 115 churches for 15, 000 people. Conservative, (mostly Baptist) churches with 115 different opinions when it comes to everything else except for the sale of alcohol. And the county board of commissioners has 16 people which makes it very difficult to get a majority vote on controversial items (down from 24 a few years back!-- even TN’s less then gifted legislature realized that votes tended to be more along family lines then party lines). Overall people in J.C. are in favor of growth as long as it doesn’t impact there lives all that much :rolleyes: (except for jobs–unemployment is pretty high in J.C.) They like the area because it’s not Boone; it’s still pretty and nice place to live in. To show you how sensitive J.C. is to outsiders coming in and changing things. TVA once suggested installing some enviro-friendly windmills along with an electrical storage facility. Sounds great doesn’t it? The Snidely Whiplashes sang praises about why it was good for the county, but as was expected, they had rigged the deal to maximize their benefit for themselves with literally nothing leftover for the county (say property taxes). It wasn’t really welcomed at all by most residents, but the battle as I recall was 50-50 with respect to it going through. Fortunately, NC played its hand by claiming that the windmills (located on a mountain ridge) were a source of visual pollution. Now mind you, the wind mills stood only 50–100 yards from the NC state line, so they SOL in terms of jurisdiction. On the other hand, they a “ridge” law to limit visual pollution after some ugly condo went up near Grandfather Mountain, NC, and rumor had it that they would go to the Supreme Court to kill this deal. TVA saw that this was a dead end and chose the alternative site further west so as to avoid presenting those pesky oral arguments. It hasn’t stopped–in the last few months another person who want’s to bring a business to J.C. want’s to open a feed lot for cattle. Of course, he didn’t mention early on that, his previous feedlot had polluted aquifers in NC and decided to declare bankruptcy to avoid the cost of clean up. Because TN’s laws are more lax, he figured he could avoid “govment inteference.” Fortunately, the Sierra Club is on him like a rabid dog and more than a few residents have made it known that there’s going to be hell to pay politically if this deal goes through. So it’s not just a matter of booze \*\*iamthewalrus(:3=., \*\* they like things the way they are. When an outsider tells them that it’s wrong or they’re behind the times, they, the original residents find it hypocritical. After all, they know well enough that shoving their opinion’s down someone’s throat would come across as being being closed minded (not to mentioned rude). So it’s also a question of who’s more open minded? ---
**Author:** ![mlerose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/43a26b/32.png) [@mlerose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mlerose)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2005, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dry-counties-wait-what-century-is-this/300779/44 "2005-04-24T23:49:03Z")
> [@Cherry2000](#): > > So now I live in CO where you can’t swing a dead cat without hitting a liquor store. 😃 Right, but you can only buy alcohol at liquor stores (except 3.2 beer&etc. at grocery stores), with the added issue of not being able to buy alcohol at all on Sundays. Moving here from California was a bit of a shock. Where I grew up, you could buy anything (beer/wine/liquor) at a grocery store, a 7-11 or other convenience store, and any day of the week/any time of the day. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2005, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dry-counties-wait-what-century-is-this/300779/45 "2005-04-25T15:06:52Z")
> [@capybara](#): > > [mild and mostly confused-- educate the west coast kid] > > So I’ve been looking into a temporary (1 year) relocation to a certain county in a certain state in that area that’s not quite midwest and not quite deep south. One known for its chicken, horseracing, and bourbon. Bourbon! And yet confusingly, I’ve just learned that most counties in this state are ‘dry’ (including my would-be county, which is apparently considered ‘moist’ since liquor is legal in one town). This whole thing is a concept I just had to do a little research on, being so far out of my experience. > > Now, being used to living places like Portland and Seattle, where beer is simply a neutral part of life and has no taint of sin (and spending much of my time abroad in places like Amsterdam, where prohibition of anything is not something that crosses one’s mind), I find this flabbergasting. I mean, how absolutely insane. I am to go to a nice Italian restaurant and drink ‘pop’ or ‘cocola’ or whatever nutty term is used locally? What am I? Nine? Did I accidentally miss my Louisville connection and now I’m in Riyadh? I mean, wow. > > Now, am I to understand that not only can I not _buy_ alcohol, but I’m not even supposed to _possess_ it in these counties? Like, I’m not to buy a half-rack in big city X and stick it in my car trunk for consumption in small town Y? Are these laws enforced, or does local law enforcement see it as like one of those 18th-century holdover laws like “No one may walk a duck on a leash on Broadway” or “Women are not permitted to wear trousers”? Should I brew my own, or set up a hooch still just for kicks? > > Perhaps it will just take me a couple of days to wrap my head around this one. I mean. . . [head asplodes] Every dry town or county I’ve ever been in says you can possess it but not purchase it in those areas. It’s freeking ridiculous. There’s always the bootlegger. They do a booming business in these areas. ---
**Author:** ![Duke\_of\_Rat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Duke\_of\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke_of_Rat)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2005, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dry-counties-wait-what-century-is-this/300779/46 "2005-04-25T15:19:59Z")
> [@capybara](#): > > MMmmmmmaybe. > The thing is, we’re accustomed to “going out” to a pub, as in walking two blocks to it on a nice day, not driving 30 miles to a strip club or something and careening home. Or, you know, buying a damn six-pack and watching a DVD, so the driving drunk in a wet county doesn’t really apply. I’m just lamenting the lack of ability to walk downtown to the pleasant nice brewpub with the Clash on the jukebox and the dartboards and chess set and Gardenburger. A life with no local pub is no life at all! I have a buddy in Louisville and from what he’s told me, he does have a friendly neighborhood pub, drinking is a big part of his social life. He grabbed a half gallon of Jim Beam and a case of beer to take on the river this weekend for some big pre-Derby bash (but the weather was crappy) and ended up going to a bar instead to watch the festivities on a big screen. ---
**Author:** ![Mtgman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5a626/32.png) [@Mtgman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mtgman)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2005, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dry-counties-wait-what-century-is-this/300779/47 "2005-04-25T15:39:59Z")
> [@racinchikki](#): > > It’s a twenty-minute drive to the liquor store from here. Because of this, when we run out of booze, we made a gigantic run and buy the gallons of liquor, so we don’t have to go as often. We end up looking like gigantic alcoholics and the cashier assumes we’re throwing a giant party. Incidentally by doing this we are technically breaking the law. " Possession of more than one quart of liquor or more than the equivalent of 24 12-oz containers of beer is prima facia evidence of possession with intent to sell in a dry area." [cite](http://www.texassafetynetwork.org/issues/wet_dry/faq/index.php) > > To whoever said that living in a dry county keeps the cost of living down: not in Texas, where dry is apparently the rule rather than the exception. Around here, the only thing living in a dry county will guarantee you is an inability to go out and get a drink. Ah Greenville. **Moxmaiden** and I lived in Commerce when we were going to school and I remember those liquor stores well. They set a bunch up along the highway in the middle of nowhere, just outside the Greenville limits. Going into Greenville you would find long lines of cars looking to turn off the highway into the liquor stores, especially on payday. Commerce, being a town with a permanent population of about 9K and a student population of about 9K always managed enough votes to stay “wet”. I wonder how… Enjoy, Steven ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2005, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dry-counties-wait-what-century-is-this/300779/48 "2005-04-25T15:40:29Z")
> [@Zoe](#): > > I’m really sorry to hear that. I had no idea that the New England coastal area had fallen on hard times. > > Did you by any chance see Charlie Rose last night? Looks like one of our rural West Tennesse girls may be up for her third Tony nomination. [/hijack] When I said this I was of course refering to the part of Tennessee where people marry their sisters, the KKK is the government, a “mansion” is a double-wide trailor, and all morality is borne of fundie self-righteousness. In other words, I was speaking out of my own bigotry and ignorance. So spank me. I’m sure that parts of Tennessee are are cosmopolitan and sophisticated as anywhere else in the country, and said parts may be dry. My gut reaction when hearing about a dry county (or town) is that religious morality has put a stranglehold on secular and commercial life. And this may not be the case at all. While Massachusetts is one of the more liberal and secular states in the union (past Puritanism aside), the Vineyard is, while still very liberal, also very religious. It was founded on religious seperatist ideas, in fact. But it’s funny that the most religious town is also one of the only wet ones. As a result, it is also the most ticky-tack, touristy, loud town there. Maybe other towns are dry because they don’t want to go down that road. ---
**Author:** ![CrazyCatLady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dfb087/32.png) [@CrazyCatLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrazyCatLady)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2005, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dry-counties-wait-what-century-is-this/300779/49 "2005-04-25T17:20:23Z")
> [@Duke of Rat](#): > > I have a buddy in Louisville and from what he’s told me, he does have a friendly neighborhood pub, drinking is a big part of his social life. He grabbed a half gallon of Jim Beam and a case of beer to take on the river this weekend for some big pre-Derby bash (but the weather was crappy) and ended up going to a bar instead to watch the festivities on a big screen. It must have been a _very_ pre-Derby bash, since Derby Day isn’t for another week and a half. I don’t think the city-wide festival leading up to the Derby starts till this weekend. And you have to keep in mind that Louisville and Berea are very different towns. Berea’s _much_ smaller, for one thing. (And dry–let’s not forget the whole reason this thread started.) Berea’s also really worked at cultivating a folksy, artsy-craftsy sort of look and feel, at least to the downtown area. Even if it weren’t dry, you’d likely be looking at “the bar in town” rather than “the neighborhood pub” and you’d still likely be looking at having to drive in, rather than walking. Also, **tdn** , I’m glad you recognize that ignorance and bigotry does indeed deserve a spanking. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2005, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dry-counties-wait-what-century-is-this/300779/50 "2005-04-25T17:39:47Z")
> [@CrazyCatLady](#): > > Also, **tdn** , I’m glad you recognize that ignorance and bigotry does indeed deserve a spanking. And yet, no one is volunteering to spank me. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![DoctorJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctorj/32/2904_2.png) [@DoctorJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DoctorJ)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2005, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dry-counties-wait-what-century-is-this/300779/51 "2005-04-25T17:45:21Z")
> [@](#): > > It must have been a very pre-Derby bash, since Derby Day isn’t for another week and a half. I don’t think the city-wide festival leading up to the Derby starts till this weekend. Probably Thunder Over Louisville. ---
**Author:** ![swampbear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/swampbear/32/467_2.png) [@swampbear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/swampbear)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2005, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dry-counties-wait-what-century-is-this/300779/52 "2005-04-25T18:11:38Z")
> [@AugestWest](#): > > Also, assuming that your “Location” listing is accurate, counties are much smaller in Kentucky. Kentucky has 120 counties, second only to Texas. Based on quick and dirty look at the almanac they average around 200 square miles. They were set up so that nobody was more than 10 miles or so from the county seat. Idaho’s counties seem to run around 1500 square miles. So, if you’re in a moist county it’s not like you’re going to be more than 10 minutes or so from the wet town. Georgia has 159 counties. Lots of wee small counties. I attempted to find a map that shows dry and wet counties in Georgia but haven’t been able to. I’d be interested to see how many are still dry being as I remember as a lad of 15 and sixteen having to drive 45 miles to the nearest place to buy beer, even though I lived in a town where it was legal to sell beer in a beer joint (I still love me a good beer joint!) but not liquor at all. ---
**Author:** ![Duke\_of\_Rat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Duke\_of\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke_of_Rat)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2005, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dry-counties-wait-what-century-is-this/300779/53 "2005-04-25T18:17:43Z")
Yeah, that was it, Thunder over Louisville. Evidently the thing is to anchor your boat in the river and watch fireworks and and airshow or something. I know they were pretty hacked that the weather turned sour, this was a pretty anticipated drinking event. Not that he needs much of an excuse to party, but he mentioned the Kentucky Derby. I think to them, Thunder Over Louisville is the start of the pre-Derby festivities ---
**Author:** ![NicePete](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ee7513/32.png) [@NicePete](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NicePete)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2005, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dry-counties-wait-what-century-is-this/300779/54 "2005-04-25T19:17:07Z")
> [@CrazyCatLady](#): > > It must have been a _very_ pre-Derby bash, since Derby Day isn’t for another week and a half. I don’t think the city-wide festival leading up to the Derby starts till this weekend. Thunder was on Saturday. It was about 40 degrees and rainy. First year in about 10 we haven’t gone. ---
**Author:** ![CrazyCatLady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dfb087/32.png) [@CrazyCatLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrazyCatLady)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2005, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dry-counties-wait-what-century-is-this/300779/55 "2005-04-25T19:22:26Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > And yet, no one is volunteering to spank me. ☹ Probably has something to do with the way your eyes roll up in your head and those…_noises_…you make. It’s no fun if you’re enjoying it, you know. ---
**Author:** ![MysteryFellow63427](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e4f/32.png) [@MysteryFellow63427](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MysteryFellow63427)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2005, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dry-counties-wait-what-century-is-this/300779/56 "2005-04-25T19:22:34Z")
Texas’ [wet/dry](http://www.texassafetynetwork.org/issues/wet_dry/map_list/index.php) system can be [weird](http://www.wilco.org/Wet%20dry/wetdry.htm) and [complicated](http://www.wilco.org/Wet%20dry/New%20Maps/Alcohol%20Elections%20and%20Rulings.htm). I equate dry areas with barbarism myself, but I suppose there could be benefits. I wonder if anyone’s done studies on the crime rates of wet counties vs dry counties. ---
**Author:** ![CrazyCatLady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dfb087/32.png) [@CrazyCatLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrazyCatLady)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2005, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dry-counties-wait-what-century-is-this/300779/57 "2005-04-25T20:18:22Z")
I don’t know how conclusive that sort of study would be, really. Around home at least, the more densely populated an area is, the more likely it is that the county or at least the town is wet. Since increased population density tends to coincide with higher crime rates, I would think that would really confound your results. And I always forget about Thunder. I don’t know how, but I always do. For some reason I never think of it as a pre-Derby thing, either. I guess I’m just odd. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2005, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dry-counties-wait-what-century-is-this/300779/58 "2005-04-25T21:56:17Z")
> [@capybara](#): > > Should I brew my own, or set up a hooch still just for kicks? Stock up before you arrive because it’ll be a couple weeks between mixing your mash and the first drips out of your still. Maybe another week if you want to age it. I’m sure you’ll be able to find a local who can teach you the fine points after you’ve lived there long enough that they are sure you aren’t a revenuer, say, maybe three generations. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Kilvert\_s\_Pagan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c37758/32.png) [@Kilvert\_s\_Pagan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kilvert_s_Pagan)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2005, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dry-counties-wait-what-century-is-this/300779/59 "2005-04-25T23:13:43Z")
> [@CrazyCatLady](#): > > It must have been a _very_ pre-Derby bash, since Derby Day isn’t for another week and a half. I don’t think the city-wide festival leading up to the Derby starts till this weekend. I’m guessing that they were attending Thunder Over Louisville, which really is considered some sort of Derby kick-off in spite of being two weeks early. You’re right… Louisville and Berea are different worlds. I expect Louisville hasn’t been dry since (national) Prohibition. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Lao](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/2bfe46/32.png) [@Dr.Lao](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Lao)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2005, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dry-counties-wait-what-century-is-this/300779/60 "2005-04-26T00:59:47Z")
> [@DoctorJ](#): > > Note that Christian County is wet. Note also that, contrary to the old joke, Bourbon County is also wet. (I think this happened in the last ten years, though.) According to the [Bourbon County Tourism Commission](http://www.parisky.com/funfacts.html), Bourbon County has never been dry. At least not since prohibition as best as they can figure. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dry-counties-wait-what-century-is-this/300779.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dry-counties-wait-what-century-is-this/300779.md?page=4)