THE BUREAU OF PROHIBITION T-SHIRT

An American History T-Shirt Available in Black Cotton.

Before the mob had a name and moonshine had a label, there was the Bureau of Prohibition — the government’s iron-fisted attempt to keep America dry and its streets clean. What it created instead was an empire of bootleggers, backroom deals, and blood in the gutters. The Bureau of Prohibition T-Shirt pays tribute to the men and myths of that chaotic chapter in American history — the agents, gangsters, and speakeasy saints who defined the Roaring Twenties.

Founded in 1920 under the U.S. Treasury and later folded into the Justice Department, the Bureau’s mission was simple in theory and impossible in practice: eradicate alcohol from a country that loved to drink. Its agents — often underpaid and overmatched — became the frontline soldiers in a cultural war that fuelled corruption, glamour, and violence in equal measure. Outlaws like Al Capone and Dutch Schultz turned liquor into an industry, while the Bureau’s “dry” crusaders, nicknamed “Prohis,” found themselves knee-deep in a battle they could never truly win.

“Prohibition only drives drunkenness behind doors and into dark places, far from the sober influence of observation and public opinion.” — Mark Twain

The repeal of Prohibition in 1933 didn’t kill the legend — it only mythologized it. Today, the Bureau stands as a symbol of unintended consequences: the moment when law met rebellion and both sides came out dirty but immortal.

For fans of gangster lore, vintage Americana, and the noir age of moral hypocrisy, this tee embodies that era’s contradictions — where the good guys carried Tommy guns and the bad guys owned the night.

💬 FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQs)

Q1: What was the Bureau of Prohibition?
A1: The Bureau of Prohibition was a U.S. federal agency established to enforce the 18th Amendment, which banned the manufacture and sale of alcohol between 1920 and 1933.

Q2: Why is Prohibition such a fascinating period in history?
A2: It created an underground culture of defiance — from speakeasies and jazz clubs to organized crime syndicates — that shaped America’s social and criminal landscape for decades.

Q3: What happened to the Bureau after Prohibition ended?
A3: Following the repeal of the 18th Amendment in 1933, the Bureau was dissolved, its duties absorbed into other law enforcement agencies — but its legend lived on in literature, film, and folklore.