There’s always been a tradition of raising a glass (or two, or three, or …) of holiday cheer on Christmas, yet that wasn’t always easy during the era of Prohibition, which kicked in during January of 1920 and stayed in effect until December 1933.

Looking back on the habits of Cape Codders during that time, not everybody on the peninsula was happy about it. The following poem from North Truro was published in the Jan. 2, 1923 edition of The Chatham Monitor:

“The following Christmas card will be appreciated by many: "I will state with your permission That the fact of prohibition Doesn't help my disposition To rejoice on Christmas Day; For within my hearts a yearning For the good old days returning, When we kept the home fires burning In the good old fashioned way; But I wish you Merry Christmas just the same.”

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Read more about this and other Cape Cod Christmas history notes in the Dec. 21 edition of The Cape Codder.

Learn more about the Prohibition era and Cape Cod Run Rumming in Don's Open University of Wellfleet class, "Cape Cod Contraband," during January and February. Sign up here.