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**Neal S. Dow**
"Napoleon of Temperance", "Father of Prohibition" March 20,1804- October 2, 1897 Temperance Movement

Neal Dow was a prohibitionist from Portland, Maine. He was raised there and lived there his whole life, coming from a highly moral Quaker family. This upbringing let him realize the loss of productivity in society as a whole from liquor, and he became a prominent figure in the temperance movement. He served as mayor of Portland in 1851, which is when he was launched into national fame for "The Maine Law". Maine's legislature had attempted to pass prohibition laws before, but they had never been effective at all, and Dow was determined to pass something more solid. When Dow became mayor, he pushed for prohibition, and essentially single-handedly got it passed, including meeting with the governor of Maine to gain his approval. "The Maine Law" prohibited alcohol in Maine, and remained in place until it was repealed in 1856 after the "Portland Rum Riots" in 1855, during which Dow ordered the state militia to fire into a mob of people who accused Dow of storing alcohol in city hall, which he was, but only for medical purposes, which was lawful. However, this event harmed Dow's image, and he never regained the same political power and he once had. Linked to temperance, Dow was also an abolitionist as a result of West Indian slavery in the rum trade. Dow's vocal involvement in the Temperance movement, and his adamancy behind the "Maine Law" led him to be known as the "Napoleon of Temperance" and the "Father of Prohibition". Dow was successful in orchestrating the first successful large scale prohibition of liquor in Maine, but it was short-lived success, and also helped gain publicity for the temperance movement. Although it would take some decades, the federal government would eventually piggyback off of the "Maine Law", and federal aid would have helped greatly with the temperance movement at the time had they passed additional legislation prohibiting liquor.

References
 * Susan B. Anthony- Anthony was a co-founder of the first Women's Temperance Movement. She shared Dow's beliefs that alcohol prevented the full potential of society from being reached. She witnessed Quaker preachers succumb to alcohol, which eventually turned her away from organized religion and towards the temperance movement.
 * Elizabeth Cady Stanton- Another co-founder of the first Women's Temperance Movement, she also was a prominent temperance advocate. Stanton's beliefs in the matter were so outspoken that she believed drunkenness was grounds for divorce. Although she, like Anthony, would focus mainly on women's rights, she was an early influence in the temperance movement.

Works Cited

"Bio of Neal Dow." //Online Biographies//. Web. 04 Oct. 2011. . Dow, Neal S. //The Reminiscences of Neal Dow Recollections of Eighty Years.// Portland, Me.: Evening Express Pub., 1898. Print.