Why the Name?

Back in the “roaring twenties”
during the days of prohibition from
January 17, 1920 to December 5, 1933, speakeasies became known to
some as “Blind Tigers.”

The Rise of the Blind Tigers

Prohibition went into effect on January 17, 1920.
Many thousands of what were once legal saloons, catering only to men, were shut down. People wanting to drink as well as those wanting to “cash-in” on that market, had do get creative. Licensed druggists supplied alcohol for “medicinal” purposes. Clergymen offered up the potent spirits for “religious” reasons. And illegal sellers, known as “bootleggers,” began popping up all across the country.
Private, unlicensed and, therefore, undercover barrooms, became another option when looking for some “giggle water.”
These establishments became nicknamed “speakeasies,” because to gain entry, a patron had to speak the “password” so as not to be overheard by a “Bull” or law enforcement.
From fancy clubs to dingy backrooms, these gin joints also became known as “Blind Tigers” and “Blind Pigs.”

Jazz music, and the dances it inspired, was already popular by the time speakeasies hit the scene. Women, once segregated from the men, were no longer tethered to the traditional values of the previous decade and embraced the party mood of the era. Just a decade after Americans fought the hardships and heartaches of war, the “Roaring Twenties” was born. Bobs and Flappers, the Charleston and Silent Films, Ford’s Model T and Barnstorming Pilots, Organized Crime and Bootleggers, and of course, Bathtub Gin, were just a few of the things that set the stage for what was known as “The Prohibition Era.”
And, for the right price or for a swig of the best moonshine, those in charge of enforcing Prohibition might just look the other way …

But Not Everyone Could Keep a Secret.

The Blind Tiger: The Worst-Kept Secret of the Era!