Editing Andrew Volstead

{{Short description|American politician (1860–1947)}}
{{use mdy dates|date=June 2016}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| honorific-prefix    = 
| name                = Andrew Volstead
| honorific-suffix    = 
| image               = AndrewVolstead.jpg
| alt                 = 
| state               = [[Minnesota]]
| district            = [[Minnesota's 7th congressional district|7th]]
| term_start          = March 4, 1903
| term_end            = March 3, 1923
| predecessor         = [[Frank Eddy]]
| successor           = [[Ole J. Kvale]]
| birth_name          = Andrew John Volstead
| birth_date          = October 31, 1859
| birth_place         = [[Kenyon, Minnesota|Kenyon]], [[Minnesota]], U.S.
| death_date          = {{death date and age|1947|1|20|1859|10|31}}
| death_place         = [[Granite Falls, Minnesota|Granite Falls]], [[Minnesota]], U.S.
| restingplace        = Granite Falls Cemetery
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| party               = [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]]
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'''Andrew John Volstead''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|v|ɒ|l|s|t|ɛ|d}}) (October 31, 1859 &ndash; January 20, 1947) was an American member of the [[United States House of Representatives]] from [[Minnesota]], 1903–1923, and a member of the [[United States Republican Party|Republican Party]]. His name is closely associated with the National Prohibition Act of 1919, usually called the [[Volstead Act]]. The act was the [[enabling legislation]] for the enforcement of [[Prohibition in the United States]] beginning in 1920.

==Early life==
Volstead was born in [[Kenyon, Minnesota|Kenyon]], [[Goodhue County, Minnesota|Goodhue County]], [[Minnesota]], to [[Norwegian Americans|Norwegian-American]] parents Jon Einertson Vraalstad (John Vrolstad), a distant relative of [[Queen Sonja of Norway]],{{Citation needed|date=November 2012}} and wife Dorothea Mathea Lillo. He was educated at [[St. Olaf College]], became a lawyer and served as mayor of [[Granite Falls, Minnesota]], from 1900 to 1902. According to his obituary in a 1947 edition of the ''[[Minneapolis Star]]'', he first practiced law in [[Grantsburg, Wisconsin]], before moving to Granite Falls in 1886.

==Congressional career==
While in Congress, he served as chairman of the [[House Judiciary Committee]] from 1919 to 1923. Although often considered the author of the Volstead Act, he collaborated with [[Wayne Wheeler]] of the [[Anti-Saloon League]], who conceived and largely drafted the bill. However, Volstead sponsored the bill and championed, promoted and facilitated its passage.<ref>{{cite web|title=The 18th Amendment |url=http://www.albany.edu/~wm731882/18th_amendment_final.html |publisher=University at Albany, SUNY |access-date=20 October 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141011233333/http://www.albany.edu/~wm731882/18th_amendment_final.html |archive-date=October 11, 2014 }}</ref> He also helped author the [[Capper–Volstead Act]], which enabled farmers to form locally owned cooperatives without fear of prosecution under the [[Sherman Antitrust Act]]. The law is still in effect.

Volstead was a member of the [[58th United States Congress|58th]], [[59th United States Congress|59th]], [[60th United States Congress|60th]], [[61st United States Congress|61st]], [[62nd United States Congress|62nd]], [[63rd United States Congress|63rd]], [[64th United States Congress|64th]], [[65th United States Congress|65th]], [[66th United States Congress|66th]], and [[67th United States Congress|67th congresses]]. He was defeated in his attempt to be elected to an 11th term in 1922. Shortly thereafter he was hired as legal adviser to the chief of the [[National Prohibition Enforcement Bureau]].

Upon [[Repeal of Prohibition in the United States|repeal of Prohibition]] in 1933, Volstead returned to Granite Falls, Minnesota, where he resumed the private practice of law.

He died in 1947. Volstead's [[Andrew John Volstead House|former home]], located at 163 Ninth Avenue, Granite Falls, Minnesota, is a [[National Historic Landmark]]. He is buried in the Granite Falls city cemetery.<ref>{{Bioguide|article=Volstead, Andrew John, (1860–1947)|url=http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=V000114}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Minnesota|Law|United States|Politics|Modern history}}
* [[List of covers of Time magazine (1920s)|List of covers of ''Time'' magazine (1920s)]] – March 29, 1926
* [[Bootleggers and Baptists]]

==Notes==
{{CongBio|V000114}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{commons category|Andrew John Volstead}}
*{{Internet Archive author |sname=Andrew John Volstead}}
*[http://www.lawzone.com/half-nor/volstead.htm "Norwegian American Hall of Fame"]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20080517145514/http://www.aghalloffame.com/hall/volstead.aspx "National Agriculture Hall of Fame"]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20160426205516/http://heroes.coop/archive/andrew-j-volstead/ "Cooperative Hall of Fame"]
*[http://libguides.mnhs.org/content.php?pid=476541&sid=3902767 "Minnesota Historic Society"]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20080403090702/http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl/detail.cfm?ResourceId=1448&ResourceType=Building "National Historic Landmarks"]

{{s-start}}
{{s-par|us-hs}}
{{succession box|
  before=[[Frank Eddy]]|
  title=U.S. [[United States Congressional Delegations from Minnesota|Representative]] from [[Minnesota's 7th congressional district]]|
  years=1903&ndash;1923|
  after=[[Ole J. Kvale]]}}
{{s-end}}
{{MNRepresentatives}}
{{US House Judiciary chairs}}
{{prohibition}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Volstead, Andrew}}
[[Category:1860 births]]
[[Category:1947 deaths]]
[[Category:American people of Norwegian descent]]
[[Category:American temperance activists]]
[[Category:American cooperative organizers]]
[[Category:Mayors of places in Minnesota]]
[[Category:Prohibition in the United States]]
[[Category:Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Minnesota]]
[[Category:St. Olaf College alumni]]
[[Category:People from Kenyon, Minnesota]]
[[Category:People from Granite Falls, Minnesota]]
[[Category:20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives]]