Source

Advertisement of an Honest Rumseller

Publication Year: circa 1850s

Advertisement of an Honest Rumseller, undated [Broadside, circa 1850s]
PHS Call number: 12-0818c 115A

Primary/Secondary
Primary
Source note

This broadside was created by a pro-temperance organization sometime in the 1850s. Broadsides have been produced ever since the printing press was invented, and they were very popular in the 19th century. Printed on one side of a piece of paper, and relatively cheap to produce, broadsides could be handed out or posted in public places to communicate political messages, announce upcoming events, advertise products, or promote works of literature, along with many other functions. 

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Reading questions

1.    What was the purpose of creating this broadside? Who do you think was the intended audience?

2.    What is the tone of the broadside?

3.    What is the overall message? Do you think this was an effective message at the time it was produced?

4.    According to the writers of the broadside, what was the one reason why “rumsellers” sell alcohol?

5.    In what ways does the broadside claim that alcohol use affects more than just the person consuming alcohol?

6.    What response do you think anti-temperance people would have had to seeing this broadside?

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Source Set
The Temperance Movement (1830s-1850s)
Source type
Broadside
History Topics
19th Century Social Reform
Temperance
Time Period
Slavery, Sectionalism, and Social Reform (1815-1861)