Temperance movement in Australia

Content sourced from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

The temperance movement in Australia has aimed to reduce alcohol use. It began in the mid-1830s with ideas of moderation rather than total abstinence. Over time, groups such as the Independent Order of Rechabites (from the 1870s) and the Band of Hope promoted temperance, and Sydney even published the Australian Home Companion and Band of Hope Journal from 1856 to 1861. In the 1880s many hotels were built or converted into coffee palaces, places where alcohol was not served.

In the mid-1880s, the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU), a stronger abstinence group from the United States, established a branch in Australia. The first president of the Australasian WCTU was Jessie Ackermann, who visited Australia several times. The movement did not achieve nationwide prohibition, but it did push for earlier closing of hotel bars during World War I.

During the war, hotels and pubs began closing at 6 pm in several states. South Australia started in 1916, followed by New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania. New Zealand also introduced early closing in 1917. Western Australia closed at 9 pm, while Queensland kept late hours until 1923, when 8 pm closing was introduced. Canberra banned alcohol at first, but it was legal again after a 1928 plebiscite. A 1930s poll in Victoria showed support for a ban, but 6 pm closing proved difficult to enforce and led to the “six o’clock swill,” with people drinking heavily after work.

From the 1930s, many early closing times were relaxed, and the last state to lift strict controls was South Australia in 1967. Melbourne still has some “dry areas,” small districts where liquor licenses are very restricted, leaving few pubs and other licensed venues.

Today, organizations like the Independent Order of Rechabites and the WCTU continue to promote temperance, mainly by opposing longer hotel opening hours and excessive licensing, and by educating the public about the health and social effects of alcohol. Newer groups, such as the Foundation for Alcohol Research & Education (founded in 2001), work on campaigns like banning alcohol advertising at sports events. The temperance movement remains in Australia, though its influence is much smaller than in the past.