This Week in Texas Methodist History March 29

Advocate Excoriates Governor and Attorney General Over Beer Sales, April 1942

As the United States geared up to fight World War II, rural Texas boomed with military construction.  Texas was an ideal site for all sorts of installations because it had wide open spaces suitable for training in almost every area the military required.   The first major construction project in World War II Texas was Camp Bowie in Brown County.  Construction began in September 1940.  It started with just 2000 acres, but by October 1942 had expanded to 120,000 acres.  The installation was an important part of the war effort where it trained both armored and artillery units.  It also eventually housed about 3,000 prisoners of war.

There was a problem---Brown County was dry, and the Post Exchange (PX) wished to sell 3.2 beer.   Governor Coke Stevenson asked Attorney General Gerald Mann for an opinion on the subject.   Could the Army sell beer in a dry county? A. G. Mann issued a decision that it could—federal laws trumped state law in this matter. 

The editor the Southwestern Advocate went ballistic in his criticism of the two officials.  The editor claimed that Germany’s forcing itself upon smaller states and the U.S. Government’s forcing 3.2 beer sales in dry counties was based on the same principle.  “Germany forcing its way of life on small states and the army invading dry territory and forcing alcohol sales are one in the same thing in principle.”    Quite an exaggeration Mr. Editor! Although in April 1942 full extent of Nazi atrocities in conquered “small states” was not fully known, Americans did know about the viciousness of the Nazis in Poland and other devastated nations.   Using such hyperbole---comparing beer sales in a PX to Nazi atrocity—actually harmed the temperance cause. 

Particularly galling was the fact that both the Governor and A. G. had strong Methodist connections.  Coke Stevenson (1888-1975) was named for Bishop Coke.  At one McMahan’s Chapel Day celebration at which he was the featured speaker, he claimed to be related to Henry Stephenson, pioneer Texas Methodist preacher. Yes the spelling of the name was different, but the kinship claim was plausible.

Attorney General Mann (1907-1990) was famous as SMU’s first super star foot ball player (1925-1927),   when he was named All Conference twice.  He was also a religious man and pastored a Congregational church while working his way through Harvard Law School. 

The conflict over beer sales in dry counties continued---and was exacerbated at some posts when German P. O. W. s  had beer but the locals did not.