1930s Wpa Anti-drunk Driving Poster

This week we bring you a poster from the 1930s that imparts some obvious wisdom with style. During the depression the Works Progress Administration (WPA) gave precious employment to people in many fields, including artists. They produced some 2000 posters, some of them instructive in nature.

This dramatic anti-drunk driving poster, created by Portland, Oregon artist Robert Lachenmann in 1937, is a good example. It comes from a time when drunk driving was common and even fashionable.

People today will have a hard time comprehending how different the DUI landscape was back then. Some states gave licenses to anyone who applied, for a nominal fee — in some states you could order one by mail! In such a lax atmosphere, little wonder that so many people thought nothing of driving while drunk.

This poster reminds us that the danger was well known.