Bootleggers Get Crafty: Modern Methods Used to Peddle Bootlegged Liquor

July 12, 1923, was a day of slick business dealings in Indianapolis. Two cunning bootleggers had caught wind of the best way to drum up new customers – using the city’s children as marketing tools. The Indianapolis Baby Peggy contest, a popular event at the time, was reaching its climax, and these enterprising racketeers saw an opportunity to capitalize on the city’s affection for its young residents. Hundreds of pictures of little girls were submitted to The Indianapolis Times, hoping to win the contest’s coveted prize. But these bootleggers didn’t stop at just snapping a photo – they used the contest as a ruse to peddle their illicit wares. By using the contest as a front, they were able to gain the trust of the city’s mothers, who were eager to submit their children’s pictures. This clever tactic allowed the bootleggers to get their product to the masses without arousing suspicion. The contest’s organizers, however, were onto them. With the help of three esteemed judges – Mrs. Judith Lowry of the Stuart Walker Company, Jean Marks of the Lyric theater, and Edward W. Hunter of the Advertising Club of Indianapolis – they were able to identify the culprits and put a stop to their scheme. The city breathed a collective sigh of relief as the bootleggers were brought to justice, their clever plan foiled by the determination of The Indianapolis Times and its partners. In a separate but related development, the Union Council of Carpenters elected William G. Grant as a member of its governing body.