During Prohibition, the Mississippi Gulf Coast became one of the most active rum-running corridors in the South. The geography was perfect: a shallow, island-studded sound with hundreds of bayous, inlets, and marshes where small boats could disappear. Liquor came in from ships anchored beyond the three-mile limit, off-loaded onto fast boats that ran it through the barrier islands to shore. Cat Island, Ship Island, and the Chandeleur chain served as transfer points. Local fishermen and shrimpers supplemented their income by running loads, and enforcement was thin — the coastline was too long and the hiding places too many. Biloxi's speakeasies operated with minimal interference. Mississippi had been legally dry since 1908, a full twelve years before the rest of the country, which meant the coast's smuggling infrastructure was mature by the time national Prohibition started. The state did not fully repeal prohibition until 1966 — thirty-three years after the 21st Amendment. Some counties remain dry today.
