Changes

In this way, the WCTU can be seen as part of a larger effort to have women recognized as equal political actors in a country where they were not granted the right to vote or control many aspects of their lives, including controlling their own property or the legal fates of their children. Concurrent with the WCTU, many women also joined women’s suffrage organizations, which often clearly identified the same arguments about bringing morality to society, particularly the rough and tumbled world of politics.

[[File: Prohibition_agents_destroying_barrels_of_alcohol_(United_States,_prohibition_era)_(1).jpg|thumbnail|left| Prohibition agents destroying barrels of alcohol]]

The Progressive Era, which overlapped with the growth of the WCTU and the construction of temperance fountains, was a period of upheaval in the United States that in some ways mirrors the reform movements of the 1830s. Once again, there was a great surge in the belief in the perfectibility of human society. However, one difference was the equally firm belief in the government's role in implementing this perfect society. While the WCTU and the temperance fountains relied on appeals to individuals' morality, the Progressive Era attempted to bring about societal change through the enforcement powers of government.