I have just started watching Hell on Wheels and it has piqued my interest in American history around that time. I am Canadian and do not know too much about American history besides the tidbits I read on here. The series takes place during 1866 and onward as it follows the trials and tribulations of setting up the Union Pacific Railroad.
The protagonist, and many other characters, are seen drinking bottles of whiskey at a time. I would like to know if we have any information on what the ABV% would be like during that time period. Was whiskey as strong then as it was today? Or were they not making it that strong?
I am aware the characters' large consumption of alcohol may be because it is a TV series, yet I am still interested on knowing what the typical bottle of whiskey would have contained in terms of alcohol.
Cheers!
First and foremost, I am not an actual historian. Just a lover of the history of alcohol. I will give my non-confirmed amateur account the best I can. I hope my answer conforms the the restrictions of this subreddit, and considering the lack of reply's I hope I catch some slack as an amateur whiskey historian!
I will point out that the whiskey portrayed in this show was given no attention to detail. In one scene you can see this image which shows a bottle of fictional Flint Lock Distilling Co. Whiskey. On the label it clearly says "Hand Made since 1881". Clearly an egregious error since the show is set many years before that date. The large consumption of alcohol you refer to was totally realistic.
The difference is that most corn whiskey (portrayed in the show) was going to be more than the 80 proof you see on the bottle in the show. Most corn whiskeys are ranging from 80 proof to 100 proof (diluted proof). A good corn whiskey will be around 160 proof when undiluted but can have a proof that is around 190 proof before diliution. The legal limit when selling in America is 190 proof. For reference, 100% alcohol is 200 proof.
Now, the drinking you see in the show is also very unrealistic in the sense that the actors would be getting served from bottles by bartenders/waitresses because alcohol was not commonly sold per bottle/served per bottle until 5-10 years until after the setting of the show. The first bottled and marketed whiskey was Old Forestor.
Prior to that, the bottles of whiskey you might see were serving bottles that would be filled from barrels and used continuously by bar staff. You would not see people walking around and/or just sitting in bars with a bottle of whiskey unless they were very wealthy. Most of the bottles of that era where hand blown which meant only wealthy people could afford products bottled in them.
But to answer the very root of your question. There is really no true concensus on the ABV in that era of alcohol. The alcohol that the railroad would be bringing in/having made on site would drastically vary in ABV depending on the distiller.
If I was to make an educated guess, you could expect 100-130 proof depending on the distiller.
