The term Bourbon originated during Reconstruction and was used by the Radicals to label their Democratic opponents as anit-progressive and ultra-conservative. The term has been adopted generally to describe the period following the overthrow of Radical Reconstruction. Hailed as the definitive study of the subject when it appeared in 1951, Bourbon Democracy in Alabama analyzes and describes the state government of Alabama during the Bourbon period as it operated under the Democratic and Conservative party.
