[6] For decades, Monmouth was a dry town that banned the sale of alcoholic beverages in supermarkets, restaurants and bars.

Monmouth's status as the last dry town in Oregon was ended by a popular vote in the November 2002 election.

Originally an elder of the Christian Church of Cameron (Monmouth, Illinois), Davidson was a devout advocate of prohibition.

[8] In February 1859, Davidson and other trustees efforts to prohibit the importation, exportation, sale, and consumption of alcohol in Monmouth became a reality.

Although opponents raised religious, moral, economic, and quality-of-life arguments similar to those preached during the nineteenth century, they also brought two new arguments to center stage: the historic nature of Monmouth's prohibition and the uniqueness that local prohibition brought to the town.

Although die-hard supporters of prohibition continued to fight the inevitable, there were signs that it was starting to become more and more detrimental to the social and economic aspects of the community.

Some claim that prohibition had reduced property values, others that it restricted development of the business sector in town.

Opponents of repeal brought forth many arguments for staying dry, including initiating one rumor that the land donated so long ago for the site of the university would revert to the heirs of the donors if the ordinance was repealed, resulting in a huge cost to the state to repurchase it.

[8] After failing by a nearly 5 to 1 margin in the early 1970s, repeal was passed by the voters in November 2002, and Monmouth ended its long tenure as the last dry town on the west coast.

[10] According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 2.24 square miles (5.80 km2), all of it land.