Hopkins, a Dartmouth graduate from the Class of 1901 became the 11th President of the college in 1916, following his election to office by the Board of Trustees. During his administration, he not only saw both World Wars but, more importantly for this presentation, was the head of all matters pertaining to the ban on alcohol due to  Prohibition (1920-1933). Though far from being an absolutist, he was a supporter of temperance and initially hoped for Prohibition to curb drinking and succeed in moderating abuse. Once the 18th Amendment took effect in 1920, however, Hopkins quickly realized that Dartmouth's culture of drinking was not going to vanish with the stroke of a law. 

One of his first steps was to reach outwards of the college. Hopkins began building relationships with those who held power in the policing and enforcement process. This included precinct commissioners, the Internal Revenue Service, local police chiefs, and even the governor of Vermont. His correspondence from these years is full of such exchanges and also letters to other friends in positions of authority, asking for practical help in managing student drinking.

In one letter to a friend he calls “Joe,” Hopkins floated the idea of hiring off-duty Boston policemen to patrol Hanover at night, noting that both he and the Student Council believed “some such men” would be useful on the streets. In another exchange with the commissioners, he promised to reimburse any expenses they incurred in supporting enforcement around campus. He made clear that “the College has no willingness nor intention of undertaking to protect its men when they come into conflict with the civil law.”

Beyond official channels, informal patterns of cooperation also began to form. Hopkins supplied authorities with lists of student names, passed along information about suspected violators, and fielded reports from law enforcement about Dartmouth men caught drinking on trains or mistaken for bootleggers. The first two years of presidential correspondence are filled almost entirely with these negotiations—letters that reveal Hopkins’s determination to keep Dartmouth aligned with civil law, even if it meant enlisting outside forces to control his own students.