2020 marked the 100th anniversary of Prohibition â a wild time when New England became a hotbed of illegal liquor By Emily Sweeney Globe Staff,Updated December 30, 2020, 3:04 p.m. Email to a Friend Gangsters Ed Diamond, Jack Diamond, Fatty Walsh and Charles "Lucky" Luciano appear in this file photo that was taken in New York in the 1930s. During Prohibition criminals collaborated with gangs from other regions to establish shipping systems and set prices for bootlegged alcohol.Associated Press/file As 2020 thankfully comes to a close, itâs hard to imagine packing more news into a single year. But buried beneath the dreaded COVID headlines was an anniversary that in any other year might have prompted some raucous reflection. Thatâs because 2020 marked the 100th anniversary of Prohibition, a wild time in history when New England suddenly became a hotbed for illegal liquor.