"package store"

[Joanne M. Despres]

Our earliest evidence for the phase is an entry in the 1918
Addenda to the New International Dictionary (originally published in
1909), where it is labeled "cant, U.S."  Apparently, the word had
been around for some time before Prohibition.

Joanne M. Despres
Associate Editor
Merriam-Webster, Inc.
47 Federal St.
Springfield, MA  01102
E-mail:  jdespres at Merriam-Webster.com