Dave Smith > wrote:

> FWIW, when I was a teen the drinking age in Ontario was 21, but it was
> 18 in NY so we used to go "over the river" regularly, even though we
> were under 18. There were several bars in downtown Niagara Falls NY
> where we could drink without being asked for proof of age. The year
> that I was to turn 21 the drinking age in Ontario dropped to 18. There
> were a lot of bars in Niagara Falls that went out of business.

When I was a teen in New Jersey the drinking age was 21 there, but 18
in New York. Same as you, just on the southern border.
There is a lake called Greenwood Lake that straddles the border
between NY and NJ. The whole northern shore of that lake was
lined with bars and clubs. When the drinking age in NJ went down
to 18 those bars and clubs all folded up. Of course, now the age
is the same in both states.

Bill Ranck
Blacksburg, Va.