The Canada Temperance Act was an Act of the Parliament of Canada in 1878, which provided for an option for municipalities to opt-in by plebiscite to a prohibitionary scheme. It was often known as the Scott Act, on account of its sponsor Sir Richard William Scott.
The Act was based on similar legislation known as the Dunkin Act (the Canada Temperance Act of 1864, named after Christopher Dunkin), passed in 1864 by the Province of Canada, which gave the power to communities to enact prohibition.
The Act was subject to several of the first constitutional challenges, starting with Russell v. The Queen (1882).
The Act was later amended in 1927, and subsequently challenged again in Ontario v. Canada Temperance Federation (1946).
References
Canada Temperance Act Wikipedia(Text) CC BY-SA