The dreary date was 01-Sep-1862.

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ORN Series I, Volume 7, p.584

Navy Department, July 17, 1862
GENERAL ORDER

The attention of officers and others in the naval service is called to the following section of an act of Congress, approved July 14, 1862, viz:

"Section 4. And be it further enacted, That from and after this first day of September, eighteen hundred and sixty-two, the spirit ration in the Navy of the United States shall forever cease, and thereafter no distilled spirituous liquors shall be admitted on board vessels of war, except as medical stores, and upon the order and under the control of the medical officers of such vessels, and to be used only for medical purposes. From and after the said first day of September next, there shall be allowed and paid to each person in the Navy now entitled to the spirit ration, five cents per day in commutation and lieu thereof, which shall be in addition to their present pay."

The provisions of this section will be rigidly enforced on board all vessels of the United States Navy from and after the 1st day of September, 1862, and all officers and other persons in the naval service are hereby directed to make due report of all violations thereof coming to their knowledge.

Gideon Welles,
Secretary of Navy.

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Note that officers' wine messes continued until Josephus Daniels issued his "bone-dry" General Order #99 (01-Jul-1914.)