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1913: Bill W. failed most of his senior mid-year exams and had to drop out
of Burr and Burton. By April, it became evident that he would not graduate
and he would move to Boston, Massachusetts, to live with his mother in
Franklin Square House
[right, December 1914]
.
1918: Bill W. visited Lois Burnham
[left: in her wedding dress, 1918] at her home on 182 Clinton St., Brooklyn. He had planned to arrive by
Christmas, but several engagements with his small band* had
delayed him. He remembered the Burnhams as easygoing and natural from their
vacations on Lake Emerald, near East Dorset, Vermont. His idea of a house
was purely functional, nothing more.
He
had never even imagined homes with deliberately chosen and carefully
coordinated furnishings. Around Clinton Street, there was a constant buzz of
family chatter and excitement that he felt but didn’t fully recognize—a
suggestion of big events, of people coming and going, of young men arriving
in expensive cars to visit the Burnham girls. He was overwhelmed and struck
by the realization that this was Lois’s world, where she truly
belonged.
*Bill played fiddle for The Aeolians, who barnstormed Bennington
County, Vermont, performing at high school dances and other events.
1918: Frank Buchman [near right] and Rev. Samuel M. Shoemaker [far right, 1917] met in Beijing (then romanized as “Peking”), China. Shoemaker experienced a
spiritual conversion and became a devoted member of Buchman’s “First Century
Christian Fellowship.”
Sam Shoemaker
had arrived in Beijing from the United States in 1917. He had been sent to
China at the suggestion of G. Sherwood Eddy* to help establish a
branch of the YMCA and to teach as part of the Princeton-in-China program.
However, without much success, Sam had become upset and discouraged. He met
Frank Buchman, who introduced him to the Four Absolutes: honesty, purity,
unselfishness, and love. During this, their first conversation, Sam was
initially angered by a common response from Frank: “If you are not having
any success here maybe it’s that you haven’t anything to give them.” Sam
later wrote, “I saw this was a matter for my will rather than my intellect.
I asked myself if I was willing, and then I thought how ridiculous I was
ever to think of opposing my pigmy will to the will of God.” Years later,
Sam would trace the beginning of his ministry to that night with Buchman
when he decided to let go of self and allow God to guide his life.
*Eddy (1871–1963) was a leading American Protestant missionary,
administrator, educator, prolific writer, and tireless traveler. He
connected and funded networks of intellectuals around the globe and helped
missionaries better understand and even think like the people they
served.
1927: While on one of his occasional trips to investigate company stock
prices, Bill Wilson wrote to his wife, Lois, “There will be no booze during
1927.” She later reported, “Alas, this good resolution was
short-lived.”
1929: On a trip to Manchester, Vermont, Bill W. called Edwin “Ebby” T. in Albany,
New York, to join him for an all-night drinking spree—the only time they
ever drank together, as Ebby was quite clear about in his talks and
writings.
The next morning, they chartered a flight with Flyers, Inc. in Albany to be
the first flight to Manchester Equinox Airport (it wasn’t*)
[left: aerial view, 1992]. They wired their expected time of arrival to Mrs. [Anne Louise Simonds]
Orvis
[right, 1992], owner of the Equinox House (a hotel)
[left, 1929] and mayor of Manchester. She called the band and town officials to gather
at the airfield to greet the plane. It was going to be a gala day for
Manchester. The plane
[right: likely a Curtiss JN-4 biplane, affectionately known as the "Jenny,"
like this one]
flew in; the band played enthusiastically; the welcoming committee prepared;
and Bill and Ebby got off the plane and fell flat on their faces, dead
drunk. The pilot, Ted Burke, was also drunk. The next day, Bill wrote a
letter of apology to Mrs. Orvis’ son, Franklin†:
Dear Mr. Orvis,
Until I found that I
could not reach you on the phone I had been minded to call upon you and
apologize for the disgraceful happenings of yesterday.
I do not know what I said or did but it is painfully evident that I had
done you grievous wrong. I certainly merit nothing but your contempt and
feel that a situation has been created which cannot be lived down.
Though you perhaps prefer I do not call on you I would like you to know
how keenly I feel about the matter and if you can bring yourself to doing
so I shall appreciate it to no end if you will accept this my most sincere
apologies.
I do not know whether your
mother was present at the field or not--in any event I hope that she will
also accept this apology-
Sincerely,…
*W. C. Billings landed the first plane at Equinox Airport in June
1928, and the airport officially opened on 4 July 1928.
†Ironically, Franklin Orvis would die in 1951 at the age of 48
due to 25 years of “chronic alcoholism.”
1933: Rowland Hazard III
[left, undated] was drinking to the extent that he could not manage even simple daily
tasks. He sought help from Courtenay Baylor
[right, undated], a lay therapist associated with the Emmanuel Movement and the Jacoby
Club. These were the only groups, aside from Alcoholics Anonymous, in the
early 20th century that had notable success in helping alcoholics achieve
and maintain sobriety. Like A.A., these groups combined spirituality with
psychological support through a straightforward form of lay therapy. Baylor
encouraged Rowland to take seriously the advice he had received from Dr.
Carl Jung in 1926—to seek a spiritual experience. However, since Rowland was
too far from Boston to participate actively in either of Baylor’s groups, he
instead became involved with the Oxford Group and eventually got sober,
though it remains unclear whether he maintained it.
1936: Hank P. [far left] hired Ruth Hock [near left] as the secretary for his company, Honor Dealers. Shortly thereafter, Bill
W.
[right, late 1930s] began visiting Hank, whom he sponsored, and the Honor Dealers office became
the de facto headquarters for the small but growing group that would come to
be known as Alcoholics Anonymous. Ruth would increasingly focus on A.A.
matters rather than Honor Dealers matters; in 1938–39, she would type
multiple drafts of what would become the Big Book,
Alcoholics Anonymous. When Bill would move the headquarters to
30 Vesey Street
[below, far left, 1940±1] in New York City in February 1940, he would take Lois with him, and she
would become the first National Secretary of Alcoholics Anonymous.
1937: Earl Treat
[right], a struggling alcoholic from Chicago, Illinois, traveled to Cuyahoga
Falls, Ohio, to visit his father. He arrived in poor health, feeling
depressed and overwhelmed with fear. His father had heard about a new
organization in nearby Akron that was helping alcoholics recover, so he
took Earl to meet Dr. Bob S.
[left]. Earl joined the Akron group and stayed with them for several weeks
before returning to Chicago. Before Earl's departure, Dr. Bob guided him
through a moral inventory and asked if he wanted to have his character
defects removed. Earl later recalled,
>Without much thought, I said, “Yes, I would.” And then he asked me to
get down on my knees at the desk with him, and we both prayed aloud to
have these defects removed.
1939: James “Jimmy” (or “Jim”) B.
[right], author of “The Vicious Cycle” in the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th editions of
Alcoholics Anonymous and a former atheist, claimed—and is believed
by many—to have introduced the phrases “God as we understand Him” and
“Power greater than ourselves” shortly before the prepublication
manuscript was completed. Bill Wilson later wrote, “Those expressions, as
we so well know today, proved lifesavers for many an alcoholic.”
However, others believe that these phrases, found in “Bill’s Story,” the
Twelve Steps, and Alcoholics Anonymous Comes of Age, were more
likely Bill’s own creation. They suggest that his hints of attribution to
Jimmy were a mix of myth-making and an effort to deflect credit and
attention to others, rather than being historically accurate.
It is also possible that the idea originated with Rev. Samuel
Shoemaker*
[left, 1940]. In his 1957 book, The Experiment of Faith
[below right: cover], he discusses God in this way:
Religion concerns persons — God and
other human beings. A man cannot formulate a definition of his fiancee,
still less can he formulate a definition of his relation to her and
analyze what makes them care for each other, though the shine in his
eyes and the inarticulateness of what he says may be eloquent about what
he is feeling. Persons and personal relations do not lend themselves to
precise statement. We do not so understand them. A photograph can tell
us something about a person. But an enthusiastic friend or an ardent
lover gives up in the end and says, “You'll just have to meet her.” And
that is what we have to say about God.
*Or perhaps Shoemaker got the idea from A.A.
1939: [Late] The story section of the Big Book manuscript,
Alcoholics Anonymous, was completed.
As basic text was being written, it became clear that a story or case
history section was necessary. New York members of the nascent A.A.
fellowship believed that distant readers could relate to these narratives
in a way they could not with the basic text alone.
Members from Akron, Ohio, produced 18 stories, largely due to the efforts
of local member and journalist Jim S.
[left] . His story in the first edition is titled “Travel, Editor, Scholar” and
was retitled “The News Hawk” in the second and third editions. He
interviewed members from Akron and wrote most of their stories, except for
Dr. Bob S.’s. Two stories were contributed by members from Cleveland, and
one was from non-alcoholic Marie B., whose story, “An Alcoholic’s Wife,”
appears only in the first edition. Her husband, Walter B., had a story
titled “The Backslider,” which was also included only in the first
edition. The New York members contributed 10 stories, which were edited by
Bill W. and Hank P., despite the protests of several contributors.
1940: [Early] Alcoholics Anonymous meetings in Akron, Ohio, were relocated from the
home of Dr. Bob and Anne S. to King School due to overcrowding. Attendance
at the A.A. meetings on Wednesdays at the Smiths’ residence, located at
855 Ardmore Ave., had grown too large, with up to 70 people—plus Christmas
decor—crammed into their living room
[near right, as it is in late December today] and dining room [far right]. This move likely took place after only two gatherings at Bob and
Annes’s home. The King School, situated at 805 Memorial Pkwy., was
approximately 1.3 miles [2.1 km] away from the Smiths’ residence, by road.
1946: The AA-1 Group in St. Louis, Missouri, the first Black Alcoholics
Anonymous group in the U.S., held its first Annual Dinner Meeting,
inviting a number of distinguished guests, including “two Negro doctors,
the secretary of the YMCA, and a representative of the Urban League.” The
group was founded in January 1945
[left: two city officials examining St. Louis’ African American
neighborhood of Mill Creek Valley, which would be demolished in the name
of urban renewal in 1956].
1948: Harry C. registered Japan’s first A.A. group with the Alcoholic
Foundation office in New York City.
He had started this English-speaking group among the U.S. occupation
forces after World War II, meeting at the Franciscan Chapel Center in the
Roppongi district [below] of Tokyo. In December 1947, Harry wrote to the Alcoholic Foundation
office in New York City, expressing his hope to start a group. In January,
the Armed Forces newspaper, Pacific Stars & Stripes, published
an article about A.A., which generated numerous inquiries directed to
Harry. When he returned home in July, he handed the secretary position
over to Collins M., who reported a membership of seven at that time.
1951: The A.A. Grapevine, edited by Howard Alfred “Al” S.
[right], published a memorial issue
[left] for Dr. Bob S. This issue included a tribute
[below left] by Bill W., an unattributed biography exceeding 10,000 words, a eulogy by
Rev. Walter Tunks, a prayer of thanks to Jesus Christ for Dr. Bob, and an
unattributed article titled “Hail and Farewell.” It was described as “a
historical gem.”
Al had driven Dr. Bob back and forth between Akron and Cleveland for
A.A.’s first International Convention in 1950. In an assessment of the
founders in later years, Al remarked, “Without Bill’s drive, there
wouldn’t be any A.A.—without Dr. Bob’s balance, who knows what it would be
like?”
Al was the son of Emmett Fox’s
secretary, who occasionally arranged for Al, Bill, Edwin “Ebby” T., and
other A.A. members to obtain mezzanine seats at Fox’s talks in New York
City.
1955: The A.A. Grapevine
[left: cover] first published Bill
W.’s articletitled “Why Alcoholics Anonymous Is Anonymous.” In this article
< span style="font-size: small;"> [right], he wrote,
Presently an AA member began to publish a
crusading magazine [The Empty Jug] devoted to the cause of
Prohibition. He thought Alcoholics Anonymous ought to help make the world
bone dry. He disclosed himself as an AA member and freely used the AA name
to attack the evils of whiskey and those who made it and drank it. He
pointed out that he too was an "educator," and that his brand of education
was the “right kind.” As for putting AA into public controversy, he
thought that was exactly where we should be. So he busily used AA's name
to do just that. Of course, he broke his anonymity to help his cherished
cause along.
The Empty Jug
[left: March 1946, p. 1] had been published by Carl K. of Chattanooga, Tennessee. He had also been
its editor-in-chief. Rev. Sam D., a founder of A.A. in Atlanta, Georgia, had
been a contributor.
Bill W. had urged
Carl to stop misrepresenting A.A. and to refrain from causing controversy.
However, Carl was determined to remain visible and refused to be anonymous.
By March 1946, Carl’s magazine had seemed to officially represent A.A. on a
variety of issues. Margaret “Bobbie” B.
[right] had tried to stem the tide with a detailed letter to Carl, and Sam
supported her efforts, stating that unless Carl changed his approach, he
would no longer write for The Empty Jug.
By mid-April 1946, Bobbie, at the end of her patience, had written Sam that
she considered Carl to be “the stubbornist, most close-minded AA I’ve ever
met.” Carl had informed Sam that he was contemplating leaving A.A., while
simultaneously claiming he was receiving ten compliments for every
criticism. By early July 1946, Sam had resigned from
The Empty Jug.
On 13 July 1946,
Carl had suddenly died, possibly from a cerebral hemorrhage. His death
marked the end of this very unpleasant experiment in breaking anonymity.
Significant conflict and discomfort had arisen when this single A.A. member
publicly advertised his membership, believing his opinion superior to that
of any group conscience. Bobbie later reflected in July, “I am happy that
Carl did not have to see some [of these letters responding to his magazine]
for they might have broken his heart.”
1963: The A.A. Grapevine
[left: cover] published Bill W.’s 1961 correspondence with Dr. Carl Gustav Jung
[right] . In his first letter, Bill
informed Dr. Jung that his earlier treatment of an alcoholic patient was
“the first in the chain of events that led to the founding of AA.” He
mentioned that the patient, Rowland Hazard, found sobriety through the
Oxford Group. This connection ultimately led to Rowland helping another
alcoholic, Edwin “Ebby" T., who brought a message of recovery to Bill in
late 1934. [Note: Rowland himself never joined A.A., and some of the dates
Bill gave in this letter are incorrect.]
In his reply, Jung expressed that he “often wondered what has been his
[Rowland’s] fate.” He went on to explain that the reason he “could not tell
him everything” was due to his fear of being misunderstood. He asserted that
Rowland’s…
craving for alcohol was the equivalent, on a low level of the spiritual
thirst of our being for wholeness… the union with God.
… the evil principle prevailing in this world leads the unrecognized
spiritual need into perdition… An ordinary man, not protected by an action
from above and isolated in society, cannot resist the power of evil, which
is called very aptly the Devil.
You
see, alcohol in Latin is “spiritus” and you use the same word for the
highest religious experience as well as the most depraving poison. The
helpful formula therefore is: spiritus contra spiritum.
1961: Bill W. [far left]
sent Dr. Carl Jung [near left]
a letter of appreciation for his contributions to A.A., which Bill felt
were long overdue. After introducing himself, Bill wrote:
[left], who had visited Jung and found sobriety through the Oxford Group.
Rowland’s message had reached Bill at the lowest point of his alcoholism
through Ebby T.
[right]. This had been followed by Bill’s spiritual experience at Towns Hospital,
his founding of A.A., and the spiritual experiences of many thousands of
A.A. members since. Bill continued:
1961: Bill W. [far left]
sent Dr. Carl Jung [near left]
a letter of appreciation for his contributions to A.A., which Bill felt
were long overdue. After introducing himself, Bill wrote:
[left], who had visited Jung and found sobriety through the Oxford Group.
Rowland’s message had reached Bill at the lowest point of his alcoholism
through Ebby T.
[right]. This had been followed by Bill’s spiritual experience at Towns Hospital,
his founding of A.A., and the spiritual experiences of many thousands of
A.A. members since. Bill continued:
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