January 31 in A.A. History

1940: Frederic J. Haskins, in his column “Haskin’s Answers to Readers’ Questions” in Washington, DC’s The Evening Star, addresses a reader's inquiry about Alcoholics Anonymous [right]:

Q. Please give some information about an organization called Alcoholics Anonymous.—H. T. S.

A. This is a group of former alcoholics who meet in Steinway Hall, New York City, to strengthen one another’s resolutions and help other alcoholics to reform. They have recently published a book entitled “Alcoholics Anonymous.”

1946: Charles Welch [far left]—a nonalcoholic and Honorary Lifetime Vice President of the first A.A. group in Vancouver, British Columbia [center left: Welch’s home, an early meeting place for the group]—signed a certificate of “tribute” [near left] to Charles B., the group’s first alcoholic member.

2003: The second meeting of the month-long Online Service Conference (OSC) concluded.

    New committees were organized, including one to search for more online A.A. groups who might be invited to OSC, a Literature Committee, a Translation Committee and a Web Committee. Nominations were taken for candidates for the Steering Committee, to be voted on at the third OSC in July 2003. No Online Advisory Actions were voted during the second conference.

2004: The fourth meeting of the month-long Online Service Conference (OSC) concluded.

    The most significant action at the assembly was introduction of a proposed Charter for OSC presented by James C. from the United Kingdom, as chairman of the Voting Methods Committee. The Web Committee also presented its work on the OSC website for comment by the assembly. No voting actions were offered with the agenda or acted upon during the conference assembly.

By the end of the year, the OSC website (aa-onlineserviceconference.org) would go dark [right: last capture by the Internet Archive of the OSC website, 18 Sep 2004].

January 30 in A.A. History

1938: Frank Amos and his wife visited Bill and Lois W. in Brooklyn. They discussed Frank’s upcoming trip to Akron, Ohio, in detail, including the proposed hospital there. Before leaving, Frank asked Bill for advice on whom to contact upon his arrival in Akron. Bill would take the next two days to develop his recommendations. 

1945: Walter Winchell’s syndicated gossip column, “Coast-to-Coast” [right], under the heading “THINGS FEW NEW YORKERS KNOW,” mentioned Alcoholics Anonymous in passing twice. First:

    This has been the year of alcoholidays. “The Lost Weekend” best-sold a nation into cautionary drinking; “Harvey,” the Pooka, turned the other cheek of laughter; and Alcoholics Anonymous are shouting so loud they are fast becoming as familiar as a hangover.

    Then:

    Carrie Nation smashed the bars of a nation, but New York’s were too much for her. She sputtered and spumed, but accomplished no more than having a nude statue draped and sending a lot of barmen’s blood pressure up. “The Lost Weekend” caused a lot more pity than the real sight does; “Harvey” makes it a good deal funnier than it always it [sic]; Alcoholics Anonymous have been there before.

1961: Dr. Carl Jung [left], in Kusnacht-Zurich, Switzerland, responded to a letter from Bill W. [right] dated January 23rd, which acknowledged Jung’s unwitting contribution to Alcoholics Anonymous through his work with Rowland Hazard [below left, 1921] in the 1930s. He expressed that Bill’s letter was “very welcome indeed.” Jung noted that he had never heard from Rowland and had “often wondered what has been his fate.” He mentioned that Rowland had “adequately reported” their conversations, although he couldn’t share “everything” with Rowland, having learned over the years of his practice that he would likely be misunderstood “in every possible way.” What he couldn’t share with Rowland…

    was the equivalent on a low level of the spiritual thirst of our being for wholeness, expressed in medieval language: the union with God^*. How could one formulate such an insight in a language that is not misunderstood in our days?

---

^*“As the heart panteth after the water brook, so panteth my soul after thee, O God.” Psalm 42, 1

    Jung said that such a person must “walk on a path which leads [one] to higher understanding.” This can be done “by an act of grace,” “through a personal and honest contact with friends,” or “through a higher education of the mind beyond the confines of mere rationalism.” He noted that Rowland had clearly chosen the second way.

    I am strongly convinced that the evil principle prevailing in this world leads the unrecognized spiritual need into perdition, if it is not counteracted either by a real religious insight or by the protective wall of human community. 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. But the use of such words arouse[s] so many mistakes that one can only keep aloof from them as much as possible.…
    Alcohol in Latin is spiritus, and you use the same word for the highest religious experience as well as for the most depraving poison. The helpful formula therefore is: spiritus contra spiritum.

1969: The Post of Big Stone Gap, Virginia published “Invitational Meet For AA Is Set” [left], which stated:

    An invitational meeting of Alcoholics Anonymous will be held on Sunday afternoon, Feb. 9 at 2:30 at the Old Dominion Power Co. Building in Norton.
    Any person interested in learning something about this world-wide organization and its approach to the growing problem of alcoholism is welcome.
    The meeting will be conducted by out-of-state members of AA and will last exactly one hour per organizational policy. These visiting members will be available after the meeting to answer individual questions.

1971: The Evening Star (Washington, DC) published “Bill W.”, an editorial [right], 6 days after Bill’s death, which stated,

    Alcoholics Anonymous is by far the most effective organization dealing with one of man’s oldest medical and social problems.… AA is an organization in which people give much of themselves to assist other sufferers. Many are in Mr. W—–’s debt for his showing how it could be done.

January 29 in A.A. History

1947: At the Alcoholic Foundation in New York City, a transatlantic operator put through a call from Nordholz, Germany, just before 3 o’clock in the afternoon, having arranged it the day before (the first transatlantic all ever received at the Foundation). The call came from the base surgeon at a U.S. Army hospital in Germany, who was concerned about his friend and patient, Captain B., an A.A. member. The captain was in serious trouble; he had been tried by a military court and sentenced to discharge for drunkenness on duty. Would A.A. help?
    The surgeon provided a brief history of Captain B.:

    According to the base surgeon, Captain B.’s troubles began when he tried again to drink “socially.” A member of A.A. in a western state, the captain had earned an excellent record in the Army during the war. When the war ended, he was stationed in Germany where eventually he attempted “to take a few drinks.” The inevitable happened and now the captain had been convicted of drunkenness on duty. Was there anything A.A. could do?

    The surgeon further explained that Captain B. was aboard an Army transport ship scheduled to arrive in New York City at 8:30 a.m. in three days, on February 1. The A.A. staff quickly sprang into action.
    They found an ex-Army officer who was an A.A. member and agreed to drop everything to help. The ex-officer contacted a Catholic bishop, a friend of A.A., who reached out to the Port of Embarkation in New York City. He learned that the priest there had served as chaplain on the very same ship, allowing him to board as soon as it docked. Additionally, they found a lawyer sympathetic to A.A. who was willing to assist the captain.
    Once Captain B.’s ship arrived, the priest interviewed him and reported that it had gone well, indicating that the man was indeed worth helping. He also noted that the captain was deeply grateful for everything being done for him and was enormously surprised that anything was being done! Captain B. was awaiting the disposition of his case at Camp Kilmer, New Jersey. Although he was under arrest, A.A. secretaries arranged for visitors to see him. The attorney was waiting for a response from Washington, D.C., regarding his request. The priest at the port had also been in contact with his colleagues at Camp Kilmer, who promised to do what they could for the captain.
    The A.A. Grapevine reported this story, titled “Phone Call Across the Ocean Sets A.A. in Motion.” in its March 1947 issue.

2023: In an unprecedented incident, two trustees of the General Service Board (GSB) of Alcoholics Anonymous arrived at a meeting with unsigned letters of resignation. This meeting was a scheduled GSB “planning” session with non-board members, rather than an executive session. The two trustees surprised the non-alcoholic GSB chair, Judge Linda Chezem [left], along with other trustees, by demanding her resignation; they stated that if she refused, they would sign and submit their own resignations. Judge Chezem responded that she would resign if that was the board's wish, after which she was asked to leave the room. The GSB—presumably after thorough and fully informed discussion—voted unanimously to accept her verbal offer to resign. They then drafted a letter for her to sign. When she was called back into the room and asked to sign the letter, she handwrote the phrase “As requested by the board” before signing and leaving.

January 28 in A.A. History

1947: At 10 o’clock in the morning, the switchboard operator at the Alcoholic Foundation office in New York City received a signal from the local transatlantic telephone operator.
    “Will someone there be available for a call from Nordholz, Germany, at 2:30 p. m. tomorrow?” she asked.
    “Yes, of course. Can you tell us the nature of the call?”
    “No, but I can say that the call is urgent,” the operator replied. [Stay tuned.…]

January 27 in A.A. History

1952: About 200 people attended the 2nd anniversary meeting of the Alco Anon club at the Knights of Columbus clubrooms, located at 152 Lincoln Way W. in Massillon, Ohio [left: p. 3 article from The Evening Independent of Massillon, 28 Jan 1952]. Many members of the clergy, medical professionals, civic leaders, and industry representatives were present. Out-of-town visitors traveled from Akron, Canton, Cleveland, Minerva, North Canton (all in Ohio), and Florida, as well as from various other areas around Massillon.
    Warren C. from the Cleveland Group of Alcoholics Anonymous was the main speaker. He spoke about the A.A. program and how it works, emphasizing the importance of sincerity in the desire to quit drinking and the necessity of acknowledging that life is unmanageable when one first joins A.A. He stated,

    Belief in a Power greater than ourselves is one of the basic principles of the A.A. program.… The help we receive is contingent on the help we are willing to give others. In order to keep our sobriety we must work the A.A. principles in all our affairs.

1953: Daniel Doherty “Dohr” S. [near right], 62, died in Indianapolis, Indiana [far right: gravestone]. He is regarded as the founder of Alcoholics Anonymous in that city.

1971: The District of Columbia’s The Washington Post published an obituary for Bill W. written by the owner’s son, Donald E. Gra­ham [left].

January 26 in A.A. History

1941: Michigan’s The Detroit Evening Times published a syndicated column [right] by Walter Winchell^* [left] that included a strange mix of truth and misinformation about A.A. [ellipses in original]:

    THERE IS A GROUP called “Alcoholics Anonymous” in New York, the moving spirit being a well-known transatlantic flier… The group’s aim is to “straighten out any fellow who will even admit he drinks too much”… They meet at an illustrators place and have big “rallies.” These “rallies” are attended sometimes by hundreds of lushes, many of whom have been in institutions for alcoholics, etc… They’ve succeeded where doctors and psychiatrists have failed, working on the theory that only a drunk knows how to talk to a drunk.

---

^*Winchell (born Winchel, 1897–1972) was a U.S. gossip columnist and radio news commentator who held considerable influence in the United States during the 1930s, ’40s, and ’50s. His opinionated, often inconsistent reporting garnered both admirers and detractors. Biographer Neal Gabler noted that Winchell’s popularity and influence “turned journalism into a form of entertainment.” In 1936, Winchell hired Herman Klurfeld as a ghostwriter. Klurfeld wrote four newspaper columns per week for Winchell that year and continued working for him for 29 years.

1971: The New York Times—on page 1 [below left]—and The Evening Star of Washington, D.C. [below right], both published obituaries for Bill W., who had died two days earlier.

January 25 in A.A. History

1915: After 17 years of courtship, Dr. Bob S. and Anne Ripley married [right: wedding invitation; left: Anne in her wedding dress] at Anne’s mother’s 
home in Chicago, Illinois.
    The reason for the long delay is unclear. During those years, Dr. Bob focused on his education, completing an internship and working, while Anne taught school in Oak Park, Illinois. She may have hesitated to marry a drunk, waiting until he showed signs of sobriety. Throughout those 17 years, they met and corresponded regularly.
    After their wedding, they would settle at 855 Ardmore Ave. in Akron, Ohio. The first three years of their marriage would be free from the grief that would later ensue.

1971: The U.S./Canada General Service Office (GSO) in New York City announced the death of Bill W., the remaining co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous, in Miami, Florida, the previous day.
    Bob H., General Manager of GSO, sent telegrams to central offices [left: p. 1 of telegram to Vancouver (British Columbia) Central Office] and Dr. Jack Norris, Chairman of the General Service Board, wrote a letter [right: Spanish version] addressed to “Dear friends” [“Queraos amigos”].

January 24 in A.A. History

1918: Bill W. and Lois Burnham [right: in their wedding attire, 1918] were married.
    At the time, Bill was stationed at Ft. Adams near Newport, Rhode Island. Spurred by rumors that Bill’s unit might soon be deployed overseas, they moved their wedding date up from the originally scheduled February 1. The ceremony took place at the Swedenborgian Church of the New Jerusalem in Brooklyn, New York, officiated by Rev. Julian Smyth [left].
    Rogers Burnham [right], Lois’s brother and Bill’s childhood friend, served as best man. Lois’s sister, Katherine “Kitty” [left], along with four friends from Packer Institute, were bridesmaids. Her childhood friend, Elise Valentine Shaw, was matron of honor, while her sister Barbara served as maid of honor. Unfortunately, Bill’s mother, Emily Griffith Wilson, had the flu and was unable to come from Boston, Massachusetts; his sister Dorothy stayed behind to care for her. Also absent, likely due to the sudden change in date, were Fayette and Ella Griffith, Emily’s parents, who had raised Bill and Dorothy in East Dorset, Vermont, since Bill was about ten years old.
    As one of Bill’s biographers noted,
    But nothing, not even a lack of family on the groom’s side, could dim the quiet glow of the occasion, a young lanky soldier beside his bride—and no one who was at the church or at the reception on Clinton Street was apt to forget them.

1945: The first documented Black Alcoholics Anonymous group was established in St. Louis, Missouri, with five members in attendance. Proud of their achievement, they named themselves the “AA-1 Group.” They elected Torrence S. as their secretary.
    However, they avoided publicity, meeting only in private residences, not in any public venue. They wrote to Margaret “Bobbie” B. [right], National Secretary of the Alcoholic Foundation in New York City, that “to retain [sic] publicity about our group as it might cause controversial debates about racial issues within AA.” The existence of this Black A.A. group remained almost totally secret. Eventually, Father Ed Dowling [left], spiritual advisor. a significant figure in St. Louis A.A., and a long-time friend to the Black community, may have played a crucial role in helping this group gain acceptance within the larger community.

1954: On Bill and Lois W.’s 38th wedding anniversary, Lois suffered a heart attack that severely limited her activities for a year.

1968: Bill and Lois W. celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary [right: Bill & Lois, 1960s].

1971: Bill W., 75, co-founder of A.A.. 36 years sober, died at the Miami Heart Institute in Miami Beach, Florida on his and Lois’ 53rd wedding anniversary. Bill was the architect and author of the Three Legacies of Alcoholics Anonymous: Recovery, Unity and Service. He wrote the documents that explained them. It was an amazing accomplishment, as he had no training as a writer, organizer, or administrator.

January 23 in A.A. History

1933: Dr. Bob and Anne S. first encountered the Oxford Groups when Frank Buchman visited Akron, Ohio [right: photo at Union Station, 11:00 AM, from the Akron Beacon Journal, 19 January 1933, “As Oxford Group Reaches Akron,” p. 1].
    After getting sober, Dr. Bob would write in his story, “Doctor Bob’s Nightmare” in the Big Book, Alcoholics Anonymous, that

    … through high school I was more or less forced to go to church, Sunday School, and evening service, Monday night Christian Endeavor and sometimes to Wednesday evening prayer meeting. This had the effect of making me resolve that when I was free from parental domination, I would never again darken the doors of a church.

    Accordingly, Anne initially had to push her husband to attend Oxford Group meetings. However, he eventually became captivated by their message, as he would later describe in his story:

    … I was thrown in with a crowd of people who attracted me because of their seeming poise, health, and happiness. They spoke with great freedom from embarrassment, which I could never do, and they seemed very much at ease on all occasions and appeared very healthy. More than these attributes, they seemed to be happy. I was self-conscious and ill at ease most of the time, my health was at the breaking point, and I was thoroughly miserable. I sensed they had something I did not have, from which I might readily profit. I learned that it was something of a spiritual nature, which did not appeal to me very much, but I thought it could do no harm.

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:

    … I doubt if you are aware that a certain conversation you once had with one of your patients, a Mr. Roland [sic] Hazard, back in the early 1930’s, did play a critical role in the founding of our Fellowship.
    … Our remembrance of Roland Hazard’s statements about his experience with you is as follows:

    Bill then shared what he knew about Rowland Hazard [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:

    This concept proved to be the foundation of such success as Alcoholics Anonymous has since achieved. This has made conversion experience… available on an almost wholesale basis.

    Bill concluded his letter graciously:

    As you will now clearly see, this astonishing chain of events actually started long ago in your consulting room, and it was directly founded upon your own humility and deep perception.
    Very many thoughtful A.A.’s are students of your writings. Because of your conviction that man is something more than intellect, emotion, and two dollars’ worth of chemicals, you have especially endeared yourself to us.…
    Please be certain that your place in the affection, and in the history, of our Fellowship is like no other’s.

January 22 in A.A. History

1935: Sam Shoemaker [left, 1940] wrote to Bill W. [right], saying, in part:
    I hope you realize the guided-ness of your having known Jim Williams previously, as I understood you did, in business. His wife, Margaret, is full time [sic] in the [Oxford] group and he has held out for a long while. You may be just the person that cracks the shell and brings him over. He drinks a lot and is desperately unhappy and inferior and needs what you have got for him. I am grateful for what you did for [Dr. Frederick E. “Fred”] B――[, Sr.].
    Dr. B. [left] was a prominent chemist who had recently served as president of the American Institute of Chemists and chair of the chemistry department at Brooklyn College. He had become Bill’s first serious prospect on Christmas Eve, just six days after Bill was discharged from Towns Hospital.

1942: Bill and Lois W. [right: in front of Stepping Stones, c. 1941] returned home from a successful cross-continental trip, which included stops in all the major cities where Alcoholics Anonymous was active. However, shortly after their return, Bill fell into a suicidal depression that would last until 1955.

January 21 in A.A. History

1942: Island Press published Drunks are Square Pegs [left] by Charles C., Jr. [right, 1938]. Charles was from Bedford Hills, New York, and had been an Oxford Grouper. He had worked with Rev. Sam Shoemaker but struggled to stay sober. In October 1935, Charles sought and received help from A.A. founder Bill W., and was then able to get and stay sober. His book The Big Bender (also published in 1938) tells this story. Additionally, he wrote Drinking’s Not the Problem, published in 1949, which was reviewed in the December 1949 issue of the A.A. Grapevine.

January 20 in A.A. History

1841:Gardner Griffith, Bill Wilson’s maternal grandfather, was born in Dorset, Vermont. He and his wife, Ella Brock Griffith, would raise Bill from the age of about 10 [right: the Griffiths].

1933: Members of the Oxford Group were welcomed at the Mayflower Hotel by prominent citizens of Akron, Ohio. The next evening, the Akron Beacon Journal reported [left]:

    A formal dinner for 130 preceded the regular meeting and the photographer snapped F. A. Seiberling, president of Seiberling Tire & Rubber Co., and Miss Olivia Jones, member of the group and former president of the National Education association [sic], as they walked from the private dining hall. 
    The Oxford movement has been called “religion in every day clothes” and the camera caught three of the group in full evening dress, as they prepared to enter the meeting hall. Mrs. Ruth Buchanan, the fox-hunting member from Virginia is talking to Sir Walter Windham, English business man, while Frau von Cramon, German schoolmistress is adding her comments in a pleasant German accent.

1937: The State of Delaware issued Articles of Incorporation to Henry G. P――, Inc. [right: 21 Jan 1937 notice of incorporation in the Wilmington Morning News and Journal-Every Evening, both based in Wilmington, Delaware].