October 16 in A.A. History

1937: Bill and Lois W. left Akron, Ohio, at 4:30 p.m. and traveled with Sterling P. (who drove) and his wife, arriving in Newark, New Jersey, at 5:30 a.m. the next morning, about 13 hours later [probably via US 22, a likely total of 480–500 miles or 770–800 km]. The four of them had breakfast at a local restaurant before Bill and Lois took the subway home to 182 Clinton St. in Brooklyn, where they presumably collapsed into bed.

1941: The Downtown Group of Detroit, Michigan, which met at the Cass Avenue Methodist Church [left, 1911] community center at 4242 Cass Avenue and comprised about forty members, split into three, creating two new groups: the Eastside (or East) Group,^* which would meet at the Mack Avenue Business Men’s Club^† [right: see footnote]; and the Westside Group, which would meet at a barber shop on Hamilton and Puritan Avenues [left: interior, undated] for about a month and then move to Richard’s Card Shop at 10216 Plymouth Road, near Ilene Street, and change their name to the Northwest Group.

Before Ontario, Canada, had A.A. meetings (in Toronto from 13 January 1943 and in Windsor from 22 October 1943), recovering alcoholics from Windsor could come to the Detroit meetings. An early Windsor member said about going to the Detroit meeting on Plymouth Road:

We used to have to drive our car to the tunnel (gasoline was rationed), park the car, drop a nickel in the fare box for the tunnel bus, ride thru the tunnel, walk several blocks to the Grand River Street Car, ride the street car for an hour out to Plymouth Road, then walk about half a mile to Plymouth and Ilene [right: 1947 map of Detroit and environs showing all locations mentioned here].

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^*However, another source, who compiled “many small notes and information on this group, much of [which] appeared to be inaccurate and confusing,” said that the group was started by Archie T. and Mike E. on 2 February 1941 in a men’s club that Mike regularly attended at Cadillac Boulevard (apparently incorrectly identified as Cadillac Avenue) and Mack Avenue, above a furniture store. This location is just over a mile southwest of the Mack Avenue Men’s Club. This group faced two issues: (1) “attendance began to swell immediately” and, perhaps more significantly (2) “women alcoholics were very hesitant to go into a private Men’s Club to attend an alcoholic recovery program.” So by October they moved to St. Columbia [sic, should be “Columba”] Episcopal Church [far left, c. 1930], 1021 Manistique Street, in Detroit, and at the same time decided to split in two, the the new group calling themselves the Grosse Pointe (Memorial) Group, meeting at Grosse Pointe Memorial Church [near left, recent], 16 Lake Shore Drive (<600 ft [183 m] from Lake St. Clair), in Grosse Pointe Farms.

^†This club’s history is very poorly documented. It still exists as a registered public nonprofit organization based in Shelby Township, in Macomb County, Michigan (nonprofit status was recently revoked). It was originally located in Detroit where Mack Avenue crossed the Detroit Terminal Railroad (DTR), between Connor and St. Jean Streets (documented in a request to the Common [City] Council on 30 September 1924 for grade separation where Mack Avenue crossed the DTR tracks). That part of Mack Avenue was converted to an overpass (seen at the extreme ends of the panoramic image above) over the railroad tracks in the early 1950s. The former Mack Avenue road surface was renamed Mack Service Road and can be seen extending east to Connor Street in the right half of the panorama. This panorama comprised a series of images from the same location at the far western end of Mack Service Road, toward the WSW at the left end and toward the SSE at the right end. The 1950s overpass is behind the middle of the image, and the location of the former DTR railroad tracks can be seen in the leftmost third of the panorama above right.

1943: Nearly 200 people attended the third anniversary of Alcoholics Anonymous in Toledo, Ohio, at the A.A. clubrooms on Superior Street. Among them were six of the nine founding members [right: article from the 18 October 1943 Toledo Blade, p. 20].

1962: L. Earle T. [far left], 62, died in Sarasota, Florida. He would be buried in Oakwood Cemetery in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio [left: middle—obituary, near—gravestone].

1971:^* The North Rustico Group, located in North Rustico, Prince Edward Island, Canada, presented Louis H. with an engraved coin [near right] to commemorate his one-year anniversary.

1976:^* The North Rustico Group, located in North Rustico, Prince Edward Island, Canada, presented Louis H. with an engraved coin [right] to commemorate his five-year anniversary.

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^*One of three things must have occurred: (1) Louis H. slipped on the day of his 1st anniversary; (2) at least one of the years reported is incorrect; or (3) at least one of the anniversary numbers is wrong. The period 1971–1976 is 5 years, while a 5th anniversary would come 4 years after the 1st, if there were no slips.

2012: The U.S. National Park Service designated Stepping Stones, the home of Bill and Lois W. from 1941 until their respective deaths, as a National Historic Landmark. The official marker [left] says,

Bill and Lois W—— lived here from 1941 until their deaths. Bill co-founded Alcoholics Anonymous, and Lois co-founded Al-Anon Family Groups. Their pioneering work advanced the treatment of alcoholism and inspired addiction recovery programs throughout the world.

The State of New York also erected a similar historical marker outside Stepping Stones [right].

Today in A.A. History—October 16–18

1974: The 3rd World Service Meeting (WSM) of Alcoholics Anonymous took place at the Gloucester Hotel [right] in London, England, marking the first time the event was held outside the United States. The theme for this meeting was “Sharing.” Thirty-three delegates attended, representing nineteen countries [left: report from Box 4-5-9, 1974 Holiday issue]:

Argentina*	Australia	Belgium (Flemish)	Canada
Germany	Central America (north zone)*	Central America (south zone)*	Colombia
Finland	France	Ireland	Mexico
New Zealand	Norway	South Africa	Sweden*
United Kingdom	United States
*First time represented.

Nicaragua was represented at the 2nd WSM but did not attend the 3rd WSM.

1904: Margaret “Marty” M. [left: as a debutante, c. 1925] was born to Lillian Christy and William Henry M. in her maternal grandparents’ home on Magnolia Avenue in Sheridan Park, a new upscale neighborhood on the North Shore of Chi­cago, Illinois. Her family lived just down Magnolia Avenue [right: Typical single-family home (built c. 1910), 4500 block of N. Magnolia Ave, Sheridan Park, similar to the one Marty M. was born in]. Marty was the oldest of five children. A sister, Christy, was born in 1906 but died within 36 hours. Lillian Christy “Chris” was born in 1910, and twins Mary Elizabeth “Betty” and William Henry arrived in 1918. Young Marty led an upper-middle-class life, attending private schools, traveling extensively, and making her social debut.

October in A.A. History—day unknown

1940: The first Alcoholics Anonymous group in San Francisco, California, found a “more or less permanent” meeting place at the Telegraph Hill Community House [far left: looking south toward downtown, March 2022; near left: interior, c. 1910–25], located at 1736 Stockton Street in the North Beach district (converted to 11 commer­cial offices). Since its founding in November 1939, the group had been meeting at Mrs. Gordon Oram’s boarding house at 51 Potomac Street [near right, recent; far right: historical plaque there], as well as in other homes.

1940: Alcoholics Anonymous members Marty M. [left, 1940s], Walter W. [right, 1925], and Ray C., the artist who designed dust jacket covers for the first edition Big Book, were elected to the first board of directors of High Watch Farm, which had recently been established as a tax-exempt charitable organization. It is believed to have been the first treatment center in the world based on the Twelve Step program of A.A.

1941: A new Alcoholics Anonymous (A.A.) club was established at 19th and Park Ave. in Minneapolis, Minnesota, to coordinate A.A. activities in the city and surrounding areas. Only six months had passed since the creation of the Minneapolis Group of Alcoholics Anonymous, the first in the state, and just two months since that group had moved to larger quarters at 200 East Franklin [left, Oct 2008]. Six months later, the club would purchase and move into 2218 1st Avenue South [right].

There was much to be done. A new group had formed in St. Paul, and Pat C. [left], the founder of A.A. in Minnesota, was assisting individuals in Hibbing and Duluth, as well as in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. Minneapolis also served as the point of contact for prospects in Fargo, North Dakota; Sioux Falls, South Dakota; Omaha, Nebraska; and Des Moines and Sioux City, Iowa.

October 14 in A.A. History

1939: The Journal of the American Medical Association published a brief and unfavorable review [right] of the book Alcoholics Anonymous, which concluded:

The book under review is a curious combination of organizing propaganda and religious exhortation. It is in no sense a scientific book, although it is introduced by a letter from a physician who claims to know some of the anonymous contributors who have been “cured” of addiction to alcohol and have joined together in an organization which would save other addicts by a kind of religious conversion. The book contains instructions as to how to intrigue the alcoholic addict into the acceptance of divine guidance in place of alcohol in terms strongly reminiscent of Dale Carnegie and the adherents of the Buchman (“Oxford”) movement. The one valid thing in the book is the recognition of the seriousness of addiction to alcohol. Other than this, the book has no scientific merit or interest.

Dr. Foster Kennedy [left], a world-renowned neurologist who treated alcoholics at Bellevue Hospital in New York City, responded with a letter to the Editor. At the Rockefeller dinner for Alcoholics Anonymous on 8 February 1940, he spoke about it: “I did not like that review much, and I sent a letter to the editor of the Journal of the American Medical Association and asked him to put it among the, oh, trivia, or whatever they would put it in. But he wrote a very decent letter back and said he thought no good purpose could be served by publishing my letter. One never likes to see one’s child aborted, so I thought I would read you my reply here:

Sir:

An unsigned review appeared in the Journal of the American Medical Association October 14th of ‘Alcoholics Anonymous,’ the story of how more than 100 men have recovered from alcoholism. The cheapish tone of the review is surely a reflection on the thoughtfulness, the experience, and the innate kindliness of the reviewer, and not at all indicative of lack of humane spirit in the Journal.

The aim of those concerned in this effort against alcoholism is high, their success has been considerable and I believe medical men of good will should aid these decent people rather than loftily condemn them for not being scientific.

One might ask the reviewer to produce a book on the subject of alcoholism concocted by him out of “pure science.” Medicine, surely, is Science touched with emotion. It is quicker and more precious in vivo than in vitro. This group of workers I have regarded as enlisting Belief and the herd-instinct to fortify and implement emotionally men’s actions. In doing so they have chosen well-tried weapons. It would be unfortunate if the opinion of your “Cynic Anonymous” be given too wide credence by our profession which has never before refused to use faith to move mountains.

I thank you.”

October in A.A. History—day unknown

1940: [Early] The original A.A. group in Baltimore, Maryland, which had held its first meeting in James “Jim” R.’s home four months earlier, on 16 June, moved to the basement of the Altamont Hotel at 1215 Eutaw Street [left]. After several months, they would have to move so the hotel could accommodate the processing of World War II draftees into the military.

1940: Bill W. traveled to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to speak with Judge William Curtis Bok [left, 1933], who had heard high praise for Alcoholics Anonymous (A.A.) from two local friends, Drs. A. Wiese Hammer [near right] and C. Dudley Saul [far right], and wanted to learn more.

Bok was one of two heirs to the Curtis Publishing Company fortune. The company had been founded by Bok’s maternal grandfather, Cyrus H. K. Curtis, but Bok never held a official position at Curtis Publishing or any of its many magazines or newspapers; instead, he served as a judge from 1936 until his death in 1962. Nonetheless, in December, he would ask Jack Alexander [left] to write a story about A.A. for The Saturday Evening Post, which, at that time, had the largest circulation of any general magazine in the U.S., boasting a readership of 3 million.

October 13 in A.A. History

1937: At an “alcoholic squadron” meeting^* in T. Henry and Clarace Williams’ living room [right] in Akron, Ohio, Bill W. formally proposed expanding the movement with hospitals for alcoholics, paid missionaries, and a book.

Later, Bill said that after “counting noses” with Dr. Bob S. and realizing the success they were having, he made this proposal to Bob. While Bob was initially cool to the idea, he found the notion of a book somewhat appealing. Together, Bill and Bob decided to call a meeting of the Ohio members, along with the New York City members Bill had brought with him, to thoroughly discuss Bill’s ideas and take a vote.

Eighteen voting members attended the meeting. Bill presented his proposal, suggesting that the rich would be willing to fund these plans. But as he made his case, it became clear that the Ohio contingent was not impressed. They preferred to keep things simple, believing that money would create a professional class and ruin everything. Active alcoholics wouldn’t trust paid missionaries any more than early Christians would have trusted paid apostles. Jesus, they noted, did not rely on pamphlets or books; his program was word-of-mouth. Moreover, the publicity surrounding a book would overwhelm them as they tried to answer all the inquiries. According to Schaberg’s Writing the Big Book (pp. 25–6),

[T]he arguments put forward against Bill’s proposals… also contained a strong element of support for the Oxford Group that Bill did not mention. It was this tenacious loyalty to the Group that drove the Akron members’ resistance, raising the stakes of their arguments to a much higher level than Bill’s versions of the story allow. As far as the Ohio group could see, these men from New York were not just suggesting an organizational revolution—they were proposing heresy. [Note that the New York City Group had severed all ties to the Oxford Group in April or May of 1937.

After passionate arguments and counterarguments, the group seemed angrily deadlocked, but they reluctantly agreed to take a vote. Bill’s proposal narrowly passed, 10–8 (note that a two-thirds majority would have required 12 votes in favor). Bill certainly voted in favor; Dr. Bob likely gave his reluctant approval. No one knows for certain who was there, who voted, or how anyone voted. Bill was in Akron with three members from New York City: Bill R., Sterling P., and Fitz M. It would not be surprising if Dick S. of Akron was favorably inclined. If these men were present and voted for Bill’s proposal, that would account for four more votes in favor. If so, there had to have been four additional votes for the prevailing side.

Schaberg also notes (pp. 27–8) that

[I]t is clear that Bill’s bare majority was obtained only after he made some concessions. He agreed that he would not try to raise those lavish funds in Ohio nor would he be expecting any contributions to come from the Akron Fellowship.… Finally, perhaps at least a few of these harshly contested votes were won based on the belief that this was all just another one of Bill Wilson’s flamboyant pipe dreams. The likelihood of him being able to persuade the rich to contribute that much money to a bunch of drunks—even in New York City—seemed to be a remote possibility at best.

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^*Note the 13th is only the most likely date, as Schaberg deduces in a footnote in Writing the Big Book on page 27, partly because that was the regular night for the “alcoholic squadron” of the Oxford Group meeting at the Williams’ home; however, it could have been any day between the 11th and 15th.

1947: The first permanent A.A. group in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, held its initial meeting in the deacons’ room of the Independent Hall on Collins Street.

Attendees included Lillian R. [far left, 1947], a Hollywood movie star on tour in Australia; her husband, Burt McG. [near right, 1968]; Harold J., a local drunk; and Jack O’H. [far right, with his wife], a composer and playwright who chaired the meeting. Two non-alcoholics also attended: Rev. Dr. Gordon Powell [left, 1947], the Presbyterian minister of the Collins Street Independent Church [left] (now St. Michael’s Uniting Church), broadcaster, and author; and Norman Ley, secretary of the Independent Church. Harold was elected secretary. This group, known as the Melbourne Group of Alcoholics Anonymous, met at least once a week for the next two years in Powell’s room in the Independent Hall.

Three additional weekly meetings soon followed: one on High Street in St. Kilda [right, 1957]; another near Brighton railway station [near right]; and one at Talbot House [far right: interior, 1928], better known as “Toc H,” a soldiers’ rest and recreation centre located at 476 Collins Street in Melbourne.

October 12 in A.A. History

1911: Ruth Miller [right] was born in Newark, New Jersey, to Fredric and Sophie Kraemer Muller.

She married George Hock in 1929, but they separated in 1935 and divorced in 1941. In January 1936, she was hired as a secretary at Honor Dealers by Hank P. In 1940, she became the first National Secretary of Alcoholics Anonymous.

1948: Paul H. [left, 1956] wrote a memo titled “BILL’S STORY OF THE EVOLUTION OF THE ‘TWELVE STEPS’.” In this memo, he recounted a story shared by Bill W. during a train ride from New York City to Washington, DC, on 1 January 1948. They were traveling to a regional banquet where Paul was scheduled to speak about the late Fitz M.

Later, Paul wrote to Bill, mentioning that upon arriving in Washington, he had dictated Bill’s story to Eileen Barrett, who had also been on the train and who confirmed the accuracy of Paul’s recollection. It was from these dictated notes that Paul composed the memo, which included the following:

Bill said that Fitz himself had no actual part in the writing of the “Twelve Steps” but that his spiritual perception and influence were a definite factor in their formulation.

Bill went on to explain how the pioneers in A.A. fought, thought—and prayed—their way through to recovery. In his effort to rehabilitate himself the alcoholic was obliged:

1. To admit he was powerless over alcohol. 
2. To make an inventory of his own character. 
3. To put trust in God. 
4. To work with other alcoholics. 

As it stood, this program needed clarification. Bill sat down and began to figure out the various phases of his own recovery. Setting them down on paper, he found there were twelve separate and distinct steps.

The significance of this account lies in the fact that, despite occurring more than nine years after the event, it was the first known account Bill provided about the writing of the Twelve Steps. His later accounts would introduce important variations. Notably, this account identifies only four steps that were used in the pioneering days of A.A. instead of the later six that Bill publicized so widely. Paul’s account also indicates that Bill based the steps on “the various phases of his own recovery” rather than, as Bill later said, that “the words kept right on coming”^* and that “Why the Steps were written down in the order in which they appear today and just why they were worded as they are, I had no idea whatever.”^†

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^*Alcoholics Anonymous Comes of Age, p. 161.

^†The “Blue Book,” Vol. XII, “National Clergy Conference on Alcoholism: Alcoholics Anonymous,” pp. 179–210, 1960.

October 11 in A.A. History

1917: (John) Frederick “Fred” Seiberling, Sr. and Henrietta McBrayer Buckler [right: both, c. 1917] were married in Akron, Ohio. The couple would have three children but would separate in early 1935, though they would never divorce. Henrietta would move from the huge Manor House of Stan Hy Shortly after the Oxfwet (pronounced “stan HEE-wit”), the Seiberling estate in Akron, to the much smaller Gate Lodge, located on the edge of the estate.

ord Group came to Akron in January 1933, Henrietta would become involved with them. In May 1935, she would introduce Bill Wilson to Dr. Bob Smith at her home, playing a crucial role in the founding of Alcoholics Anonymous. Both Henrietta and Fred would become devoted supporters of A.A.

1937: [12th?] In Akron, Ohio, Bill W., Dr. Bob S., and Bob’s wife Anne [left, respectively] sat in the couple’s living room [right] discussing the two-year-old fellowship they had started. Taking stock of the achieve­ments so far, they counted 35 to 40 people who had sobered up, with more than 20 having maintained sobriety for at least a year. This conversation would come to be known as the “counting noses” meeting.

In Alcoholics Anonymous Comes of Age, written after the 1955 International Convention in St. Louis, Missouri, and published in 1957, Bill wrote:

It was on a November^* day in that year [1937] when Dr. Bob and I sat in his living room, counting the noses of our recoveries. There had been failures galore, but now we could see some startling successes too. A hard core of very grim last-gasp cases had by then been sober a couple of years, an unheard-of development. There were twenty or more such people. All told we figured that upwards of forty alcoholics were staying bone dry.

As we carefully rechecked this score, it suddenly burst upon us that a new light was shining into the dark world of the alcoholic. Despite the fact that Ebby had slipped, a benign chain reaction, one alcoholic carrying the good news to the next, had started outward from Dr. Bob and me. Conceivably, it could one day circle the whole world. What a tremendous realization that was! At last we were sure. There would be no more flying totally blind. We actually wept for joy, and Bob and Anne and I bowed our heads in silent thanks.

Bill wrote about this meeting in the October 1945 issue of the A.A. Grapevine:

The realization that we “had found something” began to take hold of us. No longer were we a dubious experiment. Alcoholics could stay sober. Great numbers perhaps! While some of us had always clung to this possibility, the dream now had real substance. If 40 alcoholics could recover, why not four hundred, four thousand—even forty thousand?

And on 12 June 1954, speaking at the Texas State Convention in Fort Worth, Texas, Bill said:

Bob and I saw for the first time that this thing was going to succeed. That God in his providence and mercy had thrown a new light into the dark caves where we and our kind had been and were still by the millions dwelling. I can never forget the elation and ecstasy that seized us both.

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^*Not only was this date incorrect—despite his repeated assertions over the years that the meeting had taken place in November—but Bill was also conflating this trip with another one he made in search of work in Detroit, Michigan, and Cleveland, Ohio, which included a visit to Akron by himself.

October 10 in A.A. History

1937: After spending the night in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, with Bill and Lois W., Bill and Kathleen R. picked up Fitz M. just outside Pittsburgh. The five of them then continued on to Akron, Ohio, arriving around 5 PM. They received a warm welcome and were entertained by the large crowd gathered for dinner at Paul Stanley's home. Sterling Parker and his wife, also from New York City, arrived separately and were presumably welcomed as well. Bill and Kathleen stayed with T. Henry and Clarace Williams, while Bill and Lois would spend the next 5½ days with Dr. Bob and Anne Smith [right: Bob S., Anne S., Lois W., Bill W., respectively, c. 1937].

1970: In New York City, Bill W.’s wife, Lois, read “Bill’s Last Message” of 266 words [left] to 2,000 attendees at the annual dinner hosted by the New York Intergroup Association in honor of Bill’s 36th anniversary of sobriety. It read, in part:

My thoughts are much occupied these days with gratitude to our Fellowship and for the myriad blessings bestowed upon us by God’s Grace.

If I were asked which of these blessings I felt was most responsible for our growth as a fellowship and most vital to our continuity, I would say, the “Concept of Anonymity.”

Bill was unable to attend, as he was hospitalized with acute emphysema at the time.

1988: Lois W. was buried next to her husband, Bill, in the East Dorset Cemetery in East Dorset, Vermont [right: Lois’ headstone].

2002: The second Gulf Conference began in Bahrain’s American Mission Hospital [left]. Under the title “A.A. Primary Purpose in Full Throttle in Arabian Gulf,” Bahrain’s central office would later report,

October 10 witnessed a miracle for us; we experienced A.A.’s altruistic movement ripple its way through the atmosphere, deep into our souls. The second Gulf Conference started at 4:30 p.m. with a recovery meeting in Bahrain’s American Mission Hospital and ended past midnight with everyone boogying in a member’s home.

There was mingling, sharing and bonding. There was fellowship from Oman, Riyadh, Kuwait, Daharan, Dammam and even Bournemouth. Attendance was quite overwhelming. To be honest, the organizing committee had expected 35-45 people, but almost double that number came. Some were in A.A., while others were from the medical body. Overall the message of recovery was carried effectively.

No committee, no human power, absolutely nothing but God can take credit for such success.…

God bless your trudge along the Road of Happy Destiny.

October in A.A. History—day unknown

1939: Dorothy Wright S. [right] (Clarence’s wife, who at this time still believed she wasn’t an alcoholic) wrote to the Alcoholic Foundation office in New York City to report that the first A.A. central committee, consisting of five men and two women, had been established in Cleveland, Ohio. She wrote,

It’s really functioning. They appoint leaders, discuss tendencies, and arrange social affairs, and they are thinking of a masked dance for Halloween.

She also noted that each month, one man and one woman would be replaced by the next most senior member, establishing the principle of rotation.

Bill W. later attributed this principle to Albert “Abby” G. [left], the committee’s first chair, saying, “Up to that time, all of our affairs had been in charge of [sic] the ultra-oldtimers, and we naturally supposed it would always be that way.” But Mitchell K.’s How It Worked claims that it was really Clarence’s idea.

Just six months earlier, on 17 April, Abby had been admitted to Akron City Hospital under Dr. Bob S.’s care. On 18 May, he was still in Akron when his non-alcoholic wife hosted Cleveland’s first A.A. meeting at their home. Abby’s story, “He Thought He Could Drink Like a Gentleman,” appears in the 2nd and 3rd editions of the Big Book, Alcoholics Anonymous.