June 29 in A.A. History

1995: Fifty-six thousand people celebrated the 60th Anniversary of Alcoholics Anonymous at the 10th International Convention in San Diego, California [left: sketches from Box 4-5-9, Aug/Sep 1995; right: Saturday night Big Meeting].

2000: Forty-seven thousand people gathered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, for the 11th International Convention, celebrating Alcoholics Anonymous’s 65th Anniversary [left: Saturday night Big Meeting].

Today in A.A. History—June 29–July 4

1913: Seventeen-year-old Bill W. accompanied his maternal grandfather, Gardner Fayette Griffith [below left:, superimposed], to the 50th anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg, where Fayette had fought in the Civil War.
    The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, in collaboration with the Federal War Department, meticulously organized this spectacular event. It drew 53,407 veterans, including approximately 8,750 former Confederates, making it the largest Civil War veterans’ reunion ever held. All honorably discharged veterans of the Grand Army of the Republic and the United Confederate Veterans were invited, with attendees from 46 of the 48 states. Bill and Fayette likely stayed at the Great Camp [below], a tent city officially known as The Peace Reunion Camp of the Blue and Gray, which the War Department established on leased farmland near the battlefield.

    Fayette pointed out the location where his military unit, Company B of the 14th Vermont Infantry, along with other Vermont regiments, had outflanked Pickett’s Charge and significantly contributed to the Union victory [right: gold arrow at bottom showing Company B’s position]. The hot days featured numerous speeches and exhibits, concluding with an address by President Woodrow Wilson on July 4th.

A.A. History—month & day unknown

1930: After Bill W. was dismissed from Greenshields and Co. in Montreal, Quebec, by his friend Dick Johnson, he and Lois took a train to the Burnhams’ “Camp” in Vermont. Soon after, Lois went ahead to her parent’s at 182 Clinton St. in Brooklyn. Bill joined her shortly afterward and they lived there till being evicted in April 1939.

June 28 in A.A. History

1935: Dr. Bob S. [near right] and Bill W. [center right, 1937] first visited Bill D. [far right] at Akron City Hospital in Ohio. Bill D.’s story, “Alcoholic Anonymous Number Three,” appears in the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th editions of the Big Book, Alcoholics Anonymous. A prominent Akron attorney, Bill D. had been hospitalized for his drinking eight times in the first half of 1935 alone.
    Following their initial visit, Dr. Bob and Bill W. saw Bill D. daily.^* It took about five days for him to admit he could not control his drinking. He was discharged on July 4 and, within a week, returned to court sober to argue a case. The day Dotson left the hospital marks the founding of Akron's Group #1, A.A.’s first group. He later served as a Panel 1 Delegate for Ohio at the first General Service Conference in 1951.

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^*Edgar R. [left] who sobered up (at least temporarily) later that summer, claimed to have been present with Dr. Bob and Bill W. for at least one of these visits.

1940: Works Publishing, Inc. formally acquired the assets and liabilities of “William G. W――, doing business as Works Publishing Company, of New York City, N.Y.” [left: copyright assignment]. This acquisition included the copyright to Alcoholics Anonymous, known as the Big Book. However, it was later discovered that this copyright was never valid because some pre-publication multilith manuscript copies of the book had been distributed without any indication that they were “ON LOAN.”

1944: The photo at right was taken of bridge players in the Alcoholics Anonymous clubroom in Manhattan.

1961: Irwin Sydney “Irv” Meyerson, 63, died in Los Angeles, California [left: gravestone].

Today in A.A. History—June 28–30

1955: Most sessions of the 5th General Service Conference (GSC) were held at the Jefferson Hotel [right, 1940s] in St. Louis, Missouri.
    The final session, the only public one ever held, took place at the 2nd International Convention of Alcoholics Anonymous, on the stage of the Kiel Auditorium [left, 1997] in St. Louis on 3 July (see entry for that date). This marked the end of the GSC experiment and established a lasting component of the A.A. General Service Structure that remains to this day.

A.A. History—month & day unknown

1929: [Spring; Pass It On says sometime in 1930] Charles B. Towns [near right] hired Dr. William Duncan Silkworth [far right] to run the alcohol rehabilitation program at Towns Hospital [left], located at 292–3 Central Park West in Manhattan. Silkworth’s salary was $40 per week [~$779 in 2026], which Bill W. later described as “pitiful pay, something like $40 a week and board.”

1929: [Fall] After the stock market crash of late October, Bill and Lois W. were forced to leave their “fine apartment” at 38 Livingston St. [right, c. 1940] in Brooklyn. Like many investors at the time, Bill had bought on margin and incurred significant losses. Fortunately, they managed to sublet it for part of the remaining lease term, though at a reduced rate. Subsequently, they moved back in with Lois’s parents at 182 Clinton St. in Brooklyn.

June 27 in A.A. History

1890: Daniel Doherty “Dohr” S. [left] was born in Logansport, Indiana, the fifth of ten children to Mary Agnes Doherty and Simon Patrick S.

1938: [Lois Remembers says June 15] In her diary, Lois noted that she “got mad at Bill,” and he consequently “went over to Jersey for lunch.” She added that he “came close to taking a drink” [right: Lois & Bill in a happier moment, c. late 1930s]. Lois had just returned to 182 Clinton St. on the 25th, after a five-day visit with her sister. Lois later wrote in Lois Remembers, her memoir, “I got mad at Bill and he dashed out to take a drink, but went to [Hank & Kathleen] P――s [sic] instead.”

A.A. History—month & day unknown

1924: [Fall] Bill W. returned to Brooklyn Law School, intending to graduate in June. However, he failed “Executors and Administrators,” a course on wills, estates, and trusts, and was required to retake it.

1926: [Summer] Rowland Hazard III [far left, 1921] and his family traveled to Europe, where he sought help for his alcoholism from Dr. Carl Jung [near left] in Switzerland. He spent two weeks to two months with Jung, who ultimately encouraged him to pursue a spiritual experience—the only solution Jung had ever found effective.

1927: The French prayer “Belle prière à faire pendant la messe” (A Beautiful Prayer to Say During Mass) first appeared in English in Kirby Page’s book, Living Courageously [near right: cover; far right: p. 277, prayer at bottom of page]. Page [far left], a Disciple of Christ minister, pacifist, social evangelist, author, and editor of The World Tomorrow [near left], included the English version of the prayer at the end of his article titled “Prevent War,” attributing it to St. Francis of Assisi. This prayer, originally published in December 1912 in Paris, France, in the magazine La Clochette (The Little Bell), later became known as “The Prayer of St. Francis.”

1927: Bill and Lois W. rented an apartment in Brooklyn. In her memoir, Lois Remembers, Lois wrote:

    Upon returning to Brooklyn [after stopping in Miami Beach to see Bill’s father, on the way home from Cuba] we rented a fine, three-room apartment at 38 Livingston Street [right, c. 1940] in a good residential neighborhood. Bill was beginning to feel his financial oats; so when a neighbor moved out of the apartment next door, we took on that, too, and had the in-between wall pulled down. A three-year lease and a promise to pay for replacing the wall were necessary. Bill, although flush at the time, was well aware that he was in an unstable business. So he offered to pay the three years’ rent in advance, but this was refused. We now had two bedrooms, two baths, two kitchens and one tremendous living room. That was the point of it all—Bill loved big living rooms. A grand piano [far left: refurbished (not theirs), 1927] was needed, of course, to help fill the expanded space. Bill bought a Mason and Hamlin, and I recently came across the old bill—$1,600 [actually it was $1,650, ~$31,600 in 2026; near left: 10 Dec 1928 invoice from John Wanamaker].

1928: Sister Ignatia [near right] became the admissions officer at St. Thomas Hospital in Akron, Ohio, where she met Dr. Robert “Bob” S. [far right, 1918], who was a courtesy staff member. The two quickly formed a friendship.
    A trained and talented musician, Sister Ignatia had joined the Sisters of Charity of St. Augustine in 1914. She taught music to children until she experienced a complete breakdown. After her recovery, she was reassigned to St. Thomas to safeguard her health.

June 26 in A.A. History

1935: Bill D. [right, with wife, Henrietta], a prominent attorney and Akron city councilman, was admitted to Akron City Hospital in Ohio for his final detox and his first day of sobriety. He wrote about this experience in his story, “Alcoholics Anonymous Number Three,” is in the second, third, and fourth editions of Alcoholics Anonymous:

    On June 26, 1935, I came to in the hospital, and to say I was discouraged is to put it mildly. Each of the seven times I had left this hospital in the previous six months, I had come fully determined in my own mind that I would not get drunk again—for at least six to eight months. It hadn’t worked out that way, and I didn’t know what the matter was and did not know what to do.

    Two days later, Bill W. and Dr. Bob S.^* visited him. Six days after that, on 4 July, he left the hospital, never to drink again. That day marked the founding of A.A. Group Number One. Within a week, he was back in court, arguing a case.

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^*Edgar R. claimed to have been with Bill and Bob on this visit; I wouldn't be surprised to learn that was true.

Today in A.A. History—June 26–29

1955: The 5th General Service Conference met prior to the 2nd International Conference at the Jefferson Hotel [left, c. 1940s] in St. Louis, Missouri. Advisory Actions included:

• The… plan for selecting Class B Trustees from outlying areas is submitted for consideration, subject to approval of the General Service Conference [note: this is the first move to establish Regions—the initial geographical groupings were called “Area A” thru “Area E”].
• The Delegates voted overwhelmingly to set the retail price of the new edition [of Alcoholics Anonymous] at $4.50 [~$56 in 2026], the price to A.A. groups at $4.00 [~$50 in 2026] and to earmark fifty cents [of each sale, ~$6.20 in 2026] for the Reserve Fund.
• … adopting the proposed permanent “Charter of the General Service Conference of Alcoholics Anonymous—North American Section,” subject to approval of the 20th Anniversary Convention of A.A.

    A Public Relations Policy and Practice report noted, among other things, the following activities:

• Headquarters cooperation with the North American Newspaper Alliance syndicate, with Fawcett Publications and with the New York Daily News on stories proposed. In all cases, emphasis is on the fact that A.A. does not “promote” publicity, nor does it endorse specific articles.
• Headquarters cooperation in John Daly’s network television presentation on A.A. on his “Open Hearing” program. Substantial assistance was rendered by Grapevine personnel.
• Continued correspondence and consultation with representatives of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studios over the projected filming of the Lillian Roth book, "I'll Cry Tomorrow," in which it is proposed to portray an A.A. member who deliberately breaks anonymity.

    The final session, the only public one ever held during a General Service Conference (GSC), took place on 3 July (see entry for that date) at the Kiel Auditorium [right; 1940s] in St. Louis. This session marked the end of the GSC experiment and established a lasting component of the A.A. General Service Structure that remains in place today.

June 25 in A.A. History

1908: David “Dave” B. [left: as an older adult] was born in Toronto, Ontario.
    He grew up in Knowlton, Quebec, and married Dorothy Ford on 1 September 1929. They had three children and thirteen grandchildren. In the late 1930s or early 1940s, he was incarcerated in a mental institution. He got sober in Alcoholics Anonymous in 1944 and became a founding member of A.A. in Quebec. From 1962 to 1964, he served as a Class B (alcoholic) Trustee. His story, “Gratitude in Action,” appeared in the fourth edition of the Big Book, Alcoholics Anonymous. It is said that every French-speaking A.A. meeting in the world traces its roots back to the group he founded in Montreal.

1939: Percy Hutchison of The New York Times gave a highly favorable review [right] of the book Alcoholics Anonymous, noting that its central thesis “is more soundly based psychologically than any other treatment of the subject I have ever come upon.” Despite the positive review, however, sales did not improve, presumably because the book was not available in bookstores.

June in A.A. History—day unknown

1995: The A.A. General Service Office (GSO) in New York City completed the implementation of a new records system. Later in the year, an imaging system was to be introduced to enhance the safety of archival materials and improve the storage and retrieval of GSO documentary information.

1996: At the direction of the General Service Conference, and paid for by the General Service Board, A.A. Grapevine, Inc. began bi-monthly publication of the Spanish-language magazine, La Viña [left: cover of inaugural issue].

2021: Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc. published a revised edition of Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions [left: cover of revised edition]. This edition marked the first time the text had been altered, with an explanatory footnote added to each of the two changed passages. The book’s Introduction explained:

    In recent years some members and friends of A.A. have asked if it would be wise to update the language, idioms, and historical references in the book to present a more contemporary image for the Fellowship. However, because the book has helped so many alcoholics find recovery, there exists strong sentiment within the Fellowship against any change to it. In fact, the 2002 General Service Conference discussed this issue and it was unanimously recommended that “The text in the book Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, written by Bill W., remain as is, recognizing the Fellowship’s feelings that’s Bill’s writing remain as originally published.” However, with a focus on inclusivity, the 2021 General Service Conference updated and footnoted some of the original language for clarity.

2024: The A.A. Grapevine celebrated its 80th anniversary [right: cover of anniversary issue].

June 24 in A.A. History

1898: Irwin “Irv” M. [right] was born in Cleveland, Ohio, the eldest of six children, to Minnie Cohen and Benjamin William M.
    Irv would begin his career as a salesman but struggled with alcoholism, losing several accounts before becoming one of Clarence S.’s “babies.” His wife would often ask Clarence to “pull” Irv from bars and “convince” him that he “needed to be fixed.” Irv initially would find sobriety challenging but would eventually embrace the principles of Alcoholics Anonymous (A.A.) and dedicate himself to helping others.
    As a salesman, Irv would travel extensively throughout the southeastern United States, selling Venetian blinds. During his travels, he would initiate A.A. meetings and become a highly effective high-pressure salesman—both with alcoholics and his customers. In Alcoholics Anonymous Comes of Age, Bill W. would note:
Irwin weighed 250 pounds [~113.4 kg] and, at 5’9” [175 cm], was full of energy and gusto. The prospect of Irwin, as a missionary, scared us rather badly.
    Given his vast sales territory, Irv would regularly receive lists of potential A.A. members from Ruth Hock at the Alcoholic Foundation Headquarters in New York City. He would pursue these leads with the same enthusiasm he applied to his sales efforts, establishing A.A. groups in cities such as Atlanta, Georgia; Indianapolis, Indiana; throughout West Virginia; and across the South.

1938: Bill W. [far left] replied to a letter dated June 21 from Jeremiah D. Maguire [near left], President of Federation Bank and Trust Company. Bill had previously sent Maguire Hank P.’s promotional brochure. Maguire’s letter expressed interest in the brochure and offered “to try to work out an appointment.” Bill expressed gratitude and included an outline of the remaining chapters of the book, along with a copy of a letter he had dictated to Dr. Bob S., to “give you [Maguire] a clearer idea of what is going on and how we are progressing.”

1938: Frank Amos [near right] wrote to Albert Scott [far right], (both close associates of John D. Rockefeller, Jr.),

    to tell you in detail the developments in the activities of the self-styled Alcoholics squad… The work has been going splendidly and every day evidences are piling up which strengthen my conviction that these fellows are not only on the level but have developed a Christian technique which if earnestly followed out is, and can be, effective in a majority of cases… [T]hey have decided to bring out a book.… The idea is for the book not to bear the name of any author but to be by “Alcoholics Anonymous.”

    He included…

    a rough draft of the first dictation. The first page… is outlining the purpose of it. The rest is a rough beginning on Chapter I [“There Is A Solution”] and on the first story of an ex-alcoholic [“Bill’s Story”].

1985: U.S. President Ronald Reagan [left] sent a two-page letter of congratulations to Alcoholics Anonymous, recognizing its 50th Anniversary celebration. The celebration took place during the International Convention in Montreal from July 5 to 7 [below: the “Big Meeting” in Montreal]. The letter [right] stated, in part:

    Nancy and I send our warmest wishes for a successful convention as you continue to observe the 50th anniversary of Alcoholics Anonymous.
    Look around you, at the more than 30,000 men, women, and even children who have overcome alcoholism. You are the lucky ones; you are the winners.…
    I would like to share with you one of Nancy’s favorite stories. It is about a starfish man.
    One morning at dawn, a young boy went for a walk on the beach. Up ahead, he noticed an old man stooping down to pick up starfish and flinging them into the sea. Finally, catching up with the old man, the boy asked him what he was doing. The old man answered that the stranded starfish would die unless they were returned to the water.
    “But the beach goes on for miles, and there are millions of starfish,” protested the boy. “How can what you’re doing make any difference?”
    The old man looked at the starfish in his hand and then threw it to safety in the waves. “It makes a difference to this one,” he said.
    When the co-founders of AA first began to share their hope, they had no idea that AA would become more than one million members strong, or that it would encompass 114 countries around the world. But they laid the foundation for the world's largest self-help group. They reached for only one stranded starfish at a time… one day at a time.
    You are making the world a better place for all of us, and on behalf of all mankind, we are grateful. God bless all of you.

June in A.A. History (days unknown)

1958: Bill W. [near right, 1958] wrote a long letter to Rev. Sam Shoemaker [far right], in which he expressed “his most eloquent and personal thoughts about his relationship to the program, LSD, personal ambitions for his own future, and the nature of the universe.”^* The letter included the following excerpt:

    Could I achieve enough personal freedom, my main interests would almost surely become these:
    (1) To bring into the field of the general neurosis which today affects nearly everybody, such experience as A.A. has had. This could be of value to the many groups working in this field.
    (2) Throughout A.A., we find a large amount of psychic phenomena, nearly all of it spontaneous. Alcoholic after alcoholic tells me of such experiences and asks if these denote lunacy—or do they have real meaning? These psychic experiences have run nearly the full gamut of everything we see in the books. In addition to my original mystic experience, I’ve had a lot of such phenomenalism myself.
    I have come to believe that proof surely exists that life goes on; that if better strategy and modern instrumentation were applied to the survival problem, a proof could be made to the satisfaction of everyone. To my mind, the world badly needs this proof now. So I would like to participate in some of these efforts and experiments.

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^*Quoting from Pass It On.

1960: In an article titled “To Father Ed—Godspeed!” in the A.A. Grapevine, Bill W. eulogized Father Edward “Ed” Dowling, S.J. [left].

    Early Sunday morning, April 3rd, Father Edward Dowling died peacefully in his sleep. The place was Memphis, Tennessee. Cheerfully unmindful of his ebbing health, he had been visiting one of his “Cana”^* groups. Never was there a gayer evening than in the hours before. He would have wanted to take his leave of us in just that way. This was one of the most gentle souls and finest friends we A.A.s may ever know. He left a heritage of inspiration and grace which will be with us always.…
    In my own life he has been a friend, adviser, great example, and the source of more inspiration than I can say. 
    Father Ed is made of the stuff of saints.…

    As reprinted from the November 2016 issue of Magnificat and published on the Catholic Education Resource Center website, Heather King reported on his funeral, stating in part:

    He was an old-school priest, made of the kind of fine cloth that prefers to disguise itself as sacking. His funeral was packed. From society matrons in mink coats to Skid Row drunks, people came from around the country to pay homage.
    “I really haven’t done anything,” Father Dowling once said. “It’s really simple. I just happened to be around.”

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^*Founded by Father Ed, Cana groups operate under the auspices of the Roman Catholic Church, applying A.A.’s Twelve Steps to address challenging family issues.

1967: The first reference to Alcoholics Anonymous in the Bahamas [right: geologic view] was recorded in the South Florida General Service Conference Area (15) Book of Motions. It stated, “That District 8 be entitled to add one additional committee member (to be from the Bahamas).” A.A. in the Bahamas were also invited to join the South Florida Conference Area as part of District 8.

1979: The New Zealand Conference of Alcoholics Anonymous approved the printing of pamphlets in the languages of several Pacific Island nations: Samoan, Tongan, Niuean (Vagahau Niue), and Fijian [left: from “AA in Samoa” website; below: Alcoholics Anonymous in this part of Oceania].