June 20 in A.A. History

1944: In a bulletin to A.A. groups, National Secretary Margaret “Bobbie” B. [left] announced that due to high demand, Bill W.’s presentation to the New York State Medical Society and Dr. Harry Tiebout’s paper to the American Psychiatric Association would be published together in a pamphlet titled “Medicine Looks at Alcoholics Anonymous” [right: as published, undated].

1946: Drs. C. Nelson Davis [near right] and C. Dudley Saul [far right] cofounded The C. Dudley Saul Clinic for alcoholics at St. Luke’s Hospital in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. This clinic was the first private facility of its kind in the United States. Following Dr. Saul’s death in 1947, Dr. Davis relocated the clinic to Malvern, Pennsylvania, renaming it the Malvern Institute [left]. The institute continues to treat alcoholics today.
    Both doctors were early proponents of Alcoholics Anonymous (A.A.) and traveled together to promote the organization, convinced of the benefits of a 12-step program for recovering alcoholics. Furthermore, Dr. Saul established the 4021 Clubhouse [right, c. 2006] in Philadelphia for A.A. meetings, which also remains active today.

June in A.A. History—day unknown

1947: The Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs published an article from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, titled “Experience in Short-Term Hospitalization of the Alcoholic.” The article stated, in part:

    Dr. C. Nelson Davis [left] reported to the Philadelphia Psychiatric Society that of the patients admitted to the [C. Dudley] Saul Clinic [in an annex to St. Luke’s Hospital in Philadelphia] during the month of June 1946, 60% were found to be dry one month after discharge, and 45% were still dry three months after discharge. He further reported that of the patients admitted during the month of July 1946, 60% were found to be dry one month after discharge, and 37.5,% were still dry three months after discharge.

1947: The A.A. Grapevine first published the A.A. Preamble [right: original published version], which was written by then-editor Tom Y. Its primary purpose was to introduce A.A. to non-alcoholic readers, with much of its wording adapted from the Foreword of the first edition of the Big Book, Alcoholics Anonymous.
    A few months later, Ollie L., Dick F., and Searcy W. [left] decided to create a version of the Preamble specifically for alcoholics in Texas. Searcy later recalled, “We worked on it, passed it around, and agreed on this version. It’s now read by groups throughout the state.” This revised version became widely known as the Texas Preamble.

1947: The A.A. Grapevine announced the availability of a two-record set—two 12-inch phonograph records [right: one of them, with enlarged label] featuring a general talk on A.A. by Bill W., priced at $3.30 per set [~$47 in 2024].

1947: The first Alcoholics Anonymous group in Juneau, Alaska [left, 1940s], was formed with five members.

June 19 in A.A. History

1946: While in South America, an American wrote the letter [right: text], which would lead to the establishment of Alcoholics Anonymous in Argentina.
    Herb, an American advertising executive, had gotten sober in Chicago, Illinois, in 1945. He and his wife, Elizabeth, moved to Rio de Janeiro, where he began a three-year contract as art director at a large international advertising company.
    Someone at the Cosmopolitan Club obviously forwarded this letter to the Alcoholic Foundation in New York City, because Margaret “Bobbie” B., A.A.’s National Secretary, responded to him. She sent contact information for two additional people who she thought might be able to help: Don N. and Douglas C. She also provided the name of a young man from Recife^* whom Herb might be able to assist and informed him that she had mailed him a “free supply of literature.”

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^*Recife is the State of Pernambuco, Brazil, almost 2,400 miles [~3,800 km] NE of Rio de Janeiro. It’s unclear what Bobbie thought Herb could do with this contact [left: global view of Argentina, showing Rio de Janeiro and Recife].

1949: A new Alcoholics Anonymous group held its first meeting in the Ohio Penitentiary (colloquially known as “Pentown”), an initiative “heartily endorsed” by Warden Ralph Alvis. Twelve days later, on July 2nd, The Ohio State News published “‘Residents’ At Pen Join ‘A.A.’ Unit” [right], reporting:
    The inmates of Ohio Penitentiary at Columbus are being reformed in more ways than one. The nation-wide “Alcoholics” Anonymous has established a chapter in Pentown.
    The first meeting was held June 19, and a goodly number of “residents” attended to begin their trip back to “normalcy.”…
    In keeping with the unique policy of “A.A.,” names of inmates are omitted so that no one knows who is a member and who is not.

Today in A.A. History—June 19–21

1981: The University of Akron in Ohio hosted the 46th Annual A.A. Founders’ Day Weekend, as noted in issue #9 of the 1981 Founders Day Herald [left].

Today in A.A. History—June 19–23

1977: The American Medical Association’s House of Delegates, its primary legislative and policy-making body, endorsed the International Classification of Diseases’ dual classification of alcoholism, recognizing it under both psychiatric and medical sections [right: resolution].

June 18 in A.A. History

1935: [Assuming Dr. Bob’s last drink was June 17th…] In Akron, Ohio, the day after his last drink, Dr. Bob Smith suggested to Bill Wilson that they find other alcoholics to work with.
    A local minister, J. C. Wright, connected them with Edgar “Eddie” Reilly [left], an “alcoholic atheist” known for creating significant daily crises. They spent the summer trying, in vain, to sober him up. Notably, Eddie once chased Bob’s wife, Anne, around their home with a knife. Eddie also claimed to have visited Bill Dotson (A.A. #3) in the hospital alongside Bill and Bob.
    Though he missed the chance to become A.A. #3, years later, at a large A.A. meeting in Youngstown, Dr. Bob exclaimed, “Holy Moses!” upon seeing Eddie, who was reportedly sober for one year at that time. Eddie attended Dr. Bob’s funeral in 1950 and later became a member of the Youngstown, Ohio group. When Eddie died in 1963, his wife stated he had been sober for 17 years, dating back to 1946.

1940: The first meeting at the first A.A. clubhouse, located at 334½ W. 24th St. in New York City, drew 100 attendees. A February 1951 article in the A.A. Grapevine described the location:
    The cryptic letters “AA” had gone up on a battered green doorway in the undistinguished neighborhood of New York’s once elegant Chelsea district. It isn’t a very auspicious doorway, nor a conspicuous sign.… Wedged in between two old-fashioned brick-fronts,… there isn’t supposed to be any doorway there at all.… You push open the door. You’re in a little ves­­tibule.… And you open the inner door to find—nothing! Nothing, that is, except a long, bare, tunnel-like and mysterious looking hallway.… 
    Actually this is merely the passageway between the two houses back to the oddity of an “extra building” built in the rear, over what had once been the “gardens.” It was Bill who first christened this hall “The Last Mile.”… Ultimately you step into the inner sanctum which… is the “meeting room.” An old upright piano, a card table or two, a few nondescript chairs and, of course, people. But the center of the room to your newcomer’s eye is the fireplace, pine panelled [sic], with a plain wooden mantel and, over it… the sign reading—“But For The Grace of God….” On the second floor there is another room of about the same size only somewhat lighter and airier because of the skylight. Here, in addition to the secretary’s desk, is what is called… grandly… “the lounge” … two wicker divans, three chairs and a table! Off in the far corner is a door leading to two tiny rooms that will be Lois and Bill’s living quarters during a period when AA’s financial affairs could easily be kept on the back of an old envelope.
    Herbert “Bert” T. and Horace C. personally guaranteed the building's rent. [Below, first row, left to right: climbing the the stairs behind the entrance; main room of clubhouse; The Saturday Evening Post’s photo of “a typical meeting,” which was anything but typical; entrance; the “long, bare tunnel-like and mysterious” hallway; the upstairs room, where Bill and Lois lived for the first year the clubhouse was open. Below, second row: location of clubhouse at 334½ W. 24th St, New York City, with arrow pointing to entrance (c. 1940).]

June 17 in A.A. History

1926: Katharine “Kitty” Burnham (Lois W.’s sister) [near right, 1924] and Gardner Swentzel [far right, 1916] were married at the Church of the New Jerusalem in Brooklyn. The Burnhams then held a “very small” reception at their nearby home, 182 Clinton Street [left: “Miss Katharine Burnham Sets June 17 as Wedding Day,” Brooklyn Daily Eagle, 2 May 1926].
    Bill and Lois had interrupted their motorcycle tour in Alabama to attend the wedding. On their way, they had an accident outside Dayton, Tennessee, where Bill broke his collarbone and Lois twisted her leg, resulting in “water on the knee.” They spent a week recovering and then, after a few more days, shipped their motorcycle and belongings home while they took the train. As Lois described it:

    Although we were in plenty of time for the wedding, I made a sorry looking matron of honor, when, with red gashes on my face, I limped up the aisle.

1935: Modern historical research indicates that Dr. Bob S.’s last drink occurred on this date, not June 10, the widely believed date and official founding date of Alcoholics Anonymous.
    Dr. Bob S. [right] had decided to attend the annual American Medical Association convention in Atlantic City, New Jersey, from June 10 to 14. He had started drinking on the train from Akron, bought several bottles of booze in Atlantic City, and checked into his hotel. On the first day of the convention, he had remained sober until after dinner, then binged for three or four days. A drunken Dr. Bob ultimately ended up at Union Station in Akron. He must have called his office nurse, Lily, who had picked him up and took him to her home in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. Dr. Bob’s wife, Anne [far left], and Bill W. [near left] had come to pick him up. With Bill’s help, Bob spent three days sobering up.
    Facing surgery at Akron City Hospital, he made a pivotal decision:

    I am going through with this—I have placed both the operation and myself in God’s hands. I’m going to do what it takes to get sober and stay that way.

    Before the surgery, Bill gave Bob his last drink—a beer—and a “goofball” (a barbiturate) to help steady him. The surgery was apparently successful. However, Bob didn’t come home right away, which worried Anne and Bill. When Bob finally did return, they learned he had spent the rest of the day going around town making amends.

1942: Local A.A. groups hosted the inaugural New York City area meeting, which attracted 424 attendees. The event featured speakers Rev. Vincent Donovan [near right], Dr. William D. Silkworth [middle right], and Willard S. Richardson [far right], Treasurer of the Alcoholic Foundation and an associate of John D. Rockefeller, Jr.

1967: T. Henry Williams [left] died and was buried at Crown Hill Cemetery and Mausoleum in Twinsburg, Ohio.
    From the early 1930s until 1939, he and his wife, Clarace, had hosted weekly Oxford Group meetings at their home [right]. Early members like Henrietta Seiberling, Dr. Bob, and Anne Smith attended these gatherings. Following Bill Wilson's arrival in 1935, new members of the emerging Alcoholics Anonymous group in Akron, Ohio, also joined as part of the Oxford Group's “alcoholic squadron.”

June 16 in A.A. History

1935: Day three of Dr. Bob S.’s three-day drying out period (detoxification) with Bill W.

1938: James “Jimmy” B. [right], author of “The Vicious Cycle” in the second, third, and fourth editions of Alcoholics Anonymous, had his last drink after a successful week selling car polish in New England, where two customers had taken him to lunch.

    I spent the next four days wandering around New England half drunk, by which I mean I couldn’t get drunk and I couldn’t get sober. I tried to contact the boys in New York [City], but telegrams bounced right back, and when I got Hank [P.] on the telephone he fired me right then. This was when I really took my first good look at myself.… My brilliant agnosticism vanished, and I saw for the first time that those who really believed, or at least honestly tried to find a Power greater than themselves, were much more composed and contented than I had ever been, and they seemed to have a degree of happiness I had never known.

    Humbled, Jimmy returned to New York City, where the group warmly welcomed him back. Bill Wilson’s reinterpretation of this part of Jimmy’s recovery is mythologized as the story of “Ed” on pages 143–145 of the chapter “Tradition 3” in Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions.

1940: The first Alcoholics Anonymous (A.A.) group in Baltimore, Maryland, was founded by James “Jimmy” B. and James “Jim” R. 
    Jim had gotten sober on 7 June 1933, over 18 months before Bill W. At the time, he was attempting, without success, to help two other alcoholics. Jimmy B. learned about Jim H. through the Alcoholic Foundation in New York City and contacted him. Jim was eager for the “A.A.” help that Jimmy described.
    The two men, along with three others, first met at Jim’s home at 2936 St. Paul Street [left]. Shortly after, Jimmy received a letter from a Baltimore lawyer in Philadelphia who sought help for his alcoholic brother. The lawyer offered his office in the Munsey Trust Building on Fayette Street [right, c. 1920s] as a meeting location. Just six days later, 22 on June, these same six men held Baltimore’s second A.A. meeting in the lawyer’s office.
    Over the past 86 years, the group, now known as the 857 Club (or Rebos Club) [left], has remained active despite several location changes. It currently hosts 14 meetings each week, including two hybrid (online and face-to-face) sessions, at 100 S. Haven Street in Baltimore’s Canton/Highlandtown neighborhood.

June in A.A. History—day unknown

1967: Rex A. wrote to the A.A. Grapevine, beginning his letter:

    The Australian branch of Alcoholics Anonymous came into being in October, 1944. Its founders (all nonalcoholics) were the Reverend Father T. V. Dunlea^* …, Dr. S. J. Minogue^†…, and Mr. A. V. Mc-Kinnon⁺
    Now, in June, 1946, we have a convalescent home at Sutherland, capable of housing 20 or 30 patients, who are in need of mental and physical rehabilitation, and have taken over a residential in Sydney where members live, pay rent and go to work; this place can accommodate 20 or so people and in it we have our meeting room, where we congregate twice weekly.…
    We estimate our membership at 150. It is too early to state how many have completely recovered, but probably no more than 12. Fifty-odd have shown very marked improvement, their relapses occurring less frequently as time goes on. The rest are just floundering around.

    The full message, perhaps edited, would be published in the October 1946 issue as “New Interest Created: Australian Branch Notes No. 1.”

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^*Thomas “Tom” Dunlea, OBE
^†Sylvester John Minogue
⁺Archie V. McKinnon

June 15 in A.A. History

1921: Elizabeth Gwathwey [near right, 1916] and John FitzHugh “Fitz” M. [far right, 1914–18] marry in Norfolk, Virginia.

1935: Day two of Dr. Bob S.’s three-day drying out period (detoxification) with Bill W.

1938: In Lois Remembers, Lois W. would recall this date as the first time the term “Alcoholics Anonymous” was used.
  1945: Jeannie C. hosted the first A.A. meeting in Springfield, Missouri, at her home, 1950 S. Jefferson Ave. [left, 2016].
    During World War II, Jeannie temporarily resided at the Bellerive^* Hotel, [right, c. 1940] a prominent and historic apartment hotel at 214 East Armour Boulevard in Kansas City, Missouri. It was there that she first tried to stay sober. After several setbacks, she discovered Jack Alexander’s article in The Saturday Evening Post, “Alcoholics Anonymous: Freed Slaves of Drink, Now They Free Others.” She contacted the Alcoholic Foundation in New York City and was connected with A.A. members in St. Louis, but maintaining communication from Kansas City proved challenging. Almost by chance, chance, Jeannie later recounted, she saw a newspaper ad in Kansas City for individuals with a drinking problem. She wrote to the listed P.O. Box, which connected her to the Kansas City Number One group, where she ultimately found sobriety.
    After two years of sobriety, Jeannie returned to Springfield. She stayed sober for another two years by making frequent trips to Kansas City, despite gas rationing, and by corresponding with National Secretary Margaret “Bobbie” B. at the Alcoholic Foundation office in New York City. Encouraged by the Kansas City group, she wrote an editorial about A.A. for the local Springfield paper and secured a post office box. After compiling a dozen names, she organized Springfield’s first group meeting at her home on January 15.
    Later, Jeannie would be instrumental in establishing A.A. in Joplin, Missouri. After receiving a call from Jim S. asking how to start a group, Jeannie organized several carloads of members from Springfield and Kansas City to travel to Joplin.

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^*The document “A Journey into Sobriety: A History of Alcoholics Anonymous [in] Springfield, Missouri” refers to a “Bellflower Hotel.” However, there is no evidence of a hotel by that name in Kansas City, suggesting it is likely a misspelling of the “Bellerive Hotel.”

1953: Dr. Earle M. [left], author of “Physician Heal Thyself” in the second, third, and fourth editions of Alcoholics Anonymous, had his last drink and drug. The following week, his friend, and fellow A.A. member, Harry H., took him to his first A.A. meeting: the Tuesday Night Mill Valley group. The meeting was held in Wesley Hall at the Methodist Church [right: probable structure, at Sycamore Ave. & E. Blithedale Ave., 2008] in Mill Valley, California. Only four other people attended: a butcher, a carpenter, a baker, and Harry, who was a mechanic and inventor. Earle loved A.A. from the start, and his devotion remained unwavering, even though he sometimes critiqued the program.

1969: In a letter to the International Conference of Young People in Alcoholics Anonymous (ICYPAA), Bill W. wrote:

    … in recent years I have found nothing for greater inspiration than the knowledge that A.A. of tomorrow will be safe, and certainly magnificent, in the keeping of you who are the younger generation of A.A. today.

June 14 in A.A. History

1935: In the morning, Dr. Bob S.’s nurse, Lily, picked him up at Akron, Ohio’s Union Depot [right, undated]. She drove him to her house and then called Bob’s wife, Anne. Anne and Bill W., who was staying with the S――s, then drove to Lily’s home, picked up Bob, and took him home. (This was five days after he had left Akron for the annual AMA Convention in Atlantic City, New Jersey.) At home, Bob began a three-day “drying out” period with Bill.

1939: Lois W. recorded in her diary that We stayed all night [June 13–14] with Hank [P.] trying to calm him down. But he was determined he was going to leave Kathleen and get a divorce. Got the children up early in the morning and he and Bill [her husband] drove them to the R――s [sic] in Hackettstown so they would be away from the fracas. It seemed to be the lesser evil cause at first he was asking to hide them out some place. Kathleen was of course awfully upset when she and Jean arrived to find the children gone.

1940: The Evening Star of Washington, D.C. published “Clergymen Discover the Efficacy of A.A. in Curing Drunks” [left], the second in a series of articles on Alcoholics Anonymous, “national brotherhood of recovered alcoholics.” It read, in part,

    Progress of Alcoholics Anonymous during the past 18 months, especially in many larger cities of the Nation, has attracted the interest of leaders in religion and medicine.
    They have studied closely this movement that originated in New York City five years ago. They have sought to determine how, in so many cases, the Double A’s [sic] have succeeded in straightening out drunks where other formulas have failed.

1943: In Detroit, Michigan, members proposed creating a separate Discussion Meeting to more effectively introduce newcomers to the Twelve Steps of the Recovery Program. They decided to hold a closed meeting, exclusively for alcoholics, for this purpose. The North-West Group held its first such Discussion Meeting on Monday night, 14 June 1943, at 10216 Plymouth Road [right: Plymouth Road forking to the west from Grand River Ave, 10216 was on the north side of Plymouth, ~½ mi [0.8 km] east of this intersection]. These meetings have continued every Monday night without exception since then^*. During that initial meeting, a plan was developed to present the Twelve Steps by dividing them into four categories, or phases, for easier study:
    (1) Admission,
    (2) Spiritual,
    (3) Restitution and Inventory, and
    (4) Working and Message.
    Each category was discussed in rotation on successive Monday nights. This method proved so successful that it was adopted by other groups, first in Detroit and then throughout the United States. Eventually, it was published in its entirety as “An Interpretation of the Twelve Steps” [left: cover], also known as “The Tablemate” by the A.A. groups of Washington, D.C.; in Detroit, the pamphlet was sometimes called the “Table Leaders Guide.” The Preface read, in part:

    The following pages contain the basic material for the discussion meetings for alcoholics only.
    These meetings are held for the purpose of acquainting both old and new members with the 12 steps on which our program is based.
     So that all twelve steps may be covered in a minimum of time they are divided into four classifications and one evening each week will be devoted to each of the four subdivisions. Thus, in one month, a new man can get the basis of our 12 suggested steps.
    [The Twelve Steps are listed.]    
    These steps are divided as follows:
    Discussion No. 1—The admission, Step No. 1.
    Discussion No. 2—The spiritual phase, Steps 2, 3, 5, 6, 7 and 11.
    Discussion No. 3—The inventory and restitution, Steps No. 4, 8, 9 and 10.
    Discussion No. 4—The active work, which is Step No. 12.

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^*“Without exception since then”—at least up until the time that Area 33 Archivist Cliff M. wrote this statement in a short undated document titled “Alcoholics Anonymous History In Your Area: Michigan, © 1999–2006 Alcoholics Anonymous General Services of Southeast Michigan.”

1946: The March of Time newsreel service released “Problem Drinkers” [right: screen capture], a documentary on alcoholism that prominently featured Alcoholics Anonymous. These shorts were widely distributed and often shown in movie theaters before the main attraction.

1954: In a letter to Bernard Smith, Chair of the Alcoholic Foundation/General Service Board, Bill W. shared his thoughts on the upcoming second edition of Alcoholics Anonymous, slated for publication in 1955. His comments included the following:

    The story section of the Big Book is far more important than most of us think. It is our principal means of identifying with the reader outside of A.A.; it is the written equivalent of hearing speakers at an AA meeting; it is our show window of results. To increase the power and variety of this display to the utmost should be, therefore, no routine or hurried job.
    The best will be none too good. The difference between “good” and “excellent” can be the difference between prolonged misery and recovery, between life and death, for the reader outside A. A.
    The main purpose of the revision is to bring the story section up-to-date, to portray more adequately a cross-section of those who have found help. The audience for the book is people who are coming to Alcoholics Anonymous now. Those who are here have already heard our stories. Since the audience for the book is likely to be newcomers, anything from the point of view of content or style that might offend or alienate those who are not familiar with the program should be carefully eliminated.

    Bill also outlined several “Basic Editorial Approaches” that remain relevant today, more than 70 years later. These included:

1. The desire to reproduce realistic stories should not be overemphasized to the extent of producing an unrealistic book.… There should be no shrinking from the job of editing ruthlessly if such editing will preserve the story, without the realism.
2. Profanity, even when mild, rarely contributes as much as it detracts. It should be avoided.
3. All minor geographic references should be avoided.
4. The stories should be organized coherently, either in terms of chronology or of the specific points the individual is trying to make.
5. “Selling” or other “gimmicks”—editorial and other wise—should be avoided. The story section is not a popular magazine. The appearance and approach should be straightforward, without frills.
6. Humor should stem from the character of the storyteller and of the situations he describes, not be the result of gags.
7. The end results of editing should be that the stories will be suitable for reading aloud—at closed meetings, etc.—without embarrassment.

Today in A.A. History—June 14–15

1947: The Twelfth Anniversary Celebration of Alcoholics Anonymous, commemorating its founding in 1935, took place at the Masonic Auditorium [left, 1940s] at 3615 Euclid Ave. in Cleveland, Ohio, a notable architectural landmark. The program on Saturday, the 14th, included a reception for visitors in the Saints and Sinners room of the Hotel Carter, a tea for ladies, and an Open House at two different locations. On Sunday, the 15th, a banquet accommodated about 1,000 attendees, with tickets priced at $3.00 each (including tax and gratuity [~$43 in 2025]). The weekend also included an organ recital and a mass meeting hosted by Dr. Bob S. Featured speakers at the event included Bill D. (A.A. number #3), Dick S. (author of “The Car Smasher,” revised and retitled “He Had to be Shown” in the 2nd and 3rd editions of Alcoholics Anonymous), who was then based in New York City, and Paul Stanley (author of “Truth Freed Me!” in the 1st edition of Alcoholics Anonymous), who was Dick’s brother.