May 8 in A.A. History

1935: Five hundred sober alcoholics gathered in Akron, Ohio, to celebrate the eighth anniversary of Alcoholics Anonymous’s first group. Officially founded on 4 July 1935—the day Bill D. (A.A. #3) was discharged from Akron City Hospital—this group was referred to by Bill W. as “Akron Number One” and is now known as “King School Group #1.” After splitting from the Oxford Group in December 1939, the A.A. group initially met a few times at Dr. Bob S.’s home before relocating to the King School [right] in January 1940. It remained there for many years, possibly until the building closed in 2018.

1971: Following a church memorial service [left: with a white-haired Lois sitting front right], Bill W. was buried [right: gravesite] in a private ceremony at East Dorset Cemetery in East Dorset, Vermont. He had always wanted to be buried there with his family, so his body, enclosed in a Vermont oak casket, was kept in cold storage in Miami, Florida, until the New England ground thawed enough for the burial.

May in A.A. History—day unknown

1940:  Dave W. of Seattle, Washington [left: aerial view, 1930], connected with Mrs. J.J.S. and Margaret D. Both women had sent letters of inquiry to the Alcoholic Foundation in New York City, in November 1939 and February 1940, respectively. Ruth Hock, who had been corresponding with Dave from the Foundation since March, facilitated their connection. With all three living in Seattle, Dave assisted in establishing the first Alcoholics Anonymous group there and in the state.

1940: [March? April?] In Little Rock, Arkansas, Sterling C., Harlan N., and Bud G. founded the first Alcoholics Anonymous group, located in the Wallace Building [right] at the corner of Markham and Main Streets. This group was unique, earning the distinction of being “the first group formed solely by mail.” This meant its members relied entirely on reading the Big Book, without the benefit of attending an existing A.A. meeting or receiving in-person guidance from established members.
    To ensure the seriousness of potential members, the founders implemented a rigorous screening process, asking four key questions:

1. Are you convinced you cannot handle your alcohol problem?
2. Are you willing to let a group of fellows who had the same problem prescribe a course of action?
3. Will you do anything to eliminate alcohol from your life? 
4. Do you believe in a power bigger than yourself?

    A prospect unable to answer “yes” to all four questions was advised to return later. If accepted, however, he faced a set of requirements:

1. Read the Big Book in three days;
2. keep a 28-day journal;
3. write his case history;
4. make time and money budgets;
5. if employed, take a two-week leave of absence to devote full time to the plan; and 
6. accomplish other assignments given to him by his sponsor.

    This rigorous and structured approach became widely known as “The Little Rock Plan.”