February 16 in A.A. History

In 1941, The Baltimore Sunday Sun published Harrison Johnston’s article on Alcoholics Anonymous, titled “John Barleycorn’s Victims Seek Strength in Unity.” Accompanied by a rearview photo of an A.A. group [right], the article stated, in part:

    The story of “Alcoholics Anonymous,” which now includes a Baltimore group, is the story, in the words of one of its members, of a “bunch of drunks trying to help one another stop drinking.”…
    “Alcoholics Anonymous” meet regularly as a group twice a week—once in a semi-formal “business” meeting, once in a completely informal and spontaneous social gathering—without benefit of alcohol. They base their hopes of success on a mystical belief in aid from without themselves (all else having failed), from God, “as we understand Him,” and on constant association with other alcoholics who can understand and help them and whom they in turn can understand and try to help. They may thereby draw upon the companionship of other alcoholics, men and women like themselves with whom they alone are psychologically able to discuss their difficulties, and try to lose themselves in the rehabilitation of others even less controlled than they, a proven form of uplift characteristic of all group organizations, the church itself not least among them.
    From out this mixture, without any recourse whatsoever to medicine, “Alcoholics Anonymous” claims complete success—with no relapses—with about fifty per cent of its members (always supposing them to be sincere in their efforts to stop), and eventual success—after occasional relapses—with an additional twenty-five per cent.…
    The Baltimore group was founded only eight months ago, in June, 1940, and now numbers about forty members, of whom five are women.

In 1945, Charles Welch, a non-alcoholic, was named Honorary Lifetime Vice President of the first A.A. group in Vancouver, British Columbia. Following his wife’s death due to alcoholism, he opened his home to host the group’s meetings for the first six months.
    Welch also started the practice of advertising for A.A in Vancouver. The first ads [left] ran in The Vancouver Daily Province (November 16, 1944 – February 1, 1952), helping membership grow from just 4 to 41. Later, nearly identical ads appeared in The Vancouver Sun (January 2, 1945 – June 27, 1951) and The Vancouver News-Herald (September 20, 1949 – July 6, 1951), further expanding A.A.’s reach in Vancouver.

In 1978, the Computerized Bulletin Board System (CBBS), the first known public dial-up BBS, officially went online. Developed by Ward Christensen and Randy Suess—members of the Chicago Area Computer Hobbyists' Exchange (CACHE)—CBBS revolutionized early digital communication.
    The system kept a running count of callers and recorded a total of 253,301 connections before it was retired around 1990. While no documentation exists, it’s highly likely that some A.A. members who knew each other used CBBS to share strength and hope in the early days of online interaction.

February 15 in A.A. History

In 1918, Suzanne was born into a troubled family and spent two years in institutional care. At the age of five, she found a real home when Dr. Bob and Anne S. adopted her.

In 1940, The Evening Star in Washington, D.C., published a letter to the editor from Harold G. Waters, correcting their February 9 report on the Rockefeller dinner (“Rockefeller Is Backing Move to Cure Alcoholics”). The article had stated, “Rockefeller was host at dinner to a ‘secret organization’ known as ‘Alcoholics Anonymous’…” Waters clarified:

    “Alcoholics Anonymous” is neither secret nor an organization. There are no officers, no dues. It may more nearly be called a fellowship. It exists not only in New York, but also in other cities, and has already done great work here in Washington. A book, also entitled “Alcoholics Anonymous,” which gives a good idea of the work that is being done, may be either purchased or rented from the Y. W. C. A. library.

In 1946, The A.A. Tribune, a newsletter published by A.A. members in Des Moines, Iowa, since at least December 1943, reported 36 new members following a visit from Marty M. [date of visit unknown].

In 1947, Vital Speeches of the Day published Marty M.’s address to the Economic Club of Detroit—delivered to both a live audience and radio listeners—about the National Committee for Education on Alcoholism (NCEA) and Alcoholics Anonymous.

February 14 in A.A. History

In 1939, A.A.’s leadership—non-alcoholic trustees Willard Richardson, Frank Amos, and A. Leroy Chipman (all Rockefeller associates), as well as non-alcoholic trustee Dr. Leonard Strong, and alcoholic trustees Bill R. and Harry B.—gathered for an unofficial meeting. Bill W. was not present but was represented by a letter regarding “the progress of the book.”
    During the meeting, Bill R. resigned^* but was immediately appointed to the Advisory Committee. Harry B. was elected chairman pro tem. Frank Amos provided an informal report on funds received and distributed. The trustees agreed that at their next official meeting, they would present a formal report, a budget, and a plan for raising the necessary funds.

    Unfortunately, this delay led Bill W. and Hank P. to begin selling stock [right] in the newly formed Works Publishing Co., as they urgently needed money. The meeting minutes clearly state that the Alcoholic Foundation would remain completely independent of Works Publishing—having no responsibility for its actions and operating outside its supervision. In effect, the Rockefeller contingent had implicitly conceded to Bill and Hank, allowing A.A. to self-publish their book.

---

^* Contrary to widespread and persistent rumors, he was not removed for drinking, but rather due to the increased demands of work and family life.

In 1949, Dr. Gilbert “Gib” K., 52, died of cancer. He had started the first A.A. group in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Just three months earlier, in November 1948, Bill and Lois W. had visited him in the hospital as he lay dying; Gil had pressed Bill to accept his violin as a gift. Bill did, and would treasure it for the rest of his life [left: Bill playing Gib's violin at Stepping Stones].

In 1954, Bill’s father, Gilman Barrows W., 84, died penniless in Vancouver, British Columbia. His ashes would be returned to East Dorset, Vermont for burial in the family plot.

In 1971, Alcoholics Anonymous groups around the world held a memorial service in honor of Bill W., who had died on 29 January 1971, his and Lois' 53rd wedding anniversary.

In 1939, Nell Wing, 89, died at Sunrise Assisted Living in Wayne, New Jersey. She had been secretary and administrative assistant to Bill W. at the Alcoholic Foundation/General Service Office in New York City from 1947 to 1982 and A.A.’s first Archivist. She had also been the author of Grateful to Have Been There. 

February 13 in A.A. History

In 1937, the “Drunk Squad” of the New York City Oxford Group met in Teaneck, New Jersey at the home of Hank and Kathleen P. This “alcoholic style” meeting of the Oxford Group was the first time such a group—which would become part of Alcoholics Anonymous—had met in New Jersey. One reason for this meeting was to introduce William “Bill” R. [left] to the fledgling fellowship. He had become and remained sober. Bill and his wife, Kathleen, of Hackettstown, New Jersey, began attending Tuesday night meetings at the home of Bill and Lois W. at 182 Clinton St. in Brooklyn.

In 1940, about two years sober, James “Jim” or “Jimmy” B. [right] moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, for a “very good new position.” Twenty-five days later, he started the city’s first A.A. group, the fourth (after Akron, New York City, and Cleveland), with six other alcoholics. Jim’s story, “The Vicious Cycle,” appeared in the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th editions of the Big Book, Alcoholics Anonymous.

February 12 in A.A. History

In 1945, the Alcoholic Foundation’s service office in New York City sent a letter to all known A.A. groups explaining that, due to paper rationing for the World War II effort, the War Production Board had ordered a reduction in the weight of paper used for the Big Book, Alcoholics Anonymous. To further conserve materials, the margins were trimmed to a minimum, which, along with the lighter paper, reduced the book’s overall size. During the war, two limited-quantity printings were produced—the 8th and 9th editions; both contained the notice shown to the right.

February 11 in A.A. History

In 1938, Clarence S. [left] had his last drink. 

    An unemployed banker from Lyndhurst, Ohio, his drinking had etranged him from his wife, Dorothy. Dorothy's sister Virginia lived in New York City, and her family doctor was Dr. Leonard Strong, Bill W.’s brother-in-law. When Virginia mentioned her brother-in-law’s problems to Dr. Strong, he told her about Dr. Bob S. and A.A. Virginia relayed this to her sister.
    When Clarence came to Dorothy begging to come home, she told him he had to take Dr. Bob’s “cure” first. She put him on a bus to Akron with a scrap of paper that had Dr. Bob’s name, office address, office hours, office phone number, and home phone number.
    Clarence’s story in the Big Book, Alcoholics Anonymous, appears in the 1st, 2nd and 3rd editions as “Home Brewmeister.”

In 1938, Hank P. had asked Fitz M., who lived in Maryland near the Chesapeake Bay, to find out how many books in the Library of Congress were titled The Way Out or Alcoholics Anonymous. Fitz wired back to Hank at Bill W.’s home address:

1939 Feb 11 AM 12 19
WA 13 50 NL=CA WASHINGTON DC 10
HENRY G PARK HURST
182 CLINTON ST BROOKLYN NY=
NO TITLE CAN BE REGISTERED IN COPYRIGHT OFFICE TO SECURE MONOPOLY OF ITS USE STOP LIBRARY OF CONGRESS HAS 25 BOOKS THE WAY OUT 12 THE WAY NINE THIS WAY OUT NONE ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS NONE COMES DAWN MY PET STOP OUR TRIP TO BROOKLYN DEFINITELY OFF-BUSINESS BRISKER AM WRITING.=
FITZ

    Bill and Hank immediately declared the title to be Alcoholics Anonymous or, as Bill later admitted, “we left the title ‘Alcoholics Anonymous’ in the copy that went to the printer [less than a week later]” (i.e., they had already put their preferred title on the master copy). In later retellings, Bill would incorrectly state that the number of books already titled The Way Out was 12, not 25, which allowed him to argue that it would have been bad luck to produce the 13th book with that title.

In 1940, Margaret D. of Seattle, Washington wrote the Alcoholic Foundation about her husband. The Foundation would respond by mail on March 6. Margaret would eventually play a role in organizing Seattle’s first A.A. group on April 19, although it is uncertain exactly what that role was.

February 10 in A.A. History

In 1922, Harold E. Hughes [right] was born on a farm near Ida Grove, Iowa.

    After recovering from alcoholism, he would become governor of Iowa, a U.S. senator, and the leading dark horse candidate for the 1972 Democratic presidential nomination, at least until he dropped out of the race. He would author legislation that created the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism and other federal legislation to help alcoholics and addicts. In public life, he was open about being an alcoholic.

 In 1958, Bill W. responded to a letter from Ollie and Ruth J. in an attempt to clarify and drive home an important distinction in the selfishness of an alcoholic:

    It seems to me that the primary object of any human being is to grow, that being the nature of all living things. There­fore he is bound to have a huge self-interest.

    Ollie and Ruth had written to Bill to object to members calling A.A. a “selfish” program.

February 9 in A.A. History

In 1939, after many months of debate over what the title of their new book should be in Akron, Ohio and New York City, considering “more than a hundred titles all told,” The Way Out—heavily favored in Akron—was adopted over Alcoholics Anonymous—heavily favored in New York City (especially by Bill W. and Hank P.). Hank

    … wire[d] Fitz M. in Maryland asking him to go to the Library of Congress in Washington and find out how many books were called The Way Out and how many were called Alcoholics Anonymous.

    This may have been some kind of end-run around the group conscience.

In 1940, the day after the Rockefeller Dinner, which introduced A.A. to men whom John D. Rockefeller, Jr. thought might help support this new organization with its impressive record, newspaper headlines abounded.
    The New York Daily News headlined its story, “ROCKEFELLER DINES EX-SOTS, NOW RUM FOES” [right] with the lede “Sixty members of Alcoholics Anonymous, an organization of ex-toss-pots.…”
    Meanwhile, Washington, DC’s The Evening Star headlined its article“Rockefeller Is Backing Move to Cure Alcoholics”[left], identifying A.A. as a “secret organization.”
    The New York Post headline was “60 ON WAGON—AND ROOM FOR MORE.”
    And White Plains, New York’s The Daily Argus, under the headline “Rockefeller Supports Regeneration Work” [below right] revealed that John D. Rockefeller, Jr. was

   … interested in a secret” organization aimed at rehabilitating alcoholics. The organization is “Alcoholics Anonymous” which started when three [sic] men who overcame their craving for whiskey and wanted to help others in the same plight began the movement that today numbers 120. Rockefeller was host at a dinner last night to hear a report on the work of the men who have been cured or are in the process of reestablishing themselves on a more normal plane.

In 1940, Suzanne (Sue) S—– W. [below left, 1975], 83, the adopted daughter of Dr. Bob and Anne S., died at home after a long illness, with her family by her side. She had been active in A.A. most of her life.

February 8 in A.A. History

In 1939, Bill W. responded to Janet Blair’s letter of February 6, commenting on her enclosed changes to the proposed first two chapters of the Big Book, Alcoholics Anonymous. She also made a suggestion to smooth the transition from “Bill’s Story” to “There is a Solution,” which Bill and Hank P. accepted and which has remained in all four editions. Bill thanked Blair for having “the perception to understand what it is I want to say and the ability to say it so well. You have certainly cleared up our manuscript.”

Rockefeller dinner: invitation, menu

In 1940, John D. Rockefeller, Jr. hosted a dinner for Alcoholics Anonymous at the Union League Club in New York City. Seventy-five of four hundred invited guests attended [right: invitation and menu]. John D. was ill, so his son Nelson hosted instead. The dinner generated much positive publicity for A.A. and raised $2,200 [~$49,600 in 2025] from attendees ($1,000 [~$22,500 in 2025] from Rockefeller alone). They continued to contribute about $3,000 [~$67,600 in 2024] a year until 1945, when they were asked to stop. All contributions from non-alcoholics were eventually repaid, in accordance with A.A.’s 7th Tradition.

    Paul S. accompanied Dr. Bob S. to the Rockefeller dinner in New York City. Paul also convinced Frank Amos, a Rockefeller associate, that Dr. Bob needed financial help to avoid having to give up his work with alcoholics, and suggested that John D. Rockefeller quietly provide a monthly stipend for at least two years, which he did, although some of it went to Bill W. and Hank P.

The first pamphlet  

In 1940, The Houston (Texas) Press published the first of six anonymous articles about A.A. written by a newly sober member, Larry J. These six articles became the basis of A.A.’s first pamphlet, simply titled “AA” [left].

In 1942, the Columbus (Ohio) Group of A.A., which had started only 3 months earlier, split. Fourteen members formed the newly named Central Group and began meeting in the Odd Fellows Hall at 24 W. Goodale St. The Central Group continued to meet until at least 1999.

February 7 in A.A. History

In 1920, F. T. Bedford incorporated Penick & Ford, Ltd., which had previously been a partnership.
    The partnership had been formed by William Snydor Penick and his brother-in-law, James Polk Ford, in Shreveport, Louisiana, to sell barrel syrups and canned molasses. The monopolistic Corn Products Refining Company bought a 25 percent stake, but was forced to sell it after a Supreme Court ruling resulting from President Theodore Roosevelt's trust-busting campaign.
    Meanwhile, F. T. Bedford (son of E. T. Bedford, who ran Corn Products Refining) had purchased a Douglas Starch Works facility in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, which had “massively” exploded in May 1919, destroying the entire plant and killing 48 people. What remained had been sold by one of the founding Douglas brothers to Penick & Ford in December 1919. The plant would be rebuilt to produce corn syrup. By 1922, the company would have fully recovered, and by 1923, Penick & Ford would begin paying preferred dividends to shareholders.
    

Bill W. outside Penick & Ford's
Cedar Rapids facility (c. 1926)

Over the next two decades, the company would thrive by producing numerous private label brands—Brer Rabbit Molasses, Brer Rabbit Syrup, Penick Syrup, Penick Salad Oil, Douglas Starch, Penford Corn Syrup, Penford Corn Sugar, and Douglas Feed. Under Bedford’s direction, the company would further diversify by acquiring other food lines, such as Vermont Maid Syrup in 1928 and My-T-Fine Desserts in 1934.
    How does this relate to A.A.? On p. 4 of the Big Book, Alcoholics Anonymous, Bill W. “was staring at an inch of the [ticker] tape which bore the inscription XYZ-32 It had been 52 that morning.” In the May-June 1938 version of his story, “XYZ” had been “PFK,” the stock symbol for Penick & Ford, a company he was known to have researched while he and Lois were on their 1925–27 stock analysis^* tour of companies [left: Bill W. outside the Cedar Rapids facility, c. 1926]—having switched from a Harley to a used de Soto or Dodge—and in which he presumably held a substantial stake at the time of the Great Wall Street Crash of October 1929.

---

^* The term “stock analysis” was apparently not in use at the time; in fact, Bill has been credited with being an early contributor to the concept. Indexes to Moody’s Investment Survey of the late 1920s contained many examples of entries like “Penick & Ford Stock, Analysis,” which is the earliest I could definitively locate anything like the term “stock analysis”.

In 1945, the Alcoholics Anonymous District Office opened in Cleveland, Ohio. It was located in the Williamson Building on the southeast corner of Public Square. Its first secretary was [non-alcoholic] Laverne Hawkins. The telephone number was Cherry 1-7387. The purpose of the office—more commonly called an Intergroup or Central Office in other locales—was to provide services to individual and prospective members, to serve as a source of information, and to distribute literature to groups and individuals. In its first month, the office received 31 calls; some were requests for help and others were inquiries about meeting locations.

February 6 in A.A. History

In 1887, James “Jim” S. [left] was born in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. His family soon moved to Scotland and in 1907 Jim came to the U.S. He worked for newspapers in cities like Pittsburgh and Akron. His alcoholism caused significant problems in both his professional and personal life, leading him to travel the U.S. from job to job for much of the ’20s and ’30s.
    He returned to Akron—where he had previously been a reporter/editor for Goodyear Tire's Wingfoot Clan—and in July 1937 became the first Australian to get sober in A.A. Fellow members remembered him as “tall and skinny, and a real lone wolf.” In 1939, at Dr. Bob’s request, he became solicitor, editor, and often writer of the Akron stories in the 1st edition of the Big Book, Alcoholics Anonymous. Jim's 1st edition story is “Traveler, Editor, Scholar,” retitled “The News Hawk” in the 2nd and 3rd editions. In the early ’40s he managed the Middlebury Book Shop in Akron and served on the Summit County War Finance Committee during World War II. Jim was head librarian of the Akron Beacon Journal from 1947 until his death in 1950.

In 1939, Janet Blair of Peeksill, New York, one of the two non-alcoholic editors, wrote to Hank P. about the enclosed changes she had made to the first two chapters of the Big Book manuscript [right]:

    … may I say a word about the continuity? It bothers me a little. Chapter 1, is Bill’s story. Right? Bill’s story includes a description of the terrible dilemma in which he was when his friend came to him; it includes what the doctors thought; it includes a brief account of the fellowship. It tells of the solution.
    When I started Chapter 2, I thought from the first line I was beginning the story of another man, as the first page is just that. On page 2, you leave him, and go on to tell of the fellowship and alcoholics in general. On page 8, you return to the man, and for about a page tell us more about him; the rest of the chapter is general. In Chapter 2, you never mention Bill or his friend, although the ‘solution,’ as you call Chapter 2, is given in Chapter 1.
    I’m not suggesting a change. Maybe I am the one who is befogged; but I am supposed to represent a reader, and I felt I should tell you this. At this moment, it seems to me it would have been smoother, to start Chapter 2 on page 2, “We, of Alcoholics Anonymous, know one hundred men who were once just as hopeless as Bill,” and so on.

Blair’s work earned her a letter of thanks from Bill Wilson himself, as well as a signed copy of a 1st edition, 1st printing of Alcoholics Anonymous from Hank P., which he inscribed on the front flyleaf. The inscription reads:

To Janet Blair / Whose work / and editing on this / book was so / eminently helpful [sic] / Henry G. P[—–]

In 1954, R. Brinkley S. sobered up for good at Towns Hospital after his 50th detox [reportedly].

In 1961, Bill W. wrote to Harold E. about the book Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions:

    As time passes, our book literature has a tendency to get more and more frozen—a tendency for conversion into something like dogma. This is a trait of human nature which I’m afraid we can do little about. We may as well face the fact that A.A. will always have its fundamentalists, its absolutists, and its relativists.

February 5 in A.A. History

In 2015, the Des Moines (Iowa) Register published an opinion piece titled “AA won’t list nonreligious group meetings” by Rekha Basu [right]. It said in part:

    [C]onspicuously absent from the Saturday meeting list posted by the AA central office in Des Moines is a group called The Broad Highway. That’s for alcoholics who want to find sobriety without necessarily having religion be part of it. The AA organization won’t list its meetings.
    No board member responded to my request for an interview. But a man answering the phone at the Des Moines central office (in accordance with AA policy, he asked that his name not be used) said it’s the position of the general service organization not to list meetings as AA meetings if they don’t take things directly out of the Big Book.…
    But as members of The Broad Highway point out, other passages from founder [Bill] W[——] say any two people can make up an AA group, with no requirement to embrace religion. The book's preamble says the only requirement is a desire to stop drinking. And a passage from W[——] published in a 1946 issue of the AA’s [sic] Grapevine says, “So long as there is the slightest interest in sobriety, the most unmoral, the most anti-social, the most critical alcoholic may gather about him a few kindred spirits and announce to us that a new Alcoholics Anonymous Group has been formed. Anti-God, anti-medicine, anti-our Recovery Program, even anti-each other — these rampant individuals are still an A.A. Group if they think so!”
    Despite the obvious intent to be inclusive, Dave W[–—] of Des Moines, a 28-year AA member, says most AA meetings emphasize not just dependence on a personal God but “a heavy emphasis on Christianity.” Many meetings open and close with the Lord’s Prayer and include Christian readings, he said. W[–—] and several other members of the chapter considers it a form of religious discrimination that drives away prospective members.

February 3 in A.A. History

In 1942, Jimmy D., Class B [alcoholic] Regional Trustee and new Interim Chair of the General Service Board, announced in a letter that

… during its quarterly board weekend [27–30 January 2023]… at the board’s request, Linda Chezem has resigned as a Class A Trustee and Chair of the Board.… As First Vice Chair of the General Service Board (per the slate of officers elected at the 2022 General Service Conference), and with the approval of the Board in a special session held last Monday, I have now assumed the role of Interim Chairperson until the close of the GSC in April 2023. My service as Southwest Regional Trustee will also end at that time.

February 2 in A.A. History

In 1942, Bill W. paid tribute to Ruth Hock, A.A.’s first paid secretary and first National Secretary. Ruth, a non-alcoholic, had submitted her resignation the day before. Since 1939, when A.A. had begun to receive wide publicity, she had written some 15,000 responses to those who had contacted the Alcoholic Foundation in New York City for help.

In 1943, in Connecticut, Bill W. spoke at the first open, public meeting of the Hartford Group, celebrating its one-year anniversary [right: invitation].
    As group after group sprang up during this period, Bill traveled the country, often accompanied by Lois. His arrival in cities, towns, and villages was cause for great excitement as A.A. members flocked to hear him speak and to talk with him one-on-one. This anniversary meeting in Hartford was the first stop on a three-day trip, with stops in Springfield and Boston, both in Massachusetts, to follow. 

In 1954, Bill W. declined an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from Yale University. In a letter to Yale’s secretary, Reuben A. Holden, Bill wrote [ellipses added]:

    It is only after most careful consultation with friends, and with my conscience, that I now feel obligated to decline such a mark of distinction. Were I to accept, the near term benefit to Alcoholics Anonymous and to legions who still suffer our malady would, no doubt, be worldwide and considerable.… None but the most compelling of reasons could prompt my decision to deny Alcoholics Anonymous an opportunity of this dimension.…
    The Tradition of Alcoholics Anonymous—our only means of self-government—entreats each member to avoid all that particular kind of personal publicity or distinction which might link his name with our Society in the general public mind.… Because we have already had much practical experience with this vital principle, it is today the view of every thoughtful AA member that if, over the years ahead, we practice this anonymity absolutely, it will guarantee our effectiveness and unity by heavily restraining those to whom public honrs and distinctions are but the natural stepping-stones to dominance and personal power. The Tradition of personal anonymity and no honors at the public level is our protective shield. We dare not meet the power temptation naked.

February 1 in A.A. History

In 1918, this was the original date for the wedding of Bill W. and Lois Burnham. It had been moved up to January 24 because of the war (WWI), more specifically, there were rumors that Bill’s unit would be shipped out before February 1.

In 1942, Ruth Hock, A.A.’s first paid secretary (from 1936) and first National Secretary (from 1940), resigned her position, effective February 28th, in order to get married.

Marty M. giving a public address

In 1947, Marty M., presumably representing the National Committee for Education on Alcoholism (NCEA), of which she had been a founder, addressed the Economic Club of Detroit (and a radio audience) on the topic of “Alcoholics Anonymous.” It was “a significant milestone in public understanding of alcoholism as a treatable disease.” Her powerful, eloquent talk challenged prevailing misconceptions about alcoholism and presented A.A. as a viable path to recovery. She emphasized alcoholism’s economic costs, aligning with the Economic Club’s interests, and highlighted the potential for rehabilitation and reintegration into society. The talk was widely reported, helping to spark national conversation on alcoholism and A.A.’s potential.

In 1974, Tom P. [right]—an early California A.A. member, sober since 1946, and Assistant Secretary of Defense and Special Assistant to President Eisenhower—wrote to President Richard M. Nixon advising him to use the 12 Steps, not for his drinking, but as a way to deal with the Watergate crisis. The following is a major excerpt from this letter:

    I suggest that you substitute the word, "Watergate" for "alcohol" in the first step (which would then read "admitted we were powerless over Watergate, and that our lives had become unmanageable"). Then you should conscientiously apply the rest of the 12 steps to your own situation. I am confident such a course of personal action rigorously followed, would ultimately resolve this difficult dilemma for you and the country.
    My prime suggestion: In whatever way you can, after carefully studying Steps 4, 5, 6, and 7, put Step 10 into action: -- "when we were wrong, promptly admitted it".
    I know it's late, and there are many complexities legal and otherwise, but if you could somehow publicly admit more fully the mismanagement of Watergate, I am confident that you personally and the country will experience relief, surcease, and new hope beyond your fondest expectations.
    (See the attached Harris Poll clip from today's Los Angeles Times on Public Compassion.)
    And why? Simply because the country's President and its citizens are both human and divine and have always behaved and reacted like the creatures of God which indeed they are. I believe most people know almost instinctively that to be forgiven, they must forgive, and who among us has not erred -- does not need forgiveness?
    By using these principles, Len F▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒ and Jonathan W▒▒▒▒▒▒, Jim K▒▒▒▒▒, and I have discovered the way out of the baffling personal dilemma which nearly destroyed us.
    You can too, Mr. President! If you would like to explore this personally and in greater depth, please call on me. Nothing would please me more.

    Tom had helped arrange for presentation of the 1,000,000th copy of our Big Book, Alcoholics Anonymous, to Nixon by Dr. Jack Norris, Chairman of the General Service Board of Alcoholics Anonymous in June 1973. 

January 31 in A.A. History

In 1940, Frederic J. Haskins, in his column “Haskin’s Answers to Readers’ Questions,” in Washington, DC’s The Evening Star, answered a reader’s question about A.A.:

    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.”

In 1946, Charles Fletcher Welch—a nonalcoholic and Honorary Lifetime Vice President of the first A.A. group in Vancouver, British Columbia [right: first meeting place, Welch's home]—signed a certificate of “tribute” to Charles B., the group's first alcoholic member.

In 2003, the second meeting of the month-long Online Service Conference (OSC) concluded. From a history of the OSC:

    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. 

 In 2004, the fourth meeting of the month-long Online Service Conference (OSC) concluded. From a history of the OSC:

    The most significant action at the assembly was introduction of a proposed Charter for OSC presented by James C. from the UK, 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 at aa-onlineserviceconference.org, would go dark.

January 30 in A.A. History

In 1945, Walter Winchell’s syndicated gossip column, “Coast-to-Coast” told of a visit by Carrie A. Nation to New York City that “accomplished no more than having a nude statue draped and sending a lot of barmen’s blood pressure up.” Alcoholics Anonymous was mentioned in passing:

“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.

In 1961, Dr. Carl Jung [left], in Kusnact-Zurich, Switzerland, responded to Bill W.’s letter of January 23rd, acknowledging Jung’s unwitting contribution to A.A. through his work with Rowland Hazard in the 1930s. He said that Bill’s letter was “very welcome indeed.” He had never heard from Rowland and “often wondered what has been his fate.” He noted that Rowland had “adequately reported” their conversations, although he couldn’t tell Rowland “everything,” having learned that he himself had been misunderstood “in every possible way.”
    What he really thought…

… was the result of many experiences with men of his kind. His craving for alcohol 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

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^* “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.

In 1969, The Post of Big Stone Gap, Virginia published “Invitational Meet For AA Is Set” [right], 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.

In 1971, The Evening Star of Washington, DC, published “Bill W.”, an editorial, 6 days after Bill’s death, which stated in part,

    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

In 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, after arranging the call the day before.  The call came from the base surgeon at a  U.S. Army hospital in Germany. He was concerned about his friend and patient, Captain B., who was also an A.A. member. The captain, it turned out, was in serious trouble. In fact, he had been tried by a military court in Germany and sentenced to be discharged for drunkenness on duty. Would A.A. help?
    The surgeon gave a brief history of his patient. Then he revealed 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 sprang into action.
    They found an ex-Army officer who agreed to drop everything to help. This found a Catholic bishop, a friend of A.A., who contacted the port of embarkation and found out that the priest there had been chaplain on the same ship, which would allow him to board the ship as soon as it docked. He also found a lawyer who was friendly to A.A. and willing to try to help the captain.
    The A.A. Grapevine reported this story in its March 1947 issue. Captain B. had arrived, the priest had reported that his interview with Captain B. had gone well and he felt that the man was indeed worth helping. Captain B. was awaiting disposition of his case at Camp Kilmer, New Jersey. He was under arrest, but the A.A. secretaries had arranged for visitors to see him. The attorney was waiting for Washington, DC to accept or deny the request. The priest at the port had been in contact with his colleagues at Camp Kilmer. They, too, promised to do what they could for the captain.
    This call from Germany was the first transatlantic call ever received by The Alcoholic Foundation.

 In 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. The meeting was a scheduled GSB “planning” meeting with non-board members, and they were not in executive session. The two surprised the non-alcoholic GSB chair, Judge Linda Chezem—as well as a number of other trustees—by asking her to resign; if she refused, they said they would sign and submit their own resignations. After saying that she would resign if the GSB wanted her to, 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 of resignation for her to sign. When she was called back into the room and asked to sign this letter, she handwrote the phrase “As requested by the board” before signing the letter and leaving.

January 28 in A.A. History

In 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

In 1952, about 200 people attended the 2nd anniversary meeting of the Alco Anon club in the Knights of Columbus clubrooms at 152 Lincoln Way W., Massillon, Ohio. Many members of the clergy, medical professionals, civic leaders, and industry representatives were in attendance. Out-of-town visitors came from Akron, Canton, Cleveland, Minerva, North Canton (all in Ohio), and Florida, as well as many others from nearby areas.
    Warren C. from the Cleveland Group of Alcoholics Anonymous was the main speaker. He spoke about the A.A. program and how it works, pointing out that one must be sincere in one’s desire to quit drinking and admit that life is unmanageable when one joins A.A., saying,

    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.

In 1971, The Washington (DC) Post published an obituary for Bill W. written by the owner’s son, Donald E. Gra­ham.