A.A. Timeline with Significant Rochester Events 1879 August 8: Robert Holbrook Smith (Dr. Bob) born in St. Johnsbury, Vermont 1895 November 26: William Griffith Wilson born in East Dorset, Vermont. The house behind the trees in this photo is the Wilson House where Bill was born in a room behind the bar 1917 Bill called up by Army; has first drunk. It was a Bronx Cocktail made up of gin, dry and sweet vermouth and orange juice. Bill passed out, threw up and was miserably sick the next day. He wrote to Lois that he loved the experience with alcohol Young Bill in Uniform 1925 Bill starts work as securities analyst; drinking worsens 1929 Stock market crashes, and so does Bill 1930 Dr. Jung pronounces Rowland H. medically hopeless and suggests he find a spiritual experience. Rowland does, in the Oxford Group in NY; first link in A.A. formation Roland H. Dr. Carl Gustav Jung 1934 August: Rowland H. introduces Ebby T. to the Oxford Group in NY, where he sobers up November: Ebby visits Bill Wilson and tells him his story, suggesting Bill find his own concept of God, laying the groundwork for a spiritual rather than a religious program Ebby T. 1934 Bill admitted to Towns where he has a spiritual experience and stops drinking. He participates in Oxford Group meetings and begins trying to help other drunks 1935 May 11: Staying at the Mayflower Hotel on business in Akron, Bill feels in danger of drinking and calls the Reverend Walter Tunks, hoping to find a drunk to talk to. This call leads him to Henrietta Sieberling who has been praying for a way to help her friend Dr. Bob with his drinking problem Mayflower Hotel Dr. Walter Tunks 1935 May 12: Bill and Dr. Bob meet in Henrietta Seiberling's house in Akron. The 15-minute meeting that Dr. Bob agreed to lasts six hours Henrietta Sieberling’s Gate House 1935 After Bob’s brief relapse in June of 1935, Bill and Bob begin trying to help other alcoholics recover June 10, 1935 becomes the date celebrated as the beginning of A.A. Late June 1935 Bill and Dr. Bob carry the message to Bill D., "the man in the bed," in Akron City Hospital. He becomes A.A. number 3 Akron City Hospital Bill D. Later in 1935 Bill returns to NYC and helps Hank P. and Fitz M. sober up at Towns Hospital Hank P. Fitz M. 1936 Origin of Tradition 8 - Charles Towns offers Bill the use of Towns Hospital to treat alcoholics for a share of the profits. At a group conscience meeting at Bill’s home in Brooklyn, the offer is turned down Charles B. Towns 1937 NY alcoholics break away from the Oxford Group Bill joins Hank P. in the Honor Dealers business at 17 William Street, Newark NJ. Ruth Hock serves as office secretary 17 William Street Newark, NJ 1938 In April 1938 the writing of the Big Book begins at the New Jersey office Bill writes draft outlines on legal pads and dictates the expanded text to Ruth who types the original manuscript Ruth Hock 1938 February: Origin of Tradition 7 – John D. Rockefeller suggests A.A. be self-supporting May: The Alcoholic Foundation established as A.A. trusteeship John D. Rockefeller Jr. 1939 Membership reaches 100 Publication of the Big Book May 11: Cleveland starts a group, calling it Alcoholics Anonymous (Rochester Area Intergroup Archives Collection) 1939 August: Dr. Bob and Sister Ignatia begin work with alcoholics at Akron’s St. Thomas Hospital. She becomes known as the “Angel of Alcoholics Anonymous” Sister Ignatia and St. Thomas Hospital 1940 March: A.A. opens its first official headquarters at 30 Vesey St, NYC. Ruth Hock serves as A.A.’s first national secretary June: The first A.A. Clubhouse opens at 334 ½ West 24th Street in Chelsea, NYC. A year prior, Bill and Lois are evicted from their home and live in over 50 locations including this th Vesey St. Office 24 Street Clubhouse clubhouse 1940 Bill meets Father Ed Dowling, who becomes his spiritual advisor 1941 March 1: Jack Alexander’s Saturday Evening Post article brings A.A. national recognition; membership jumps from 2,000 to 8,000 1941 A.A. becomes aware of the Serenity Prayer in 1941 when it is printed in the New York Tribune newspaper. Ruth Hock is immediately taken with it, and the headquarters staff comes up with the idea of printing the prayer on a card to include with mailings 1941 Bill and Lois move into Stepping Stones home in Bedford Hills, NY December 1941 A.A.’s Rochester Beginnings: Dr. Kirby Collier, a psychiatrist from Rochester, travels to NYC to investigate A.A., visiting with Bill W. and attending a meeting. He returns with pamphlets and a Big Book, gathers 3 or 4 of his most hopeless patients in his office in the Sibley Bldg. on East Ave. and Alexander St., and tells them about the Dr. G. Kirby Collier program of recovery (Rochester Area Intergroup Archives Collection) 1942 April: Three of Dr. Collier’s alcoholic patients begin having A.A. meetings in the lower right apartment at 192 North Goodman Street in Rochester 192 North Goodman Street (Rochester Area Intergroup Archives Collection) 1942 May: The first Rochester A.A. group moves its meetings from North Goodman Street to Room 103 on the Mezzanine at the Hotel Seneca at 26 South Clinton Ave. The first meetings are held on Wednesday evenings; later more meetings are added. Eventually, an answering service is established: Hamilton 3347. As of 2019, the Seneca group remains the oldest group still operating in Rochester Hotel Seneca July: Rochester A.A. membership grows to 6 1942 The “4 Absolutes”, spiritual principles developed by the Oxford Group, are read at Rochester meetings in the 1940’s and 1950’s (Rochester Area Intergroup Archives Collection) 1942 Start of the first prison group, San Quentin, California, with the permission of Warden Clinton Duffy The success of A.A. at San Quentin led to the spread of A.A. in prisons across the country 1942 October: the first A.A. newsletter, the “Central Bulletin”, is published in Cleveland 1942 November: Group membership grows to 23 1943 Florence V. becomes the first secretary of the Rochester A.A. Service Center (the original name for the Central, or Intergroup office). She serves on and off for 20 years. Many early members from the 1950’s remember her gruff, no- nonsense style. She helps many people over the years Monroe County Hospital, later renamed Monroe Community Hospital, opens a Monroe County Hospital ward for treatment of alcoholics 1943 May: Rochester A.A. holds its first annual dinner at the Seneca Hotel “Alcoholics Anonymous today began another year in their constant campaign to aid alcoholics who sincerely wish to forswear use of intoxicating beverages to achieve their goal of total abstinence. * Their first annual banquet last night at the Seneca Hotel brought The full text of an article that together 60 members, men and women, who formulated plans for the new year. There are no officers. There are none of the usual dues and club activities. Voluntary contributions appeared in the Rochester Times- finance the unit's work. Members are on call 24 hours a day. They work with the civil Union newspaper following that authorities and the clergy to assist victims. After applying for membership a former alcoholic must go through a 90-day period of probation, after which he receives a certificate of occasion is shown on the right membership in the Anonymous Alcoholics. To retain membership he must never again touch alcoholic beverages.” Also shown is the Rochester A.A. membership card referred to in the article (Rochester Area Intergroup Archives Collection) 1944 March: First women’s prison group meets at Clinton Farms, Clinton, New Jersey June: Publication of first issue of The Grapevine, A.A.’s “meeting in print” 1944 “Inspired largely by the efforts of Marty M., Dr. E. M. Jellinek, America’s premier researcher on alcoholism, joins two other medical authorities to form the National Committee for Education on Alcohol (NCEA). NCEA is headquartered in a Yale University Building in New Haven, CT. On behalf of the NCEA, Marty embarks on a nationwide tour to tell of her struggle with alcoholism” (source: aa.org) NCEA Headquarters at Yale 1944 Public Information/Cooperation with the Professional Community efforts begin in Rochester as early as the mid-40’s, with an information session held for members of the media. Later, PSA’s created by GSO are used, and a local speaker’s pool is developed. Speakers visit medical professionals, schools, and the media (Rochester Area Intergroup Archives Collection) 1944 October: Rochester A.A. holds its first annual picnic at Mendon Ponds Park. For many years following, the annual picnic, usually held at Seneca Park, is an extremely popular family event 1945 On February 12, 1945 the New York office sends a letter to the groups notifying them that because of paper rationing needs for the war effort, the War Production Board reduced the weight of the paper to be used for the Big Book. Rationing reductions in paper also cause the office to sharply cut the overall size of the book by trimming margins to a minimum. There are 2 editions, printed in limited quantity, which are rare editions. The one to the left is in the Rochester A.A. archives (Rochester Area Intergroup Archives Collection) 1945 Rochester A.A. reaches 75 members "It has been our observation that bringing men into the group indiscriminately and without adequate preliminary training and information can be a source of considerable grief and a cause of great The Genesee Group is formed, with an harm to the general moral of the group itself.