by Tim Fitzpatrick | April 3, 2020 | Historical Letters and Docs | 0 Comments

Father Ed Dowling and AA's Bill W.by Robert Fitzgerald, S.J.Bill Wilson, co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous, was down. His feet hung over the end of the bed that nearly filled the small room he and his wife, Lois, had rented above the 24th Street AA Club in New York....

by Tim Fitzpatrick | April 1, 2020 | Historical Letters and Docs | 0 Comments

 THE FIRST “A.A.” PAMPHLETAS DERIVED FROM THE SERIESOF ARTICLES FROM THEHOUSTON PRESSBYLARRY JEWELL*(April 1940)*Larry Jewell came to Houston from Cleveland with only a Big Book and a Spiritual Experience resulting from having taken the Steps while hospitalized.  His...

by Tim Fitzpatrick | April 1, 2020 | Historical Letters and Docs, Historical Recovery Photos, History Resources and Reference | 0 Comments

Larry JewellHe was a writer originally from Cleveland, Ohio that was 12- stepped by Clarence Snyder and Dr. Bob while at St. Thomas Hospital in the winter of 1940. Clarence and Dr. Bob took Larry through the 12-steps leading him to a spiritual experience. Upon his...

by Tim Fitzpatrick | April 1, 2020 | Historical Letters and Docs | 0 Comments

The Original AA Preamble Also Known as the Wilmington Preamble:We are gathered here because we are faced with the fact that we are powerless over alcohol and unable to do anything about it without the help of a Power greater than ourselves. We feel that each person's...

by Tim Fitzpatrick | March 30, 2020 | Historical Letters and Docs | 0 Comments

THE BIRTH OF A.A. IN TEXAS by Paul W.  The seeds of Texas A.A. were planted in the winter of 1940 when Larry J., a newly sober newspaperman from Cleveland, took a job with The Houston Press. Larry was sponsored by Dr. Bob & Clarence S. (Clarence’s story, Home...

by Tim Fitzpatrick | March 30, 2020 | Historical Letters and Docs, Historical Recovery Photos, History Resources and Reference | 0 Comments

Eight years after the release of the wildly successful 1941 Saturday Evening Post article, Bill W. wrote to Jack Alexander with a request.  Bill W. was interested in a follow-up article and was hoping Alexander would write one, and on June 8, 1949, Bill W. wrote the...

by Tim Fitzpatrick | March 26, 2020 | Historical Letters and Docs, Historical Recovery Photos, History Resources and Reference | 0 Comments

The story 'Lone Endeavor' was an interesting story that was added in the late preparation for the printing of the Big Book in 1939. This personal story from the back of the book was removed after the release of the First Printing of the book and has not reappeared in...

by Tim Fitzpatrick | March 25, 2020 | Historical Letters and Docs, Historical Recovery Photos, History Resources and Reference | 0 Comments

The 2nd Printing of the First Edition Alcoholics Anonymous Big Book was published in March 1941. The book was released at the same time as the famed Saturday Evening Post article written by Jack Alexander which hit the newsstands on March 1, 1941. Because of the...

by Tim Fitzpatrick | February 29, 2020 | Historical Letters and Docs | 0 Comments

The story behind the Jack Alexander article on A.A. On March 1, 1941, The Saturday Evening Post published an article titled “Alcoholics Anonymous: Freed Slaves of Drink, Now They Free Others” written by Jack Alexander.  The article became a major turning point in...

by Tim Fitzpatrick | February 28, 2020 | Historical Letters and Docs, Historical Recovery Photos | 0 Comments

I have always been grateful. that I had an opportunity to photograph A.A. co-Founder Bill W. at a symbolic time and place. It was June 15, 1958, Founders' Day for A.A. in Akron, Ohio. Bill was at the gravesite of Dr. Bob and Anne Smith, where in a few moments he would...