The Founders, Early Members, and Influencer's

Individuals located in the New York area

William Griffith Wilson (1895-1971)

Bill was born in Vermont and raised by his grandparents. When Pancho Villa invaded the United States in 1916, Bill was activated, along with his entire school class, in the Vermont National Guard but was not deployed to the US Border. The next year he became a commissioned artillery officer. During his military training in Massachusetts he took his first drink. This he wrote was "the elixir of life". Soon he was drinking until he would pass out. In 1918 he married Lois, shortly before he was deployed in World War I as a 2nd lieutenant in the Coast Artillery and stationed in England. Returning after the war his drinking evolved and as the result of it, the Great Depression, and his own depression, he and wife Lois found themselves without a solution for living. Eventually Bill discovered the solution to his drinking was through a spiritual experience, involvement with the Oxford Group, and working with fellow drunks.

Lois Burnham Wilson (1891-1988)

The co-founder of Al-Anon and married to Bill Wilson. Lois was there from the beginning working the program along side her husband Bill. Lois was the oldest of 6 children, her father a surgeon in Brooklyn NY. Her grandfather was a prominent pastor and scholar in the Swedenborgian Church, a church Lois was raised in. The affluent Brooklyn Heights family spent their summers at their summer home in Vermont. Her brother Rogers was friends with a Vermont local boy, Bill Wilson. When Lois first met Bill she was engaged, so meeting Bill presented her a challenge. Lois quickly made a choice, one that would completely changed her life. Lois and Bill were married a few months before Bill was deployed to Europe for WWI.

Lois' complete life story is presented in the book "The Lois Wilson Story: When Love is not Enough, The Biography of the Cofounder of Al-Anon" by William G Borchert 2005. The book was the basis of the movie "When Love is Not Enough: The Lois Wilson Story" 2020. Also Al-Anon published her memoir in "Lois Remembers".

Edwin Throckmorton Thatcher a.k.a. "Ebby" (1896-1966)

Ebby was a childhood friend and drinking companion of Bill Wilson. Ebby was the son of a prominent New York family from Albany, that summered in Manchester, Vermont. The family had made their wealth manufacturing iron cast stoves. Their summer home was close to the boyhood home of Bill Wilson, in East Dorset. A newspaper article reports Ebby attended school in Manchester during the winter of 1912. A later newspaper article reported Ebby had stayed with Lois and Bill Wilson, along with Lois' two brothers in June of 1929 at the Burnham summer home in Manchester, VT. Considered a chronic alcoholic, Ebby was on the verge of being committed to a Vermont Asylum in 1934. Just before sentencing, he received a jail house visit from Rowland Hazard, a sober member of the Oxford Group, and two other Oxford Group members. Rowland spoke of the relief he had found from alcoholism through the Oxford Group. One of the Oxford members, Cebra Graves, was the son of Collins Grave, the Magistrate in charge of Ebby's case. Collins was to sentence Ebby the next week. His intention was to sentence Ebby to the Vermont Asylum for the Insane. Collins agreed that if Cebra could show up Monday in court with a sober and clean Ebby, he would release Ebby into their care to take to New York City. On Sunday Cebra along with Shep Cornell, another Oxford Group member, found Ebby drunk on his back porch. They convinced him he needed help. He agreed to go with them. They found a tailor willing to work on Sunday, got his suit cleaned, and fed him enough coffee for him to appear sober at court session on Monday. As a result Ebby was placed in their custody, and taken to Calvary Mission, the rescue mission attached to Calvary Church in New York City. There Ebby found sobriety through the Oxford Group. In November of 1934 Ebby visited with Bill and Lois at their Brooklyn home and introduced Bill Wilson to the principals of the Oxford Group. Bill & Lois eventually started attending Oxford Group meetings after Bill sobered up in Towns Hospital. They started hosting Oxford Group meetings in their Brooklyn home, which soon attracted other struggling alcoholics. This group referred to themselves as the "drunk squad". Ebby, through the years, struggled to maintain continuous sobriety. From an October 1999 interview with Searcy Whaley, he stated the following concerning Ebby, "But six months after he (Ebby) gave Bill a clue on how to stay sober, Ebby went back out in the Bowery in New York City and had stayed drunk on and off for eighteen years. Then in early 1953 Bill Wilson came to Dallas. By then I was head of a clinic that took wet drunks. Bill and I had lunch, and after that lunch I asked Bill, “What would you rather see happen now that’s never happened in AA before?” and without any hesitation he said, “I’d rather see Ebby have a chance to get sober. Bill said that it as if to say, “You sober Ebby up” – that’s the way I took it. Bill didn’t even know exactly where Ebby was, but a couple of mutual friends found him on the Bowery. They dried him out a bit but gave him a pint of whiskey to get on the plane with, and he flew to Dallas to sober up. Ebby was in bad shape physically, mentally, spiritually and every other way you could imagine after being drunk for the better part of eighteen years and sleeping on the streets. And he was very unruly. He cussed out Bill and Dr. Bob and me and everybody else. Ebby was still very resentful because he could have been one of the forefathers of AA. But finally, Ebby asked if he could go to a meeting with me, and we went over to the Dallas Suburban AA Club – he got sober and stayed that way. And he got to helping others; we got him a job and he did pretty good. He stayed 4 or 5 years before going back to New York. But his health was failing him and he fell off the wagon again. Of course Bill was in touch with him all the time, and he made arrangements for Ebby to go to a halfway house in upstate New York. The lady up there that ran it said she would gladly take care of him. He went up there in 1963 and in 1966 he died. Lois Wilson told me unequivocally that Ebby was sober 2½ years when he passed away." Ebby died in 1966 from emphysema.

Carl Gustav Jung (1875-1961)

Dr Jung was a Swiss psychiatrist, psychotherapist and psychologist. He collaborated with Sigmund Freud. When Rowland Hazard was not accepted as a patient of Freud, he went to Jung's clinic in Zürich, Switzerland. After treatment and thinking he was cured of his dependency on alcohol discovered he did not after drinking on the ship back to New York. Returning to Jung he was told his only hope was to have a "vital spiritual experience". Jung also mentioned Rowland's current affiliation with church would not suffice. Carved above the door of his house were the words "Bidden or not bidden, God is present".

“Alcohol is the reduced form of spirit. Therefore, many people, lacking spirit, take to drink. They fill themselves with alcohol.”

Rowland Hazard III (1881-1945)

Rowland Hazard III was born into an affluent family in Rhode Island. Rowland was a Yale graduate. Seeking relief from his chronic drinking Rowland traveled to Europe for help. After spending time under the care of Dr Carl Jung he traveled back to the US but began drinking again before the ship had reached port. Rowland returned to Jung only to be advised his his only hope was to have a transformational spiritual experience. Rowland returned to the United States, sought out and became involved in the Oxford Group. Here he found relief. In August of 1934 Rowland was entertaining two other Oxford Group members, Shepard Cornell, and Cebra Graves, at his summer house in Glastenbury, Vermont. Hearing that Ebby was in jail and going to be committed to the Vermont Asylum for the Insane the three friends spoke with the magistrate before the sentencing. The magistrate happened to be Cebra's father. Hearing the groups plan convinced the magistrate to parole Ebby into their custody. They took Ebby to Manhattan, where he was placed in the Calvary House, the mission run by Calvary Church, then pastored by Sam Shoemaker. From there the now sober Ebby made a visit Bill and Lois Wilson at their home in Brooklyn. Bill Wilson describes the events in his story in the book Alcoholics Anonymous. Rowland never became a member of AA but due to his actions with Ebby, the message was carried to Bill Wilson. Dr Jung during a talk he gave in 1954 referred to Rowland without giving his identity. More recent research points to Rowland's treatment by Jung sometime in 1926. Rowland appears to have had several relapses after his encounter with Jung. He joined the Episcopal Church in 1936, and remained active for the remainder of his years. Rowland was able to achieve a productive business career. Although Rowland never joined AA his actions with Ebby became the path the message took on it's way to a desperate Bill Wilson and millions of others.

The information above was taken from multiple articles from the 2006-2007 issues of Culture Alcohol & Society Quarterly Newsletter Vol. II, No. 7
Culture Alcohol & Society Quarterly Newsletter Vol. II, No. 8
Culture Alcohol & Society Quarterly Newsletter Vol. III, No. 2 from the collection at Brown University Library.

Cebra Graves (1898-1979)

Cebra Quackenbush Graves 26 Aug 189a8 - 1 Jan 1979. Cebra went by the family nickname Cebe, Quackenbush was his mothers maiden name. He had an acting career on Broadway which ended in 1927. He attended Williams College for one year then enlisted in the US Army and served during WWI in France. In 1924 he attended Columbia and acted on Broadway for a few years. He served as the Vermont State Attorney and then as a State Senator He returned to Vermont and was reading law in his father's firm in Bennington. At the age of 36, Cebra first met Rowland Hazard at a party held by Cebra's parents in 1934. A few days after the party Cebra and his father got into a heated argument with his father over his behaviors. Cebra's reaction was to walk out of the family business and start walking down the road towards Williamstown Massachusetts. Rowland happened to be driving that day and spotted Cebra walking. He stopped and asked Cebra where he was walking to. Cebra replied he did not know. Rowland got him into his car and drove to the house of his Oxford Group friend Professor Philip Brown. As they three were talking the subject of alcoholism came up and the two guaranteed Cebra if he would follow the principals of the Oxford Group he would not drink alcoholically. Cebra, in his 1954 discussion with Bill Wilson, said during this discussion Roland told him he had taken a bottle along with him on a road trip. Rowland heard a voice saying to him, You will never take a drink again. He reacted by throwing the bottle into the bushes. As a result of the conversation Cebra began attending meetings, he toned down his drinking and moved back to NYC. There he attended Oxford Group meetings, returning to what he considered was normal drinking. In August of 1934 he went back to Bennington Vermont, tried to make amends to his parents, and live by the Oxford Group principals. While back home Cebra's father, the acting magistrate, had heard Ebby's case and had not yet sentenced him. The intent was to send him to the Vermont Asylum for the Insane. Cebra had known Ebby as a golfing and drinking friend for years. Cebra and Rowland visited with the magistrate, explained the Oxford Group principals and ask him not to send Ebby to jail. Rowland and Cebra's father was closer in age, than Rowland was to Cebra. Cebra's father said he would make Rowland and Cebra responsible for Ebby. On a Sunday afternoon Cebra visited Rowland at his house in Glastenbury. That same weekend Shep Cornell, a friend of Rowland's and an active Oxford Group member at the time was also visiting. As the three set around Rowland's swimming pool discussing carrying the Oxford Group message to others. Cebra brought up Ebby Thatcher, and proposed they visit Ebby that afternoon. Shep and Rowland were skeptical but Cebra persisted and finally convinced Shep to go with him to Ebby's house. The two found Ebby filthy and drunk on the back porch. Cebra walking up asked "You having fun yet?" with Ebby's reply "Go to hell". Cebra answered "You don't have to live like this anymore". The two took Ebby down to Manchester Center, found a tailor to clean Ebby's only suit, got Ebby cleaned up, and took him to a restaurant where they shared their experiences in the Oxford Group. Ebby agreed to go to NYC, move into Calvary House, and start attending meetings.

Although Cebra carried the message to Ebby, he still continued to struggle with his drinking. In 1940 he came to AA but did not get sober until 1954. In a 1954 interview with Bill Wilson Cebra told of making a comment at an Oxford Group meeting after seeing an attractive young lady in the room, "there's a good looking doll". The was informed he was offending the law of Purity, to which he responded "Purity, I joined this outfit to get over a hangover". He remarked in his interview with Bill that he had not done well with the rarefied spiritual atmosphere of the Oxford Group. He once told his son that his desire for alcohol wasn't a thirst, it was a hunger. He said he first learned of AA in 1940 after he was hypnotized in an effort to get over drinking, then immediately got drunk again. He met an old friend whose husband had died from cirrhosis and other conditions as the result of his drinking. She mention a common friend who had not had a drink for several years. Cebra contacted him and he introduced him to a man named Bert T. Cebra went to see Bert and together they went to the AA clubhouse on 24th Street. He mentioned he saw Ebby there that night. During WWII Cebra served in the Navy, working his way to the rank of Lt. Commander. When discharged he used his G.I. Bill to go to Columbia School of General Studies and then the Columbia Graduate School receiving a BA and MA in Classics. From 1946 to 1951 he was an Instructor in Classical Studies (Humanities) in Columbia School of General Studies. He was married 5 times, after the death of his forth wife, he looked up an old girlfriend he had known in France during the 1920's. The two married, and he lived the rest of his life with her in France. After spending some time with Bill Wilson in 1954 he return to France and continued in AA. He remained sober until his death. He died of a lung complication in France at the age of 80.

The information above was taken from multiple articles from the 2006-2007 issues of the Culture Alcohol & Society Quarterly Newsletter at Brown University Library;
Culture Alcohol & Society Quarterly Newsletter Vol. II, No. 7
Culture Alcohol & Society Quarterly Newsletter Vol. II, No. 8
Culture Alcohol & Society Quarterly Newsletter Vol. III, No. 2,
Culture Alcohol & Society Quarterly Newsletter Vol. III, No. 3,
Culture Alcohol & Society Quarterly Newsletter Vol. III, No. 4,
Culture Alcohol & Society Quarterly Newsletter Vol. III, No. 6,
Culture Alcohol & Society Quarterly Newsletter Vol. III, No. 7.
and Culture Alcohol & Society Quarterly Newsletter Vol. III, No. 8.

Shep Cornell (1899-1985)

Francis Shepard "Shep" Cornell was born in Montclair, New Jersey. In 1917 he served in the US Army during WWI. After discharge attended Lehigh University from 1919-1923. He became a Sales Engineer with Union Carbide in NYC. He then became a partner in several NY Stock Exchange firms. When Shep married his second wife in 1933, the pastor that married them was involved with the Oxford Group. Shep became active in the Oxford Group. In August of 1934 Shep was visiting Rowland Hazard at his home in Glastenbury, Vermont and there met Cebra Graves. His involvement with Ebby is described in other sections of this page. Lois Wilson remembers that during 1935 herself, Bill, Ebby and Shep were regularly attending Oxford Group meetings together. Shep attended some of the meetings that Bill and Lois held at their home in Brooklyn. In 1940 he ran for US Congress Representative to represent Upper Manhattan and Harlem, but lost. He enlisted in the US Army Air Corps in 1943 as a Captain, served states side and when discharged held the rank of Lt. Colonel. After the war he joined A.O Smith and moved to Milwaukee where he was the executive assistance to the president of A.O. Smith, where he remained until his retirement in 1964. After retirement he and his wife bought a farm near Charlottesville VA and raised cattle. During retirement he served on multiple corporate boards. On the way home from a football game in 1985, Shep had a heart attack and died while driving. This caused the car to hit a tree, with his wife escaping with minor injuries. Shep was 86 years old at the time of his death. He was affiliated with the Episcopal Church the rest of his life. There is no evidence he ever participated in AA. But obviously he was used, during this time of participation it the Oxford Group, to carry the message to Ebby Thatcher.

The information above was taken from multiple articles from the 2006-2007 issues of Culture Alcohol & Society Quarterly Newsletter, at Brown University; Culture Alcohol & Society Quarterly Newsletter Vol. II, No. 7,
Culture Alcohol & Society Quarterly Newsletter Vol. II, No. 8,
Culture Alcohol & Society Quarterly Newsletter Vol. III, No. 2, and
Culture Alcohol & Society Quarterly Newsletter Vol. III, No. 8.
Also used was the article on Shep in the 1960 edition of The National Cyclopaedia of American Biography page 358.

Charles Barnes Towns (1862-1947)

Charles established the Charles B Towns Hospital in 1901, located at 293 Central Park West in Manhattan. Charles came to New York in 1899 to establish a brokerage business in which he was a partner. By 1901 the brokerage had failed. Charles, not a doctor, claimed he had been approached by an unidentified person who claimed discovery of a cure for alcoholism and drug addictions. This person suggested Towns could make money by providing this cure to the public. As a result, Towns placed ads for "drug fiends" looking for relief. This claim was cutting edge at the time. Prior to this no real hope existed for alcoholics. In 1840, six drunkards in a bar in Baltimore made vows to each other to help each other stop drinking. This vow evolved into the Washingtonian movement, which grew to an estimated 600,000. Over time the group became politically involved in prohibition, abolition, and a variety of other social issues. This lost of focus, one drunk keeping another dry, is generally recognized as its demise. AA used lessons learned from the Washingtonians, when the 12 Traditions were written. After the Washingtonians, came the New York State Inebriate Asylum, located in Binghamton. It was the first institution designed and constructed to treat alcoholism as a mental disorder in the United States. The facility operated from 1864 through 1879. It was then converted to a mental hospital. At the same time like facilities operated in Long Island, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Boston, and Chicago.
In 1908 Charles Towns was sent to China as a United States Drug Treatment Ambassador to assist with the opium crisis. There Towns claimed a 90% success rate based on the fact he never heard from 90% of his patients again. While in China he perfected his treatment regime. Although Towns was not a medical doctor, he did employ doctors and a medical staff at his facility. His method, the Belladonna Cure, was named after a the belladonna plant. Belladonna is commonly called deadly nightshade, and all parts of it are poisonous. Some of it's effects on the human body include changes to saliva, sweat, pupil size, urination, digestive functions, increased heart rate, and increased blood pressure. At the beginning of the treatment, a mixture of compounds, including morphine, were given to induce sleep. Once asleep, patients were woke each hour and given the Belladonna regimen. The regiment consisted of a mixture of deadly nightshade, another plant in the nightshade family called henbane, and prickly ash. The mixture was given every hour for two days, followed by a dose of castor oil. Every 12 hours, a compound mixture, including mercury, was taken. In addition, some received small amounts of strychnine. Hopefully the patents bed sheets were changed on a regular basis. The hospital catered to an affluent clientele, with payment arranged before treatments began. Dr. Silkworth was the hospital's Chief of Staff during the times that Bill Wilson was a patient. Dr. Silkworth is mentioned in the chapter "The Doctor's Opinion" in the Big Book. Bill was admitted three times between 1933 and 1934 for detox. In November 0f 1934, Bill received a visit from his old friend Ebby Thatcher who shared his success in the Oxford Group. Bill was somewhat interested in the group but soon after was admitted again to Towns Hospital for his forth stay. This time he exhibited the signs of delirium tremens, so was given the Belladonna Cure. During this stay Bill lying in bed depressed and despairing, he cried out, "I'll do anything! Anything at all! If there be a God, let Him show Himself!" He then had the sensation of a bright light, a feeling of ecstasy, and a new serenity. He never drank again for the remainder of his life. Wilson described his experience to Silkworth, who told him, "Something has happened to you I don't understand. But you had better hang on to it". This time Bill maintained his sobriety through participation in the Oxford Group and working with other alcoholics. Bill would return to the hospital to talk with others taking the treatments. When he began writing the book Alcoholics Anonymous, Charles Towns lent Bill money to help him publish the book, almost 50% of what was raised came from Charles. Charles was the person that had contacts with Liberty Magazine, resulting in the article "Alcoholics and God" in the September 30, 1939 issue. Bill was not overly satisfied with the article, feeling the emphasis on God would cause many to dismiss AA as a solution. The article provided the first publicity for AA, which resulted in over 800 letters received at the NY AA office, and included orders for about 200 copies of the Big Book. Charles Towns offered Bill a paid position on the hospital staff to work with alcoholic patients, but when this opportunity was presented to the other early New York AA members, they disapproved, so Bill passed on the offer. Charles Towns, although often overlooked by historians, was instrumental in the foundation of AA. A book about the life of Charles Towns written by Gary Neidhardt titled "King Charles of New York City" is available either through a library or online.

Dr. William Duncan Silkworth (1873 - 1951)

The Doctor in charge at the Charles B. Towns Hospital, when Bill Wilson was a patient. He is credited for “The Doctor’s Opinion” in the Big Book. He graduated from Princeton University with a BA. He then graduated from the Bellevue Hospital Medical College in 1899 with a MD degree. During his internship he served in the inebriate clinic” at Bellevue Hospital in Manhattan. He chose to work with alcoholic and drug dependent patients as his professional specialty. He felt that medical science at the time had failed to study alcoholism as a disease. After graduation he worked at Presbyterian Hospital but most likely left to staff cuts due to the depression. Becoming the Doctor in Charge at the Charles B. Towns Hospital, he worked with Bill Wilson during his four times of treatment there. In 1945 Silkworth, convinced the management of Knickerbocker Hospital, in upper Manhattan, to establish a clinic for treatment of alcoholics. This was the first time alcoholics could be admitted to a hospital for treatment, up to that time they were only admitted with false diagnoses as alcohol addiction had been considered a moral failure. Dr. Silkworth died at his home in Manhattan on 22 March 1951, after suffering a heart attack. Collections of donations from members of AA helped to provide for his widowed wife's retirement years.

Frank Buchman (1878 - 1961)

raw dump needs work - Frank was the son of a saloon owner in Allentown, Pennsylvania. He attended college, then seminary, and became active in church work. Through this work, he established a hospice for underprivileged boys in the slums of Philadelphia in 1905. In 1907, his board of directors asked him to reduce costs by cutting the food budget. Frank disagreed, which resulted in his board relieving him of his duties. In 1908, Frank traveled to England, still nursing his pain from losing his work at the hospice. After a year of travel, hoping to meet the evangelist F.B. Meyer, Frank attended a conference, but Meyer did not show.

insert rest of Frank's story here raw dump needs work - Frank was the son of a saloon owner in Allentown, Pennsylvania. He attended college, then seminary, and became active in church work. Through this work, he established a hospice for underprivileged boys in the slums of Philadelphia in 1905. In 1907, his board of directors asked him to reduce costs by cutting the food budget. Frank disagreed, which resulted in his board relieving him of his duties. In 1908, Frank traveled to England, still nursing his pain from losing his work at the hospice. At this point in Frank's story, we depart from the most widely seen accounts across various 12-Step resources. In 1921 Frank traveled to Keswick England. Keswick hosts an annual convention. The first one began in 1875. The convention has been held every year since, only skipping during world wars. This convention is still held annually and has grown from the original week long event into three. , which he hoped to meet the evangelist F.B. Meyer who was to appear at a conference near Oxford University. Frank attended the conference, but Meyer did not show. One of the speakers that year was Jessie-Penn Lewis. Jesse was a well-known female Welsh evangelist. As she delivered her message evangelist, but research into her life does not support this. She traveled the world, was at the epicenter of the Welsh Revival on 1904. and had a great impact on During her talk, he realized he was dragging the hated board members with him everywhere he traveled. As she talked, Frank recognized his responsibilities in the situation with the board. As he released the resentment, he found new spiritual freedom had replaced it. Sharing this fresh experience with an Oxford student, they both were unaware the foundation of an unorganized first-century Christian fellowship movement was laid. This unnamed movement's birth in 1921 began that day at Oxford. In 1928, due to the lack of a name, the local press referred to this group as the Oxford Group, a name that stuck. Frank Buchman later met with F.B. Meyer, who challenged him with the question, "Do you give God enough uninterrupted time to tell you what to do?" Frank returned to the U.S. and located his work at Calvary Church in Manhattan, where Sam Shoemaker pastored. The church allowed the Oxford Group to establish its world headquarters in a portion of its building. Sam first met Frank in 1918 in China and had a direct relationship with Frank Buchman for many years. The Oxford Group was guided by four absolutes: Absolute Honesty, Absolute Purity, Absolute Unselfishness, and Absolute Love. By these all situations were judged. In one of the earliest writings about the group it tells of following six principles, these principals that influenced the development of the 12 Steps. The Oxford Group movement did not own physical buildings, as it was a movement of individuals seeking a shared spiritual experience. According to the book "What Is The Oxford Group," page 3, "You cannot belong to the Oxford Group. It has no membership list, subscriptions, badge, rules, or definite location. It is a name for a group of people who, from every rank, profession, and trade, in many countries, have surrendered their lives to God and who are endeavoring to lead a spiritual quality of life under the guidance of the Holy Spirit." The group officially named themselves MRA (Moral Re-Armament) in 1938. As WWII neared, Buchman shifted his focus from individuals to entire nations. He traveled the globe, meeting with many world leaders, with the vision to stop WWII by changing the morals of the world's leaders. Frank received criticism and condemnation for making comments regarding Adolf Hitler and attempting to bring the message to him. Germany also listed Buchman as an "enemy of the state," but this did not stop Frank's efforts. When Frank died in August 1961, leaders from around the world sent messages. The prime minister of New Zealand, Holyoake, stated that Frank had done as much as any man of our time to unite the peoples of the world by cutting through the prejudices of color, class, and creed. In the 1960s, MRA sponsored a spin-off group called "Sing Out America - Up With People." This group of young people toured America, performing concerts. Over the years, the organization has shifted its focus and is now called Initiatives of Change. The organization is still quietly working today for world change, with headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, and Richmond, VA. On 7 August 1961, in Freudenstadt, Germany, Frank died while attending a conference in Freudenstadt, Germany. Frank was 88 at the time of his death. The body was returned to Allentown where it is buried. Some Oxford Group books published after 1924 are still under copyright. Some have become highly sought-after collector's items and have become overpriced for the non-collector. For the curious, consider using the Inter-Library Loan program through your local library for free access, check the Internet Archive site, or do a search to see if an inexpensive reprint is available. One of the most popular books, "Believing in False Gods: I Was a Pagan" by V.C. Kitchen, was one of the first alcoholics to become sober while in the Oxford Group. Below are direct links to free access to some of this Oxford Group literature for further study, stored at The Internet Archive Site. A childhood friend of Bill Wilson, Ebby Thatcher, an alcoholic who started attending Oxford Group meetings in New York City. Ebby visited Bill and told him about his experiences with the Oxford Group and the positive changes it brought to his life. Lois Wilson mentioned that she and Bill attended two weekly meetings – on Thursday evenings and Sunday afternoons – for two and a half years until 1937. Bob and Anne Smith also participated in Oxford Group meetings in Akron, Ohio. Their involvement took place independently before they met the Wilsons. A failed business trip brought Bill and Bob Smith together for the first time on May 12, 1935. Hoping to avoid drinking, Bill sought out local Oxford Group members and met with Bob and Anne Smith. The "Alcoholic Squads" within the Oxford Group in New York were eventually asked to leave as their focus shifted from Christ to Alcoholism. However, the Alcoholics meeting in Akron remained within the Oxford Group until 1939. A group of alcoholics from Cleveland regularly attended the weekly Oxford Group meetings in Akron, which was a 75-mile round trip. On May 10, 1939, the Cleveland members, led by Clarence Snyder, announced their intent to start their own alcoholics group in Cleveland the next day, independent from the Oxford Group. This decision was a reaction to a Roman Catholic Priest in Cleveland who forbade his parish members from attending Oxford Group meetings in Akron. This announcement surprised some of the Akron members, and they objected to the news. The next night in Cleveland, some Akron Oxford Group members attended, intending to prevent the group from forming. However, their attempt failed, resulting in the first meeting in the world called "Alcoholics Anonymous," which took place on May 11, 1939. Clarence stated in a talk that can be found on this site, "The only difference between this new meeting and the Oxford Group meeting was that we called it Alcoholics Anonymous."

"I began to see myself as God saw me, which was a very different picture than the one I had of myself.... I realized how my sin, my pride, my selfishness, had eclipsed me from God. I was the center of my own life. That big 'I' had to be crossed out..." - Frank Buchman

Sam Shoemaker (1893-1963)

Pastor of Calvary Church, NYC. Early member of the Oxford Group. The Oxford Group World Headquarters were housed in Sam's Calvary Church. In the book "Twice-Born Men", Sam is referred to in the story "The Virginian". There was a bowery style rescue mission attached to Calvary Church called Calvary mission. Ebby Thatcher was staying at Calvary mission when he made a visit to Bill and Lois Wilson in November of 1934. The Oxford Group practiced the following six steps:

1. Admission of personal defeat (You have been defeated by sin)
2. Taking a personal inventory (List your sins)
3. Confession of one's sins to another person
4. Making restitution to those one has harmed
5. Helping others selflessly
6. Praying to God for Guidance and the power to put these precepts into practice

When Bill asked Sam to convert the Oxford Group's 6 steps to a version an alcoholic could easily understand, Sam refused saying only an alcoholic could rewrite the steps for another alcoholic. Bill Wilson credits Sam Shoemaker who “passed on the spiritual keys by which we were liberated.” The first 3 Steps of AA were inspired in part by Shoemaker. Bill said “the early AA got its ideas of self-examination, acknowledgement of character defects, restitution for harm done, and working with others straight from the Oxford Groups and directly from Sam Shoemaker, their former leader in America, and from nowhere else". Sam was the most prolific writer of material concerning the Oxford Group movement. When Frank Buchman changed focus from individuals to countries (renamed Oxford Group to MRA (Moral Rearmament), Sam disassociated himself from Frank Buchman and his movement. Sam summarized his life's purpose in "I Stand By The Door" which is listed below.

Hank Parkhurst (1895-1954)

Hank was the first alcoholic to become sober in New York, following Bill Wilson. Hank was an executive of Standard Oil of New Jersey who lost his job due to alcoholism. Bill worked with Hank at Towns Hospital. After becoming sober, Hank started “Honors Dealers,” a co-op company based in Newark, New Jersey, that bought bulk automotive supplies and sold them directly to small Mom and Pop gas stations. Hank gave Bill office space and made Ruth Hock available for dictation. Ruth typed out the first draft copy of the Big Book. When funds ran low, Hank and Bill formed Works Publishing, Inc., which sold 600 shares at $25 each to finance the writing and publishing of the Big Book. Evicted from their house at 182 Clinton Street in Brooklyn, Bill and Lois lived with Hank and his wife Kathleen. Hank is the person Dr. Silkworth referred to in “The Doctors Opinion” - a case of pathological mental deterioration. Hank had significant input into the chapter “To Employers.” Some believe he wrote the majority of the chapter. His story is “The Unbeliever” in the first edition. He is also referred to in the book “Pass It On” on page 200. Bill would bring the typed manuscript each week to the weekly meeting for review. He also would mail a copy to Dr. Bob for the same purpose. During these reviews, Hank, an agnostic, joined by Jim Burwell, argued avoidance of references to God. The result was a compromise that produced the phrase “God as we understood him.” After the book was published, Bill moved the office to Manhattan for better access to the population he hoped to serve. Bill purchased the office furniture from Hank, but the situation created strong resentment in Hank. The fact that Lois testified against Hank in court during his divorce proceeding from Kathleen probably added to the flames of resentment. After four years of sobriety, Hank began drinking again in 1940, although he did experience short periods of not drinking during the rest of his life. His resentment and hurt toward Bill resulted in the spread of discord among AA members, claiming financial misconduct by Bill and Dr. Bob. Hank enlisted his soon to be brother-in-law, Clarence Snyder in Cleveland in his cause. Hank married his 2nd wife, Caroline Wright, the sister of Clarence's wife Dorothy "Dot". As the allegations spread across the membership a committee, composed of members, was formed to investigate the allegations. This committee conducted a hearing with Bill, Bob, and their accusers in the same room. The decision reached was no wrongdoings had taken place so the allegations were put to rest. Hank and Caroline divorced, and Hank remarried his first wife Kathleen. Sadly Hank died in January of 1954, the obituary listed the cause as illness, but many claimed it to be alcohol and drugs. But without Hank, the publication of the Big Book would never have occurred.

Ruth Hock

was the secretary for Hank Parkhurst. In June of 1938 Bill started dictating his work for the Big Book to Ruth in Hank's office in Newark, NJ. She typed and was one of the proofreaders of the original manuscript for the Big Book. When Bill Wilson moved to an office in Manhattan Ruth followed. Ruth answer the letters for help that were sent to the AA office after the book was published. Ruth hand wrote many of these responses. Ruth eventually became the 1st Secretary for AA.

Fitz Mayo - a.k.a. John Henry Fitzhugh Mayo (1898-1943)

Fitz was one of the AA founding members of AA in New York with Bill Wilson. Bill and Lois visited him and his wife Libby at his house in Cumberstone MD in connection with their attendance (and his) at Oxford Group open houses in 1936. The marriage was in trouble by that time and ended shortly after their meeting. The son of an Episcopalian clergyman, he attended a church school, where he became rebellious at what he thought an overdose of religious education and became an atheist. Fitz was a failed bookkeeper and school teacher due to his drinking. Once his marriage to Libby ended he checked himself into Town's Hospital in NYC. Fitz most likely was the second to get sober in New York, right after Hank Parkhurst. He was the first man after Bill Wilson to get sober in New York and he remained sober for the rest of his life. Once discharged from Towns Hospital Fitz attended meetings at Bill and Lois's house even before it broke from the Oxford Group. During the writing of the Big Book he insisted that the book should express Christian doctrines and use Biblical terms and expressions. The result of the debate resulted in using the phrase "God as we understood him" in the Big Book. Fitz was a childhood friend of Jim Burwell, and was the stimulus that caused Jim to become involved in the group. Fitz developed cancer and died in 1943 with eight years of sobriety. Fitz was instrumental in founding AA groups in the Washington DC area. Fitz story appears as "Our Southern Friend" in the first 3 editions of the Big Book. Fitz is also the person Bill writes about in chapter 4 "We Agnostics" on pages 55 - 57, the man who thought he was an atheist.

James Burwell a.k.a. Jim B or Jimmy B (1898-1974)

Jimmy was one of the AA founding members in New York with Bill Wilson. He was among the first 10 members of AA on the East Coast and was responsible for starting AA in Philadelphia and Baltimore. He later moved to San Diego where he was instrumental in the growth of AA there. His most crucial contribution at the founding of AA came from his atheism - or as he later termed it, his "militant agnosticism." He argued strongly with the early group in New York that it needed to tone down what he called the "God bit". This resulted in the much more inclusive "Higher Power" and "God as we understand Him" concepts that are now so closely associated with Alcoholics Anonymous. Jimmy was not involved with the Oxford Group. He moved to New York, enticed by his childhood friend Fitz Mayo, to participate in the meetings held at Bill and Lois's house, after they had broken ties with the Oxford Group. There he worked for Hank Parkhurst, selling polish for automobiles at the small company owned by Hank. His story, in the 2nd 3rd, and 4th editions of the Big Book, is titled "The Vicious Cycle". Jim Burwell requested to be buried close to his friend Fitz on the grounds of Christ Episcopalian Church at Owensville, MD, where Fitz's father had pastored. Jimmy had over 36 years of sobriety when he passed.

Virginia L Wright-McLeod (AA) of La Jolla CA (1904-1994)

Virginia had two sisters, the oldest Caroline, married Hank Parkhurst after his divorce from his first wife. The middle sister Dorothy, was married to Clarence Snyder. Virginia was the best friend of Dorothy Wilson-Strong, Bill Wilson's sister. Dorothy, Bills sister introduced her to Bill and Lois to she if they could help Virginia's husband Myron get sober. Virginia became a close friend to Lois and Bill and attended meetings at their 182 Clinton Street house in Brooklyn Heights, Brooklyn . Her sister Dot (Dorothy) contacted Virginia and asked for advice on dealing with her drunk husband, Clarence Snyder. Virginia talked to Bill Wilson who put her sister in contact with Dr. Bob. Dot and Clarence divorced in 1941. Dot, visiting from Cleveland, met Ruth Hock and they became close friends, even assisting in the proof reading of the Big Book, just back from the publisher, before the first copy was sold. Dot called Virginia and told her to be the first in line to buy the Big Book the next night. Virginia purchased the very first copy of the Big Book that was sold, for $3.95. Bill called Virginia one day and asked her if she could go pick up a woman named Marty Mann from a sanitarium and take her home to live for a few weeks. Virginia's husband Myron eventually got sober through AA. After many years of going to meetings she finally realized that she was also an Alcoholic. Before her death she gave her copy of the Big Book to the AA Archives in NYC.

Dr Harry Tiebout (pronounced tee-bo)

Bill Wilson's psychiatrist who also treated Marty Mann. Dr. Harry M. Tiebout, a psychiatrist, was an early pioneer in coupling the principles and philosophy of Alcoholics Anonymous with psychiatric knowledge of alcoholism. A strong supporter of A.A. throughout his life, he consistently worked for acceptance of his views concerning alcoholism the medical and psychiatric professions. He served on the Board of Trustees for A.A. from 1957 to 1966, and was chairman of the National Council on Alcoholism in 1950. Known for his writings on Ego Deflation and Surrender.

The function of surrender in AA is now clear. It produces that stopping by causing the individual to say, "I quit. I give up on my headstrong ways. I've learned my lesson." Very often for the first time in that individual's adult career, he has encountered the necessary discipline that halts him in his headlong pace. Actually, he is lucky to have within him the capacity to surrender. It is that which differentiates him from the wild animals. And this happens because we can surrender and truly feel, "Thy will, not mine, be done." "Unfortunately, that ego will return unless the individual learns to accept a disciplined way of life, which means the tendency toward ego comeback is permanently checked." Dr. Harry Tiebout

Marty Mann (AA) (1904-1980)

In 1939 Marty was under the care of Dr Harry Tiebout. Dr Tiebout gave her a copy of the first draft of the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous. After reading it Marty started attending meetings at Bill and Lois house in Brooklyn. Bill became her sponsor, and she became the 1st woman in AA to maintain lasting sobriety. She was the founder of Yale's School of Alcohol Studies and the National Council on Alcohol and Drug Dependency. Marty Mann was a major figure in the effort to persuade the public to view alcohol addiction as a disease.

Nell Wing (1917-2007)

Nell worked for 20 years as Bill Wilson's secretary. Nell was not an alcoholic. Nell graduated from college, went to Texas, and taught school for a few years. She joined the Coast Guard during WWII, and served as a SPAR (US Coast Guard Women's Reserve during World War II). Moving to New York City after the war, she eventually took a temporary job in 1947 at the office of the Alcoholic Foundation (now the General Service Office). Her intent was to save enough money to move to Mexico and study art. Instead, she worked 36 years for AA. In 1950 Nell became Bill Wilson's secretary. She became close friends with Bill and Lois and on many weekends stayed with the Wilsons in Bedford Hills. There she assisted Bill with correspondence and research. Nell and Lois became close life-long friends. Nell continued her close association with the General Service Office and Lois even after Bill died in 1971. She organized the AA Archives and in 1993 published a memoir titled Grateful to Have Been There

Father Ed Dowling(1898-1960)

The Jesuit priest who served for twenty years as sponsor and spiritual guide to Bill Wilson. Ed was the first to notice the similarities between the 12-step program and the Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius of Loyola. Dowling showed up at Bill Wilson's door unannounced late one night in NYC. Bill and Father Ed, became close friends, and served as a spiritual advisor to Bill for over 20 years.

Anne Hermann Bingham (1899 - 1984)

The co-founder of Al-Anon with Lois Wilson. At 19 Anne married Devoe Bingham in 1918. Devoe ran a garage and sold foreign automobiles. They were married for many years before Devoe took his first drink at the age of 30. The first time he drank he never made it back home that night. Devoe was admitted four times to Towns Hospital and spent 10 years in AA before he maintained sobriety. During this time Anne would turn to Lois Wilson for help, in the process they became close friends and helped one another. Lois and Bill along with Anne and Devoe spent many Saturday evenings together. In the beginning days Anne would travel from her home in Chappaqua to Stepping Stones, carrying her personal typewriter. Lois and Anne made many trips together speaking to groups and events around the country. When the Clearing House came into existence Anne became the chairman of the Prisons Groups Committee, which later became the Institutions Committee. When an inmate would write to AA asking that their families be given help, the request would be passed to the Clearing House. Anne would write to the families of inmates and also contact the warden of the institution educating them about Al-Anon. Devoe died unexpectedly in 1961 with ten years of sobriety. After his death Anne married Bill's cousin Howard Wilson, and they moved to Connecticut where they attended AA meetings. The marriage lasted only a few years, and Anne then moved a few times around the country. She lived in Florida for six years, where she helped establish Al-Anon meetings there. The last time Anne and Lois were together was at the 1983 at an AA DAAR Convention in Palm Springs, California. Anne died on 6 March 1984 and is buried next to Devoe in Chappaqua, NY. (information from the books "First Steps: Al-Anon 35 years of Beginnings" and "Lois Remembers" and findagrave.com

Emmet Fox (1886-1951)

Emmet Fox was an Irish emigrant and pastor of a large church in New York City. He became popular during the Depression era, with services of 5,000+ attendees. Fox’s secretary was the mother of one of one of the men that Bill Wilson worked with in the early days. As a result of this connection, early AA groups often went to hear Fox. Emmet Fox emphasized the idea that thoughts are real things, and that one cannot have one kind of mind and another kind of life. According to Fox, if we want to change our lives, then we must change our thoughts first. His writing, especially "The Sermon on the Mount", became popular in AA. Several pamphlets "The Golden Key," and "The Seven Main Aspects of God" are also widely read by early AA's.

Fox deals with resentments and forgiveness in the booklet titled "The Lord's Prayer". Here is an excerpt "Setting others free means setting yourself free, because resentment is really a form of attachment. It is a Cosmic Truth that it takes two to make a prisoner; the prisoner - and the jailer. There is no such thing as being a prisoner on one's own account. Every prisoner must have a jailer, and the jailer is as much a prisoner as his charge. When you hold resentment against anyone, you are bound to that person by a cosmic link, a real, though mental chain. You are tied by a cosmic tie to the thing that you hate. The one person perhaps in the whole world whom you most dislike is the very one to whom you are attaching yourself by a hook that is stronger than steel. Is this what you wish? Is this the condition in which you desire to go on living? Remember, you belong to the thing with which you are linked in thought, and at some time or other, if that tie endures, the object of your resentment will be drawn again into your life, perhaps to work further havoc. Do you think that you can afford this? Of course, no one can afford such a thing; and so the way is clear, You must cut all such ties, by a clear and spiritual act of forgiveness. You must loose him and let him go. By forgiveness you set yourself free."