This 5,700 word article starts with the early life of Bill Wilson, his marriage, work and addiction. It identifies the profound impact on Bill of Dr Silkworth when he treated Bill in hospital; and the importance of Ebby Thacher when he taught Bill about the spiritual beliefs of the Oxford Group. The work continues with Bill fateful trip to Akron and his first meeting with Dr Bob Smith.
The early meetings in Akron, New York and Cleveland are studied and the initial problems caused by AA’s rapid growth in the late 1930’s and early 1940’s.
Significant events in AA’s early days, such as the Rockefeller Dinner, the Jack Alexander article and A.A.'s First International Convention in 1950 are addressed.
Bill Wilson’ determination that AA not fall into the same traps as the Washingtonians is covered.
The work then concludes with the historic events at the 1955 Convention, when underneath its newly adopted symbol, a circle enclosing a triangle, displayed on a banner above the podium, Bill Wilson and the other old-timers relinquished their twenty year stewardship of AA.
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