According to the forward to the first edition of the book Alcoholics Anonymous,

"We, of Alcoholics Anonymous, are more than one hundred men and women who have recovered from a seemingly hopeless state of mind and body. To show other alcoholics precisely how we have recovered is the main purpose of this book. "

My problem with this opening statement has to do with just how imprecise it is with regard to how many "recovered" alcoholics there actually were at the time the Big Book was starting to be written. According to some passages that I have read in other A.A. conference approved literature there were only about forty solid members of A.A. when the book project came into being. By 1939 the year the book was published, only 73 AA members could be accounted for. So it seems there were not “more than one hundred” Alcoholics as the book states.

From Dr. Bob and the Good Old-timers, p123, in "November of that year" [1937]:
Bill's writings record the day he sat in the living room with Doc, counting recoveries.
"A hard core of very grim, last-gasp cases had by then been sober a couple of years,"
He said. "All told, we figured that upwards of 40 alcoholics were staying bone dry."
Dr. Bob and Bill realized a "chain reaction" had started, and "Conceivably it could one
day circle the whole world.... We actually wept for joy," Bill said, "and Bob and Anne and
I bowed our heads in silent thanks."

From Pass It On pp177-178, "Later in 1937..."
It was on this visit that the two men conducted a "formal" review of their work of
the past two years.
What they came to realize as a result of that review was astounding: Bill may have
been stretching things when he declared that at least 20 cases had been sober a
couple of years; but by counting everybody who seemed to have found sobriety in
New York and Akron, they concluded that more than 40 alcoholics were staying dry
as a result of the program!
"As we carefully rechecked the score, it suddenly burst upon us that a new light was
shining into the dark world of the alcoholic," Bill wrote. "Despite the fact that Ebby
had slipped, a benign chain reaction, one alcoholic carrying the good news to the next,
had started outward from Dr. Bob and me. Conceivably it could one day circle the
whole world. What a tremendous thing this realization was! At last we were sure.
There would be no more flying totally blind. We actually wept for joy, and Bob and
Anne and I bowed our heads in silent thanks."


It is thought by some History Buffs like Glenn Chesnut of the Hindsfoot Foundation that these A.A.'s pioneers had resorted to "puffery" when they decided to round the figure up to the nearest hundred. On one A.A. related webpage that I discovered I found a list of all the members that had joined our fellowship up to 1939 the year of the Big Book was published. As you will see when you read this list many of the original members are alleged either to have failed to achieve long term sobriety or it is still unknown if they managed to continue to stay sober for the rest of their lives.

1934
(1) Dec 11 Bill Wilson New York Co-Founder of AA – Bill's Story
1935
(2) Jun 10 Dr.Bob Smith Akron Co-Founder of AA – Dr. Bob's Nightmare
(3) June Eddie Reilly Akron Sobered in 1949
(4) June Dr. McK. Akron Failed to gain long term sobriety
(5) June Bill Dotson Akron, Story: Alcoholics Anonymous Number Three – 2nd Ed
(6) July Ernie Gailbraith Akron The Seven Month Slip – (An In-and-Outer Slipper)
(7) Aug Wes Wyman Akron Sobered in 1949
(8) Sept Hank Parkhurst, New York The Unbeliever – 4 yrs. Sober, Drunk Sept 1939
(9) Sept Phil Smith Akron
Oct John Henry "Fitz" Mayo New York, founder AA Washington DC metro area, story: Our Southern Friend
(10) 1935 Freddie B. New York Failed to gain long term sobriety
(11) 1935 Brooke B. New York Failed to gain long term sobriety
(12) 1935 Bill R. New York Failed to gain long term sobriety
(13) 1935 Ernest M. New York Failed to gain long term sobriety
(14) 1935 Herb D. New York Failed to gain long term sobriety
(15) 1935 Alec New York Failed to gain long term sobriety
(16) 1935 Russ R. New York, Original account, Failed, see footnote.[1]
(17) 1935 Bill C. New York, Committed suicide after living at the Clinton Street house for a year.[2]
(18) 1935 Victor New York Failed to gain long term sobriety
(19) 1935 Lil New York Failed to gain long term sobriety
1936
(20) Jan Harold Grisinger Akron
(21) Feb Walter Bray Akron The Back-Slider
Marie Bray, Story: AN ALCOHOLIC'S WIFE
(22) Apr Joe Doeppler Akron, Story: The European Drinker
(23) Apr Myron Williams New York Story: Hindsight
(24) July Paul Stanley Akron, Story: Truth Freed Me
(25) Sept J. D. Holmes Akron, co-founder, AA Evansville, first AA group in Indiana.
(26) Sept Holland Spencer Akron
(27) Dec Bob Oviatt Akron, Story: The Salesman
1937
(28) Feb Dick Stanley Akron, Story: The Car Smasher
(29) Feb Don McLean New York
(30) Feb Bill Rudell New York, Story: A Business Man's Recovery
(31) Feb Lloyd Tate Akron, Story: The Rolling Stone
(32) Feb Bill Van Horn Akron, Story: Ward Of The Probate Court
(33) Mar Harry Zoellers Akron A Close Shave
(34) Mar Florence Rankin New York, Story: A Feminine Victory - Returned to drinking & suicide 1939[3]
(35) Apr Earl Treat, Akron, Story: He Sold Himself Short, Second through Fourth Edition
(36) Apr[Feb] Bob Evans, Akron[4]
(37) May Wally Gillam Akron, Story: Fired Again
(38) May Charlie Simondsord, Alt spelling: Charlie Simonson Akron, Story: Riding The Rods
(39) July Jim Scott Akron, Story: Traveler, Editor, Scholar
(40) July Paul Kellogg New York Failed to gain long term sobriety
(41) Sept Bill Jones Cleveland
(42) Oct Jack Williams New York
(43) Nov Tom Lucas Akron, Story: My Wife And I
(44) Dec Ned Poynter New York Continued Sobriety Unknown
(45) 1937 Jane S. Cleveland Sober a few months, Failed to gain long term sobriety
1938
(46) Jan Jim Burwell New York, Founder, AA Philadelpia and Harrisburg PA. Slipped, DOS June 15, 1938 The Vicious Cycle – 2nd through 4th Ed.
(47) Feb: Clarence Snyder, Cleveland. Story: Home Brewmeister
(48) Feb Charlie Jones Akron
(49) Feb Ray Campbell New York, Story: An Artist's Concept
(50) Feb Van Wagner New York Continued Sobriety Unknown
(51) Feb Jack Darrow New York Continued Sobriety Unknown[5]
(52) Feb Norman Hunt New York / Darien, CT, Story: Educated Agnostic
(53) Feb Harold Sears New York, Story: Smile With Me, At Me
(54) Apr Capt. Coxe New York Continued Sobriety Unknown
(55) May Abby Goldrick Akron, Story: He Thought He Could Drink Like A Gentleman, Second and Third Editions
(56) May Bert Taylor New York Continued Sobriety Unknown
(57) May Bob Taylor New York Continued Sobriety Unknown
(58) June George Williams New York Continued Sobriety Unknown
(59) June Joseph Taylor New York Continued Sobriety Unknown
(60) June Harry Brick New York, Story: A Different Slant
(61) June Ralph Furlong New York, Springfield, MA, Story: Another Prodigal Story
(62) July Bud Emerson New York Continued Sobriety Unknown
(63) Sept Archie Trowbridge Akron and Founder, AA Detroit. Story: The Fearful One, The Man Who Mastered Fear
(64) Sept Horace Maher New York, Story: On His Way
(65) Oct John Dolan Akron
(66) Dec Vaughn Phelps Akron
(67) Dec Horace Crystal New York Continued Sobriety Unknown
(68) 1938 Bill H. Cleveland failed, later permanent sobriety
1939
(69) Jan Pat Cooper Calif., Story The Lone Endeavor
September 13, 1939: Sylvia Kaufman, Chicago. Story: The Keys of the Kingdom, Second through Fourth Editions[6](Honorable mention)
Unknown Sobriety Dates
(70) Delmar Tyron Akron Aces Full, Seven-Eleven
(71) Doc Moran Akron Continued Sobriety Unknown
(72) Harold Grissom Akron Continued Sobriety Unknown
(73) Dr. Howard S. Akron Continued Sobriety Unknown

So why does this bother me that early A.A.’s may have exaggerated their numbers? It bothers me because the phrase "the first one hundred" is so often thrown around at A.A. meetings and on the internet. And this phrase is almost always followed up by some Evangelical Big Book Thumper placing tremendous emphasis on the following words which state that the Big Books purpose is "TO SHOW OTHER ALCOHOLICS PRECISELY HOW WE RECOVERED."

First off, it can be argued that the authors of the Big Book don't really tell us PRECISELY how they recovered because the 12 steps that they claim to have taken, had not even been codified or written down yet. Bill Wilson did not even start to write the 12 Steps until he started to write the 5th Chapter of the Big Book. Most of these early A.A.’s who are on the list of original members had presumably already "recovered" prior to there being any such thing as the 12 steps!

We are told by Bill and others that what they actually used to get (and hopefully to stay sober) were their Oxford Group Meetings and six concepts that were derived from the teachings of the Oxford Group (as they were passed along word of mouth). Although one can find several different versions of these six “original steps”, and though some claim the “original six steps” are an “Urban Legend” these concepts seem to have been roughly (not precisely) like the following list of stages or steps.

1. Complete deflation.
2. Dependence and guidance from a Higher Power.
3. Moral inventory.
4. Confession.
5. Restitution.
6. Continued work with other alcoholics.

Another reason that I take exception to the way the forward to first edition is worded is the use of the word “recovered.” This word seems objectionable because there evidently were many original members who relapsed and who seemed to have difficulty with achieving long term or permanent sobriety. Lastly, I would like to know how one can rely on these rather shaky original members to tell us "PRECISELY" how they "RECOVERED" when they can't even seem to tell us "PRECISELY" how many of them there actually were in the fellowship at that time!

It seems to me, that what these original members can be relied upon to tell us is GENERALLY or APPROXIMATELY how they managed to achieve their sobriety and they can SUGGEST to us some useful guides to progress. This I believe would have been a more accurate and honest introduction to the Big Book. Though it is quite possible we would not have been so successful in the promotion of the book.

Thank you for letting me share.

Jim F. Grateful Sober Alcoholic, DOS Oct. 4th 1987