{"product_id":"aa-group-organization-handbook-works-publishing-c-1950","title":"Alcoholics Anonymous “Group Organization” Handbook — Works Publishing Mailing, c. 1950","description":"\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eOffered here are eight consecutively numbered pages from an early Alcoholics Anonymous handbook section titled \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003e“Group Organization,”\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e accompanied by its original Works Publishing mailing envelope. The June 16 postmark has a partially faded year that appears to be \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e1950\u003c\/span\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eThat date places the material at a pivotal moment in A.A.’s development. The Fellowship was approaching its fifteenth anniversary and preparing for its first International Convention in Cleveland, only weeks away. The Twelve Traditions had been written and circulated among the groups, but had not yet received the Fellowship’s acceptance at the Cleveland Convention. The first General Service Conference would follow in April 1951.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eAmid those historic changes, groups still faced immediate, practical questions. How do you begin a meeting in a new town? How do people who need help find it? Who handles the money, answers letters, or arranges speakers? These pages preserve A.A.’s answers as they were being shared with its growing Fellowship.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eBuilding Groups as A.A. Grew\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eThe section begins with \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003e“Starting a New Group.”\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e It encourages members to draw on the experience of established meetings and to seek the help of people in their communities, including clergy, doctors, hospital administrators, police officials, and welfare workers.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eThe pages then address how to make a new group known without seeking publicity for individual members. They describe the work of a steering committee, secretary, treasurer, and program chairman, along with practical suggestions for meeting expenses, records, literature, correspondence, and speaker arrangements.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eParticularly notable is the handbook’s discussion of organization itself. The section quotes the Ninth Tradition:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\"\u003e\u003cb\u003e“A.A., as such, ought never be organized; but we may create service boards or committees directly responsible to those they serve.”\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eIt then turns immediately to the practical work necessary to keep a group functioning, explaining that those performing these duties are \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e“servants of the groups, not leaders.”\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eIt is an absorbing picture of A.A. at work from the ground up. While the Fellowship prepared to affirm the principles that would guide its future, members were also attending to the small, essential tasks that kept a meeting open and made it possible for the next person to find A.A.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eJune 1950: Cleveland and the Next Chapter\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eA.A.’s first International Convention took place in Cleveland from \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003eJuly 28–30, 1950\u003c\/span\u003e, only weeks after the apparent mailing date of these pages. There, the Fellowship accepted the Twelve Traditions. Dr. Bob gave his farewell talk at the gathering and died later that year.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eAt the same time, Bill Wilson was working toward a lasting structure for A.A.’s wider services. The first General Service Conference would meet the following spring in April 1951.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eThis handbook section sits at the threshold of those events. Its pages show what service meant at the local group level just as A.A. was defining how autonomous groups could remain connected as a Fellowship.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe Works Publishing Envelope\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eThe accompanying original envelope bears the printed return address:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eWorks Publishing, Inc.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u2028\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eBox 459, Grand Central Annex\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u2028\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eNew York 17, N.Y.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eIt was postmarked \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eJune 16 in Long Island City, New York\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e, with the partially faded year appearing to read 1950.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eThe envelope is addressed simply:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\" style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eSECRETARY\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u2028\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\" style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eBOX 440\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u2028\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p3\" style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eBEDFORD HILLS N Y\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eBill and Lois Wilson were living at \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003eStepping Stones in Bedford Hills\u003c\/span\u003e at the time. The identity of the secretary associated with Box 440 has not been established.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003ePreserved with the handbook pages, the envelope provides important original context for how this early A.A. service material was distributed.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eDocument Details\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eTitle:\u003c\/b\u003e Handbook — Group Organization\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e Not stated\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e Eight loose, consecutively numbered, three-hole-punched pages\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e 1–8 of the “Group Organization” section\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eDate:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e Pages undated; accompanying envelope postmarked June 16, with the year appearing to be 1950\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eEnvelope Return Address:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e Works Publishing, Inc., Box 459, Grand Central Annex, New York 17, N.Y.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003ePostmark:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e Long Island City, N.Y.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eEnvelope Destination:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e “Secretary, Box 440, Bedford Hills, N.Y.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e Loose pages; no cover or binder present\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eCondition\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eThe pages show age toning, scattered spotting, handling creases, and some edge wear. Page one has more pronounced creasing and small edge tears. The text remains readable throughout.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eThe original envelope shows toning, creases, edge tears, and losses consistent with age and use. Its Works Publishing return label, Bedford Hills destination, postage, and postmark remain visible.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003ePlease review all photographs for additional condition details.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eCollector Significance\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003ePreserved with its original Works Publishing envelope, this eight-page \u003cspan class=\"s1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003e“Group Organization”\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e section is a tangible record of A.A. group life at a turning point in the Fellowship’s history.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eIts apparent June 1950 mailing date places it only weeks before the Cleveland Convention and less than a year before the first General Service Conference. More importantly, the contents themselves capture the transition: the Ninth Tradition appears alongside practical instructions for secretaries, treasurers, steering committees, finances, literature, meetings, and carrying the message into new communities.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eFor collectors of early Alcoholics Anonymous literature and service history, these pages preserve something rarely seen in surviving A.A. material—the everyday mechanics of how the Fellowship was learning to grow, serve, and remain connected at the beginning of the 1950s.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Recovery Collectibles","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":67591476969714,"sku":null,"price":1250.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0328\/4625\/0120\/files\/A8D889E9-7A37-4824-9BE5-4A8085BC8310.jpg?v=1790659810","url":"https:\/\/recoverycollectibles.com\/products\/aa-group-organization-handbook-works-publishing-c-1950","provider":"Recovery Collectibles","version":"1.0","type":"link"}