Bill W.
A man whose own struggle with alcohol led him to co-create a global fellowship that has saved millions of lives through shared experience and mutual support.
1895–1971 (age 76)·Founder of Alcoholics Anonymous·Birthday: November 26·The Lost Generation
Biography
Bill Wilson was a New York stock speculator whose life was unraveling under the weight of alcoholism. After a profound spiritual experience during a final hospital detox in 1934, he achieved sobriety and became obsessed with helping others do the same. His crucial meeting with Dr. Bob Smith in Akron, Ohio, in 1935 fused Wilson's ideas about spiritual surrender with Smith's medical perspective, birthing Alcoholics Anonymous. Wilson, known as Bill W., became the primary architect of AA's Twelve Steps, a practical guide for recovery rooted in honesty, humility, and service. He authored the core text, 'Alcoholics Anonymous,' often called the Big Book, which laid out the program's principles in clear, relatable language. His legacy is not in personal fame—he refused honors and wealth from the movement—but in the anonymous, self-sustaining network of groups that operate in over 180 countries, offering a lifeline based on one drunk helping another.
The Lost Generation
1883–1900
Came of age during World War I. Disillusioned by the carnage, they rejected the certainties of the Victorian era and built modernism from the wreckage — in art, literature, and politics.
Bill was born in 1895, placing them squarely in The Lost Generation. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Bill Was Born
The biggest hits of 1895
Bill's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1895Born
First public film screening by the Lumiere brothers
President: Grover Cleveland
1900Started school
Boxer Rebellion in China
President: William McKinley
1908Became a teenager
Ford Model T goes into production
President: Theodore Roosevelt
1911Could drive
Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire kills 146 in New York
President: William Howard Taft
1913Could vote
The Federal Reserve is established
President: Woodrow Wilson
1916Turned 21
The Battle of the Somme claims over a million casualties
President: Woodrow Wilson
1925Turned 30
The Scopes Trial debates evolution in schools
Home: $4,366President: Calvin Coolidge"Sweet Georgia Brown" — Ben Bernie
1935Turned 40
Social Security Act signed into law
Gas: $0.19/galHome: $3,450President: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Cheek to Cheek" — Fred AstaireBest Picture: Mutiny on the Bounty
1945Turned 50
WWII ends; atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki
Gas: $0.21/galHome: $4,600Min wage: $0.40/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Sentimental Journey" — Les Brown & Doris DayBest Picture: The Lost Weekend
1955Turned 60
Rosa Parks refuses to give up her bus seat
Gas: $0.29/galHome: $9,550Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Rock Around the Clock" — Bill Haley & His CometsBest Picture: Marty
1965Turned 70
US sends combat troops to Vietnam
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $13,600Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" — The Rolling StonesBest Picture: The Sound of Music
1971Died at 76
Voting age lowered to 18 in the US
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $18,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Joy to the World" — Three Dog NightBest Picture: The French Connection
Key Achievements
- Co-founded Alcoholics Anonymous with Dr. Bob Smith in 1935, creating the first successful peer-led recovery program for alcoholism.
- Authored the core textbook of AA, 'Alcoholics Anonymous' (the Big Book), which has sold tens of millions of copies worldwide.
- Developed the Twelve Steps, a spiritual framework for recovery that has been adapted by countless other addiction support groups.
- Maintained a lifetime of personal sobriety after his last drink in 1934, becoming a living example of the program's potential.
Did You Know?
He was influenced by the Oxford Group, a Christian moral revival movement, in formulating the early principles of AA.
He experimented with LSD in the 1950s under supervised conditions, believing it might induce a spiritual experience beneficial for some alcoholics.
He turned down an honorary degree from Yale University, consistent with AA's principle of personal anonymity at a public level.
His wife, Lois Burnham Wilson, co-founded Al-Anon, a support group for families and friends of alcoholics.
““We admitted we were powerless over alcohol—that our lives had become unmanageable.””
