Bill W.

Bill W.
Bill Wilson
Bill Wilson, date unknown
Born
William Griffith Wilson

(1895-11-26)November 26, 1895
DiedJanuary 24, 1971(1971-01-24) (aged 75)
Resting placeEast Dorset Cemetery, East Dorset, Vermont
43°13′00″N 73°00′55″W / 43.216638°N 73.015148°W / 43.216638; -73.015148
EducationNorwich University
Occupation(s)Salesman, military officer, activist
Known forco-founding Alcoholics Anonymous
Spouse
(m. 1918)
Military career
Allegiance United States
Branch United States Army
Years1916–1918
RankSecond lieutenant
UnitVermont National Guard
Conflicts

William Griffith Wilson (November 26, 1895 – January 24, 1971), also known as Bill Wilson or Bill W., was the co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) with Bob Smith.

AA is an international mutual aid fellowship with about two million members worldwide belonging to AA groups, associations, organizations, cooperatives, and fellowships of alcoholics helping other alcoholics achieve and maintain sobriety.[1] Following AA's Twelfth Tradition of anonymity, Wilson is commonly known as "Bill W." or "Bill". To identify each other, members of AA will sometimes ask others if they are "friends of Bill". After Wilson's death, and amidst controversy within the fellowship, his full name was included in obituaries by journalists who were unaware of the significance of maintaining anonymity within the organization.[2]

Wilson's sobriety from alcohol, which he maintained until his death, began December 11, 1934.[3] In 1955, Wilson turned over control of AA to a board of trustees. Wilson died in 1971 of emphysema from smoking tobacco complicated by pneumonia. In 1999, Time listed him as "Bill W.: The Healer" in the Time 100: The Most Important People of the Century.[4]

  1. ^ "Alcoholics Anonymous" p. xix
  2. ^ John, Stevens (January 26, 1971). "Bill W. of Alcoholics Anonymous Dies". The New York Times. Retrieved November 19, 2012.
  3. ^ Pass it on pp. 120–121.
  4. ^ "Heroes & Icons of the 20th Century". Time. 153 (23) June 14, 1999. Retrieved July 20, 2012.