Dr. Bob's Bookshelf
Browsing through the Smith Collection at Brown University

Last summer, I was taken back to the earliest days of AA by visiting the Robert Holbrook Smith Collection, a selection of books and artifacts once owned by AA's co-founder and now housed in the John Hay Library at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island. It was a rare opportunity to recapture the miracle we know as Alcoholics Anonymous.

One of the first objects I saw was the coffee pot that AA archivists believe was used at Dr. Bob's historic first meeting with Bill W. in 1935. The collection also contains Dr. Bob's portable medicine kit and his business card, which reads: DR. ROBERT SMITH--DISEASES OF THE RECTUM. ("Proctologist" sounds so much better!)

But the heart of the collection is comprised of books presumably dear to Dr. Bob. At the top of the list, for me, was what may have been Dr. Bob's personal copy of the First Edition, first printing of Alcoholics Anonymous, our Big Book, published by Works Publishing Company in 1939. Since alcoholism had not yet been accepted as an illness, Dr. Silkworth's essay, "The Doctor's Opinion," was unsigned. I also examined a copy of the original Big Book manuscript, which contains instances of language slightly different from the form which we are accustomed to. For instance, the last sentence in the section on Step Nine originally read: "Be humble without being servile or scraping. As one of God's people, you are to stand on your feet; don't crawl on your belly before anyone." And the last sentence of the Promises read: "You say these are extravagant promises--they are not" (which seems to me even stronger than "we think not").

Then there is a fascinating spiritual essay entitled "The Assurance of Immortality" by Harry Emerson Fosdick, published in 1934, and The Bible of Mankind, compiled and edited by Mirza Ahmad Sohrab in 1939. This suggests that, in addition to his own religion, Christianity, Dr. Bob may have had some interest in Hindusim, Zoroastrianism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, and Judaism.

A work entitled But for the Grace of God--How Intergroups and Central Offices Carried the Message of AA in the 1940s suggests that the Boston Central Service is another great repository of AA archive material, and explains that in the 1940s, Boston began to support its central service office with All Group Meetings, much as Area 61, Rhode Island, does today with its Joy of Service Meetings.

I was also intrigued by two other works: The Common Sense of Drinking, by Richard R. Peabody (1930), and The Spiritualist Manual, issued by the National Spiritualist Association in 1911. While it posited a cure for alcoholism that was almost entirely mental, The Common Sense of Drinking did offer theories that jibe with my experience and AA thinking today. First it states that alcoholism is a manifestation of the wish to escape from reality. Second, it posits that the first requirement for the successful treatment of alcoholism is the desire by the active alcoholic to be helped--in other words, surrender. The Spiritualist Manual, on the other hand, focused on spiritual growth and the identification and role of a Higher Power. It says that a personal relationship develops and deepens on the basis of one's understanding of a Higher Power, which it refers to in various essays as Infinite Intelligence, Creative Power of the Universe, Spirit of Infinite Wisdom, Spirit of Infinite Love and Tenderness, and Eternal Spirit of the Universe.

I urge anyone with an interest in the history of AA to explore this treasure-trove of information about one of the watershed events of the twentieth century--the birth of Alcoholics Anonymous. My hope is that it will be as revitalizing an experience for you as it was for me.

The Smith Collection

John Hay Library

20 Prospect St. / Box A

Providence, RI 02912

Hours: Monday-Friday 9 A.M.-5 P.M. Appointments to see Dr. Bob's collection should be made at least 48 hours (2 full business days) in advance. A photo ID is required. There is no fee.

An orientation for first-time users is available online at the Brown University website by clicking "first-time users" at the John Hay Library page.

Photocopying carries certain restrictions depending on copyright, confidentiality, and physical condition of documents.

For additional questions or information, call 401-863-3723 (ref).