What AA History Resources Are Available on Silkworth.net?

Updated

Silkworth.net is an Alcoholics Anonymous history and literature archive. Its history section covers the movement's nineteenth-century religious roots, a narrative and timeline of A.A. itself, manuscript material, biographical reference pages, and period newspaper and magazine articles. If you want to trace how A.A. developed rather than read the program literature itself, start with the A.A. Timeline, then move to the Emmanuel Movement and Washingtonians pages for the pre-A.A. background.

History sections on the site

The site groups its history material under a heading called "A.A. History," with these entries:

  • The Emmanuel Movement — an early twentieth-century church-based healing movement that is part of A.A.'s intellectual background.
  • The Washingtonians — a nineteenth-century temperance society, another precursor often discussed in A.A. origin accounts.
  • Magazine & Newspaper Articles — period press coverage collected in one place.
  • Narrative Of A.A. — a prose account of A.A.'s development.
  • Timeline and Timelines In A.A. History — chronological reference pages.
  • Manuscript Of A.A. — manuscript-stage material.
  • World History – Bob P. — a history item credited to Bob P.
  • Place And Things In AA History — locations and objects connected to A.A. history.
  • Who's Who In A.A. History — a biographical index of figures in A.A. history.
  • Big Book Story Authors — material about the people who wrote the personal stories in the Big Book.
  • Writings Of A.A. Members — writing by A.A. members.

How to browse by timeline or by person

Two routes work well depending on what you already know:

If you want to… Start here Then
Follow events in order Timeline / Timelines In A.A. History Cross-check names against Who's Who In A.A. History
Trace a single person Who's Who In A.A. History Look for their writing under Writings Of A.A. Members or Big Book Story Authors
Understand pre-A.A. roots The Emmanuel Movement, The Washingtonians Read Narrative Of A.A. for how these connect
See contemporary coverage Magazine & Newspaper Articles Compare with Manuscript Of A.A.

Related material on the same site

The history pages sit alongside the site's A.A. literature collection, which includes the A.A. Big Book, the Big Book (164 Pages), Big Book Stories Edition 1 and Edition 2, the A.A. Preamble, Singleness of Purpose, the A.A. 12 Steps, 12 Traditions, 12 Concepts, the 12 Traditions Checklist, the 9th Step Promises (Pg 83/84), The Serenity Prayer, Principles Of The Program, I Am Responsible, and The Page Of Prayers. There is also a "Free Stuff" area listing free audiobooks and speaker tapes, videos of Bill Wilson, a PDF project described as 1000+ PDFs, and free AA apps for iPhone and Android.

Practical notes

  • The site lists a subscription keyword and PayPal as a payment platform, so some part of the site may involve payment or subscription; the history pages themselves are presented as part of the main site content.
  • The site is in English (en-GB), and all history entries above are listed in English.
  • If your goal is the program text rather than its history, the Big Book and 12 Steps pages are the faster route; the history section is for background and context.