AA in Miami Dade compiled in 2022
The following narrative of Miami-Dade County’s beginnings of Alcoholics Anonymous is a conglomeration of a number of saved documents discovered within the archives of District 10, Area 15’s saved and stored materials. Various memories and documents will appear to conflict, however this Archivist has attempted to weave together a general picture of the infancy of AA in the Miami area. Conflicts will be noted.
It appears that the nationally distributed Liberty Magazine, released in September of 1939, became the calling card of the Alcoholics Anonymous to Dade County. A Frank Plummer has been mentioned, in Miami from the Northeast, as possibly the first believed contact from the Miami Area to the New York Office, (though only a reply and correspondence letters dated October 6 and November 4th, 1940 from Ruth Hock is any evidence, as she asked Frank to look up some AA inquiries), and Frank agreed to run down inquiries given to him by secretary Ruth Hock. Little correspondence followed and Frank may have left the area returning back to the northeast.
On April 24, 1940, Roger Garrett [308 NE 13th Terrace], wrote New York for help for himself receiving a reply from Ruth Hock on May 4th. Then on July 1st, 1940, the non-alcoholic wife of a potential member, Agnes Thomason wrote to New York for help for her husband, Joe, which was prompted by her reading the Liberty Magazine article “Alcoholics and God”. Joe T. [500 80th St., Miami] received his reply on July 9, 1940. Both Roger and Joe were initially sent information and by November 1940 Roger and Joe were united and aided by Irwin Meyerson, a traveling salesman from the Ohio AA collaboration started in Cleveland, and staying sober together would be instrumental in forming the first Group in Dade County.
In December, 1940, Carl Shotter arrived from Houston, Texas and settled for awhile in Ft. Lauderdale. The previous month, in November, Carl had been in touch with the New York office and expressed a desire to start a group in Miami. Ruth Hock put him in touch with Joe and Roger. Carl contacted the newspapers in Miami (Daily News and Miami Herald), and they were receptive to the idea of running a series of articles on AA. On December 16th, Carl wrote to Ruth that he had gotten in touch with Joe T. and they went to work on Charles (Hook) Gordon, who was just released from jail. Also, Roger G. was contacted by Carl and Carl was enthusiastic about both men. On December 23rd, 1940, Carl S. attended a meeting at the Miami Beach home of Joe T., along with Roger G. and a visitor from New York, Charlie Crossland, which was documented as the FIRST Miami Area Meeting of Alcoholics Anonymous. Frank Plummer, and probably other A.A.’s, visited Miami, and had written New York, before Roger and Joe, but now, when any out-of-town A.As were coming to Miami, New York directed them to these two, Roger and Joe. So when Joe Munn (2161 NW 27th Ave, Miami) wrote for information and help, he was sent to these two. They had established a GROUP and the first Meeting of Record was held Dec. 23, 1940 at Joe T.’s home and was attended by Roger G., Carl Shotter, a visitor from Houston, Texas, and Charlie Crossland, here as a visitor from New York.
AA activity on part of these men included Ft. Lauderdale and St. Petersburg (where there were two men that were interested). Also, Charles Crossland (from New York City) took part in these activities. By the end of the year, Carl thought they “seem to be getting on a good firm foundation”. Carl leaves the Ft. Lauderdale area (apparently back to Texas), in March, 1941, but Joe T. (aided by his wife, Agnes who helped with correspondence) was still going strong and in April of 1941 Roger G. wrote to New York that the Miami Group was meeting every Monday night at the Miami Beach Chamber of Commence where Joe T.’s wife, Agnes worked.
A letter, dated March 1945, to the then New York Secretary Bobbie B. (Margret Berger), by Basil Abrams says “they are looking forward to celebrating their 5th anniversary on April 21.” He [Basil] wondered if he could ascertain the date of their beginning as “there is controversy as to whether it was 1940 or 1941”. [see copy of Bobbie’s letter, Mar. 22, 1945 to Basil in reply] ( in that letter Bobbie reiterated the correspondence that Ruth Hock carried on with Agnes Thomason and then states that in July of 1941 Bill Hampden ( 2749 SW 5th St, Miami) is recorded as the first secretary of the Miami Group).
In May, 1941, Agnes wrote that they were working out a permanent meeting place with one of the judges in Miami. Joe Munn, a new recruit (via a letter for help from New York in March 3, 1941) was reported to be very enthusiastic about AA and the Thomasons. There had been publicity in the newspapers for the past few months about A.A. and Joe and Agnes were good correspondents with Ruth Hock in the New York Office. In June, Agnes wrote that “everything is going along.” Meetings had been set for Monday nights and for a few weeks they had been meeting in the Chamber of Commerce Building.
Joe M. became one of the regulars and by July 1941 there were 10 members. On July 31st, 1941, while in the New York office with Ruth Hock, a New York lawyer; Esq. Warren Kennedy wrote to Joe T. advising him that his identical twin was “in dire need of help of A.A. methods” in Miami, while during this same time, that Ruth was replying to Andrew L. Kennedy, (252 NW Second Street, Miami, FL ) that there existed help for him in Miami Beach and to contact Joe T. at 500 80th St, Miami Beach.
By August 1941, Joe turned over correspondence duties to Bill H. (William Hampton), who was now called Secretary-Treasurer. Bill H. later in the month said there are now twenty-five to 30 Miami Group Members with a Fred Kautzman mentioned and a Ned (or Fred) Kant, rambling in the group. By September 15th, 1941, Ruth was feeding Bill H. names of people in the Miami area who had requested to be contacted and who had been looking for and requesting AA in Miami. By the end of November ‘41, ( letter from Bill H. to New York), word had it that Bill W. was considering a trip down to Miami during next fall or winter and Bill H. welcomed Bill W. down to see for himself, “that we are building something down here that you, as the founder will be proud to see. We also feel that we have reached a stage in our growth where your personal advice and guidance would be incalculable benefit.” “P.S. Any of our forty members will consider it an honor to have you and yours as a guest or guests in any or all of our homes.”
During this same correspondence from Bill H. in Miami to Ruth Hock in New York, Bill H. gave word that Lucian Wyatt, whom had requested to find the Miami fellowship was in-fact a member of the Group and also sending news that Andrew Kennedy “has steadfastly rejected a belief in any Power greater than himself and was presently in the hospital where he’s damning God, AA, his friends, everything.” Bill H. proposed that may be a good thing “ as the idea is clearly gaining so that he is having to fight it savagely. Perhaps this will be his last battle before he surrenders.”
It was in August of 1942 that Bill W. made his first of two visits to Miami. There was an average membership of 45, meetings twice a week – Sunday, Musicians Hall, 600 N. Miami Ave & 6th Street, (with a buffet luncheon) and Thursday, a closed meeting at The Olympia Building . The last Thursday in the month a meeting is in a private home. Note: the address of the Musicians Hall, was acquired from a cursively written letter from Mae Winkleman to Bobbie Burger, NY Secretary dated August 13, 1942. Bill W.’s reply to Mae W. is dated August 20, 1942 as Bill Thanks Mae for the warm welcome and hospitality during his recent visit to Miami and the Miami Group.
The District 10 Archived letters do have gaps in our time line and research indicates that Hurricane Andrew, in 1992, may have wiped some documents away. The written archived letters resume briefly by a letter to Mae in February 11, 1943, from Bobbie B. expressing regret for Mae’s loss of her husband and lauding the courage and support of the Group here in Miami. Then again, in 1943 brought growing pains and complaints from some of the wives because they could not attend Closed meetings.
As troubles erupted in Miami and the wives of alcoholics were disgruntled that they could not attend the closed meetings, Bill W. writes to one of the wives, [October 8, 1943] Mrs. Brunch, assuring her that “yes, the wives and people surrounding the alcoholics could also use the help and solutions that the Steps and program provide” (possibly the beginning of the Al-Anon Family Groups in Miami) and “that love and tolerance will eventually win out over fear and criticism whether that comes from the wives or the alcoholics.” The next archived letters would resume on April 10, 1944.
In early 1944, Bruce H. and some others started Group #2, later the Sunshine Group. In April 1944 Basil Abrams notified New York that the original Miami Group was hunting “permanent quarters,” and in May of 1944 Bill W. was here again with his wife, Lois.
In April of 1945, Sylvia Lathero becomes Corresponding Secretary, Fred Kautzman is Executive Secretary of the combined Groups of Miami, the beginning of Intergroup, and they have 5 District Secretaries, through whom they assigned 12 step calls. With the forming of the Central Office (or Intergroup Headquarters) at ANONA, ANONA was the heart of all A.A. in Miami. Chas Moyer was the First President of Anona Club.
Among others who corresponded with New York during these early years, were Naon Craft, Lee Thorndyke, and Chester Caldwell and with ANONA as headquarters by 1950, only 5 short years after the founding of ANONA, there were nine (9) active groups in Miami listed with Intergroup, among them the Northeast, Northwest, North Side, Central, Downtown, Boulevard, Hialeah and Coral Way.
To fill in some blank spots in the above history, we turn to SOME SCRAMBLED HISTORY AND OBSERVATIONS, transcriptions from a recording by Harry Owen, an early member of A. A. in Miami. He died January 31, 1975 He did not claim to be one of the Founders in Miami but he was one of the oldest members still alive at that time (circa 1974) – with continuous sobriety.
About a year before his death, Harry gave his recollections of how A.A. started in Dade County. The talk was tape recorded by Al Landers in the New Horizon Room. Al is the author of this article we refer to now. Maxine Kautzmann, wife of Fred K., (Fred owned a lumber yard at about N. W. 2nd Ave. and 4th Street), was a night nurse working in a sanatorium in Miami, where she met and married Fred Kautzmann who came to the hospital to be treated and dried out from drunken escapades.
After one of Fred’s drunks, Maxine and Fred’s mother sent Fred to stay with his sister in Georgia to recuperate. Maxine read the Liberty Magazine article regarding A.A. She is of the opinion that the article gave no address where you could write for help or a Big Book. She recalls that it cost 5 cents. This has also been confirmed by New York (no address, that is). She doesn’t recall how she got the address, she wonders now why she didn’t write to Liberty Magazine. Anyway, she did get the address somehow and guesses that approximately 9 months after reading the article she received the Big Book, or, approximately June or July of 1940.
Maxine and Fred’s mother read the book and mailed it to Fred in Georgia, wondering whether or not it was the right thing to do. Fred became a believer on first reading and never drank again.
A nurse, named Mrs. Sutton, had a patient named Mae Winkleman who was dying from alcoholism in the Sun Ray Sanatorium – almost a basket case. She (Mrs. Sutton) contacted Fred, who made the first 12 step call on Mae – March 1941.
Maxine thinks that could have been the first 12th step call ever in Dade County but it’s not likely, as you will see later. Jim Hicks (believed home, 2171 NW 55th Street, Miami), recalls the story of Mae. He remembers that some A.A. people heard of Mae needing help and it took them two or three weeks to find her. If there were some A.A. people in Dade County trying to contact Mae at about the same time as Fred made the call, it follows that some of those A.A. members must have 12th step each other beforehand, and if that’s true, then Mae couldn’t have been the first person to receive a 12th step call.
Maxine recalls that a non-alcoholic lady [Agnes Thomason], at the Miami Beach Chamber of Commerce called a meeting for A.A.’s in the Chamber of Commerce Building and they met there for two or three months and that might have been the first A.A. meetings ever held in Dade County, other than in someone’s home and except for a meeting called at the Sun Ray Sanatorium by nurse Sutton for Mae Winkleman after Fred’s call. Maxine cleared up the results of what happened to the 12th step call on Mae saying that she sobered up and lived a normal, happy, sober life for several years before she died of natural causes, as the first lady A.A. member in Dade County. Maxine said that Miami’s A.A. Birthday is April, 1941, and Fred K.’s last drink was June 26, 1940. New York confirms the Miami Birth date, as well as that of Jacksonville’s AA Birth Date. She also said that prior to an A.A. listing in the phone directory, the operators would voluntarily refer phone calls concerning A.A. to Fred K’s phone number at home – Miami was much smaller then and phone operators gave a more personalized service. Miami proper had a population of 172,172 in 1941.
If we change Harry's story to read:- “as a result of the Liberty Magazine article, published September 30, 1939”, as opposed to, “as a result of the Jack Alexander article published in March 1, 1941”, then everything begins to fall into place. That version would account for Maxine’s own recollection that Joe Thomason, Joe Munn, Fred Kautzmann and others attended an A.A. meeting in the Sun Ray Sanatorium which was arranged by the nurse, Mrs. Sutton, on behalf of the late Mae Winkleman in early April, 1941.
For lack of proof, it looks like a draw between Roger G., Joe T., Joe M. and Fred K. It was certainly close and seems that some time went by before they learned of each other. It seems that they all learned of A.A. as a result of the Liberty Magazine article or its fall out but didn’t get acquainted with each other until about the time the Saturday Evening Post (Jack Alexander) article was published, which must have been pure coincidence and somehow, they all learned of each other about the same time.
The nurse, Mrs. Sutton, seems to have been the catalyst that brought them together at the Sun Ray Sanatorium in early April, 1941, and A.A. took off from there.
According to Al L.’s transcription of Harry O.’s recorded tape and Al’s research in September of 1975, “It stacks up close to this:
First 12th step meeting between two alcoholics in Dade County might have been between Charles Meyers (sober 8 month) and Joe Munn, a fresh drunk, at 71st Street and Collins Avenue, Miami Beach. (Remember Roger G. and Joe T. were acquainted with Irwin Meyerson).
Question: [Could the reference to Charles Meyers be Irwin Meyerson, from Ohio, mentioned in earlier documented letters?]
Second 12th step call might have been when Fred Kautzmann, alone, called on Mae Winkleman at the Sun Ray Sanatorium.
Maxine said that Fred’s first 12th step call was on Mae Winkleman and that shortly after, there was a meeting for Mae at the same Sun Ray Sanatorium set up by the nurse Mrs. Sutton, at which 12 or 14 people attended, including Fred and Maxine Kautzmann, Joe Munn and his girlfriend, Tallulla, Joe Thomason and wife, Agnes, plus others, including the visitor from Ohio, Charles Meyers. Some of whom never made the program. All of the women present, except Mae, are presumed to be non-alcoholic.
Next was probably the meeting in the Lumber Yard (NW 2nd Ave. and 4th Street) owned by Fred K., until one of the non-alcoholic wives (Agnes Thomason ) arranged for meetings to start in the Miami Chamber of Commerce which lasted 2 or 3 months.
Next, the meeting place was changed to the Olympia Building, which lasted a few weeks, or months – Jim Hicks advises they met both at the Musicians’ Hall on Sundays and the Olympia building office on Thursday of the same week.
From there, they moved to the Musicians’ Hall on North Miami Avenue and 6th Street,(according to Harry) and from there, rented the Anona Club building on the Miami River near Flagler Street on October 1, 1945. Harry pin-points the Olympia Building meetings before the Musicians’ hall. Jim disagrees with Harry on this point.
In speculation, it seems likely that Maxine, as a non-alcoholic, made the first 12th step call from the Miami area on her own husband, Fred, but that Joe Munn was the first to be 12th stepped by another alcoholic.
Harry thought that Fred was the seventh member but what he must not have known was that Fred had been a one man A.A. member with his non-alcoholic wife, Maxine, before some other people met Fred. You must remember that there was no “where and when” meeting list booklets back in those days.
It seems that the first “organized A.A. meeting ever held in Dade County was the Sun Ray Sanatorium, about the first week of April 1941. Thereafter, the recognized phone number to call regarding A.A. was probably the home of Mr. and Mrs. Fred Kautzman, until the Anona Club Room was rented on October 1, 1945.
This researcher will now reiterate and continue a documented history of AA in Dade County by reviewing a History Presentation presented in 2002, by Gwen G. of the Primary Purpose Group which meets at the Friendship Club, presently located on Miami Gardens Drive (7680 NW 186th St, Hialeah, FL 33015)
1945 - In the fall of 1945, 13 Miami Group members loaned a total of $1850 to rent a permanent meeting place at 23 NW South River Drive, on the 2nd floor overlooking the Miami River. The Anona Club was open from 11am to 11pm and offered evening AA meetings hosted by the many groups who shared the room while looking for permanent meeting places of their own. Active within the Anona Club were: Charles M. (the club’s first president), Fred K., Joe M., Phil H., Bob B., Naomi C., Lee T., Chester C., Red S. and Dick R. Prior to leasing the Anona Club, many meetings were held at Richmond’s Men’s Store located on Flagler Street at NE 2nd Avenue.
1946 – In October, after both Naomi and Lee took their turns in the role of secretary, Sylvia rotated back into the position again and 2 new groups were formed: the Miami Beach Group and the Northside Group in NW Dade County. The Miami Beach Group is the oldest group in Dade County and is still meeting today.
1947 – In April, with Chester C. serving as Executive Secretary, there is the first record of the Miami Group changing its name to the Central Group. At this time, Chester announced the formation of 3 new neighborhood groups: the Coral Way Group, the Hialeah Group and the NW-NE Group, believed to be the Northside Group. In September 1947, with James T. as the new Executive Secretary, the Central Group formally changed its name to Greater Miami Intergroup. A letter from Sylvia stated thatthere were then 7 groups in the Miami area. That same month, Bob B. started a second club - the Alco Club - located on SW 8th Street.
1949 – On February 16th, the North Dade Group was started at 12305 NE 6th Avenue in North Miami.
1950 – By the end of 1950, there were 9 groups in Dade County listed with Greater Miami Intergroup - in reality, however, there were only 7 groups, as two had folded by then. In 1950, and for several years thereafter, there were no public treatment facilities in Dade County providing help for the alcoholic. The Miami Retreat on 79th Street and NW Miami Avenue might admit some alcoholics, but it was known as “the dungeon” because every room was locked and padded. Alcoholics were treated with paraldehyde, a very powerful medicine. Jimmy S., a current member of the Principles Group in North Miami and the oldest member of AA in Dade County today, came to AA in July of that year.
1952 – In August, George L. of the Primary Purpose Group got sober at the New Horizon Group. She is the oldest woman member of AA in Dade County today. (in 2002)
1955 – In March, a Southeast Banquet was held at the Fontainebleau Hotel in Miami Beach; this was possibly the first annual Intergroup banquet.
1956 – Harriet R. climbed the stairs of the Anona Club for her first AA meeting. She later became an Area 15 Delegate (Panel 27) for General Service. Harriet was a prominent member of AA in Dade County and performed much service in District 10 General Service until she passed away in January of 2001. Back then there was no chip system, no medallions, nor any large AA anniversary celebrations. Members were not allowed to speak for the first 90 days; they were told to shut up and listen! Strict records of information on the newcomer’s sobriety were kept and sent to New York. The Intergroup secretary was paid $50 per month.
1957 – In August, Claire M. came to the Coral Room. Today she is one of the oldest members of AA in Dade County. She has dedicated her sober life to the suffering alcoholics and drug addicts in our prisons and is the sponsor of the “Madan Act” which has helped so many. Claire spoke on the same program as Lois W. during the Founder’s Day meeting at Akron, Ohio in June 1981. She was also one of the featured speakers at the 1985 International Convention in Toronto, Ontario, along with Ray O’K. and her son Jim B., who was one of the founders of Ala-teen in the 1950s.
1960 – On April 24th, the 5th Annual Southeast Banquet was held at the Miami Women’sClub. Jack E. of the Hialeah Group spoke and there were 100 attendees.
1965 – There were 25 unofficial groups in Miami. The original Anona Club was gone; by that time groups were expanding and people were no longer going into the downtown area. Avon Park State Hospital was the only treatment facility back then - there was no other place to take the drunks, with the exception of a couple of halfway houses that were really flophouses. A new Anona Club was started, with places for drunks to dry out. Also back then, there were no day meetings during the week; there were only night meetings and a few weekend day meetings. People who worked nights complained that they could not get to meetings. On August 20th, 1965, Sam S. of the South Dade Group came to AA. He is a past Delegate (Panel 25) for Area 15 and a past Trustee for General Service in New York.
1970 – AA celebrated its 35th year! On July 3, the 5th International Convention was held at the Fontainebleau Hotel on Miami Beach. There were over 15,000 in attendance (at the 2000 International Convention in Minneapolis there were over 60,000 in attendance) and the theme was “Unity”. Wesley P. was the Convention Chairman, and he extended greetings to AA to President Richard Nixon, Florida Governor Claude Kirk, Miami Beach Mayor Jay Dermer and a host of other celebrities and dignitaries praising the accomplishments of our wonderful fellowship.
1971 – On January 24th, Bill W. passed away from emphysema at the Miami Heart Institute on Miami Beach; he had been a heavy smoker throughout his life. Bill’s last words were: “Pass it on”. To this day, the Miami Beach Group continues to meet at the Miami Heart Institute. (in 2002)
MIAMI-DADE GROUP HISTORIESThe Miami Beach Group was started in 1946 by Phil and Ethel L. It is the oldest still functioning group in South Florida. The Miami Beach Group held two open meetings weekly for 42 years. In the winter of 1988 a candlelight, closed discussion meeting was added, and in October 1989 a closed Big Book meeting commenced. Today there are two weekly meetings here at the original Miami Heart Institute, where Bill W. spent his final days.
The North Dade Group began on February 16, 1949. Four seasoned members who were interested in the welfare of AA thought a north location would be desirable and helpful; these members were: Harry A., Walter D., Dr. R., and Mitch W. The first open meeting of the new North Dade Group was held at 12305 NE 6th Avenue, North Miami, in a vacant 10 store space. On November 11, 1949, the store space was rented, so the group moved to a one-car garage at the back of 123 NE 4th Avenue. That location soon became so crowded that the group was forced to seek a new location: The North Miami Community Center on Griffin Blvd. at NE 7th Avenue, just north of West Dixie Highway. Meetings were held on the open porch that surrounded the building. On January 13, 1950, Harry A. arranged to have meetings held in the North Miami City Hall, which was not air-conditioned back then and very hot! The North Miami Group owes so much to Miss May, the then-City Clerk of North Miami, for being their champion over the years. It took time to gain the confidence of the North Miami city fathers, but the group soon did and was allowed to move upstairs. Attendance at one weekly meeting averaged 10 at most. On April 19, 1950, the North Miami Group began to hold closed meetings on Wednesday and Sunday nights. This move marked a turning point in the group’s effectiveness in carrying the message of recovery, as well as in its attendance rate.
The Boulevard Group held meetings on Tuesday and Thursdays. They first met in a church basement on Biscayne Blvd. across from 54th Street, then moved to a location on NE 2nd Street. They were originally called The North Dade Sponsor Group.
The Arch Creek Group was the second group founded in North Dade County. Started by Bud D. (who was sponsored by Jimmy S.), it was first called the Slippers Group. At the beginning, the Slippers Group moved back and forth between two churches on NE 163rd Street. Back then 163rd Street (where Bud’s parents had a restaurant) was a dirt road! The Slippers Group eventually moved down to their long-term location at 128th Street and North Miami Ave., where they re-named themselves the Arch Creek Group.
The Little River 79th Street Club room was started in the early 1950s, west of Biscayne Blvd., (also a two-lane road back then, long before the arrival of “I-95”!).
The County Line Group was the third group started in North Dade. The group currently meets at NE 4th Ave. and 165th Street, but started out in an abandoned old bar on the east side of Biscayne Blvd. This is where the present-day Aventura stands, but back then it was a very desolate area of the county.The founding members of these 5 wonderful groups were Harry A., Walter D., Charley M., Midge W., John C., Ed A., Bud D., Martha R., Bill R., Ray G. and unnamed others. Over the years, these groups helped so many alcoholics add hundreds of years to their collective sobriety. May God continue his blessings on these fine groups of AA!
The Sunset Group originally began meeting on Galloway Road; the meeting place was a big room then, and on Saturday nights an average of 40 to 50 people would attend the speaker meeting. In 1965, when Sam S. came to AA, the Sunset Group had been meeting in the Galloway Road location for about 3 years; since then, it has moved to at least 6 different locations. On March 23rd, 1978, a very grateful alcoholic named Gwen G. walked into her very first AA meeting at the old Sunset Room on the north side of Bird Road, just east of the railroad tracks. The room was smaller than the one where the current Sunset Group meets, and it was a noon meeting. The speaker was an old woman named June – and Gwen G. has been sober ever since.
The Coral Gables Group was located at 348 Minorca from around 1958 until 1965; Claire M. was the room manager at the time, and she performed this service for 11 years. In 1965, the Coral Gables Group was re-located to a very small room on the corner of Salzedo and Minorca; 6 meetings a week were held at the new meeting location.
The South Dade Group was formed in 1965. It was located on SW 169th Street and US Highway 1; four meetings a week were held back then. The New Horizon Group was originally located on Palm Avenue in Hialeah, and the room was open all day. The group later moved to the Circle in Miami Springs.
The West Miami Group was founded by Edith D. The group meeting room was originally called the Serenity Room, but is now known as the Harmony Room.
The Al-Hi Group was located in a room behind the old Seminole Bar in Hialeah, back in the 1960s; the room was open only for meetings. The Al-Hi Group later moved to a church in North Hialeah and met there until the group closed in 2002.
The new Anona Club (called Anona-new) had rooms for skid-row drunks back in 1978, but it is no longer in existence.
The Biscayne Room was founded by Ed C. At first, the group hosted Saturday night dances and Sunday night Step Meetings, where well-known Dade County speakers such as Eddie E. gave Step series. This group is no longer in existence.
The old Friendship Group met on Flagler Street in a large, 2-story home. The group hosted a midnight meeting until it folded in the early 1970s.
The New Hope (a.k.a. 5500 Club) Group met on Flagler Street across from the cemetery. It was originally run by old-timers Jim and Dora H., but it is no longer in existence.
You have possibly recognized that many remembrances of previous and fellow archivists may have conflicted with earlier facts and interpretations. This is a “work in continual progress”, and as more documents, and if lucky, those closer to the names and events reported, appear before us, a refinement of the early history of Dade County AA can and hopefully will be updated.
Now, reviewing a transcribed, recorded cassette of the Panel 25 Delegate of Area 15 South Florida, Sam S., sobriety date is Friday, August 20th, 1965, whose first meeting was at the Original Sunset Group on Galloway Rd which was a little north of the traffic light on Sunset Dr, on 87th Avenue.
“I think the Sunset group was about four years old. Maybe only three. I don’t remember for sure. My second meeting, a couple of days later was at the Coral Gables speaker meeting on Monday night. The Coral Room at that time was up on the corner of Salzedo and Majorca, a very small Coral Room. Everybody loved it, though. And it was there until 1968 when, they moved the Coral Room to 348 Majorca, in the middle of the block., it was there for about twenty years.”
The groups were small in those days. The night I went to my second meeting, I was taken down to Perrine, where I lived, to be shown where the South Dade group met on US 1. It was also a small room, and, that became my home group, and I went there and is still is my home group. There were only about fifteen members, but we had our own room. Only open for meetings, we had four meetings a week. In those days, all our meetings were at night. There were no daytime meetings.
I went to South Dade and got to know everybody in that group. I never drank again after my first meeting. After being sober about six months, I got a driver’s license and a car, and I started going all over Dade County. And I would go to meetings at Sunset and then the Coral Room.
There was a group on Flagler St. in what was then called the Friendship Club. There is now a Friendship Club way up in the north of Dade County. The first Friendship Club, housed The Flagler St. Group and several others that met at a house right across Flagler St. from Miami Senior High School. That was a two-story old house. It may still be there as a real estate office or they may have torn it down. Back then they had meetings there practically every day. They had a meeting room, a kitchen and a bar and they served meals, I think soup and sandwiches. And, of course, cokes and coffee and everything. And there was a big front porch and people used to sit out on the front porch. And then there were rooms upstairs and some of the members lived up there and paid rent to live upstairs. I guess 1970 or ’69, somewhere along in there, they lost their lease and had to move. And that Flagler Street Group never reopened.
Just before I came in, the original Flagler Group was, I think, 5100 Flagler St. and it was run by a couple named Jim and Dora who are probably mentioned in the archives somewhere. I never got to that group. Of course, one of the oldest meeting place I recall in Dade County that’s still in operation is the Serenity Room (now known as the Harmony room) where the West Miami Group meets. It was a spin-off from the old South Miami group which met down in a warehouse district in South Miami along the railroad tracks. That was also before my time, but I knew people who belonged to it. Elaine & Eddie D., who broke away and started the West Miami Group. That became what’s now the West Miami group in what they call the Harmony Room. It’s been there since the early sixties. I don’t know what year they ended up there. And it was there when I came in in 1965.
In Hialeah, there were two rooms. on Palm Avenue, New Horizons which is still in existence in a different location. It’s in its third location now across from the cleaners on the Miami Springs Circle, but it was on Palm Avenue, and it was much smaller. There were some people in there that decided they needed a place for drunks to sleep. A guy name John M. he was staying there at night late and if somebody needed a place to sleep, he would let them sleep on the couch in the New Horizon room. When I was maybe two or three years sober, they moved over to where they were for so many years in Miami Springs before they moved to their present location.
The Al-Hi Group was near the Seminole Bar. But they had three or four meetings at night. And that also moved after I was sober three or four years. It moved into a church in Hialeah on what was probably the extension of NW 79th Street, but it’s not there anymore.
The far north Dade Group was the Biscayne Room which was started by a fellow by the name of Ed C. Ed found a nice little room with a coffee bar and a room in back. And after a year or so, they used to have dances in there on Saturday night and they expanded and took over the other half of that building. Ed C. went to some of the other members, the older members of the group and raised some money from them and they eventually bought the building from those contributions. The group met in the building that was then owned by some of the AA members. Although AA had nothing to do with the ownership directly. So, those were the club rooms that we had. And there were also meetings here and there in churches.
The Homestead group at that time did not have its own room. They met in churches in Homestead. There was only one group that I remember.
The South Dade Group was a spin-off of what was at one time called the Perrine Group. They met in a house but that was before my time. The South Dade Group was a year old, so it was eleven months old when I got sober in AA. But the one that was there before was called the Perrine group. They had a house rented and it folded up, allowing the opening of the South Dade Group which is still in existence. And it’s in its fourth location. It’s still my home group.
The Sabal Palm Group wasn’t there and a lot of the other groups that have sprung up over the years were not there then. A lot of church groups, smaller groups.
I think we, in Dade County, only had twenty-eight groups and now there are over a hundred. Something like that. So, you know, AA was much smaller. The people were closer in those days because it was sort of the old lifeboat theory.
After I was sober a couple of years, the guy that brought me into AA got me involved in General Service. I was the General Service Representative for the South Dade Group when I started going to the Quarterly Assembly. The first one I went to was in Naples at the Naples Beach Club and that was in 1968, maybe 1967. There were only about 70 people there, but I was impressed with the amount of old-time sobriety that was there. They had a lot of retired people that came down from all parts of the country in the fall for many years, and they came down and got active in service, in addition to the local people. And so, I started going regularly to these Quarterlies, and in 1968, I went to my first assembly where we elected a delegate. I can’t even remember his last name Bob [Bud S.]. We had a big fight over who was going to get elected. But we finally elected a fella who’d come all the way from Tampa.
I continued to go to those Quarterlies. And, in 1972, I was elected as Area Chairman. I went through Dade County as Committee Member and then Committee Chairman. And then eventually I became South Florida Area Chairman in 1972. And, in October 1974, I was elected delegate {Panel 25].
Now, I also was going to State Conventions and Southeastern Conventions in those days. The Southeastern Conference is what we liked to call it. The Southeastern Conference is the oldest of its time in the United States. It was really a convention, but it was called a Conference. And it’s still in existence but it’s not as big as it used to be because so many State Conventions have sprung up over the years. But the Southeastern Conference is the oldest next to the International Convention. I think it’s the oldest Area Convention that is still going.
In those days, there were a lot of convention-goers from around the southeastern states. There are, well I think there are, thirteen states in the Southeast Region, I’m sorry, The region has, I believe, thirteen Areas. You’ve got Florida, North and South Florida. You’ve got Georgia, North and South Carolina, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Tennessee, West Virginia, and Kentucky, of course, we have, Nassau, Bahamas, the Virgin Islands and the Cayman Islands.
So people in the Southeastern States that went during those days when AA was small to the Southeast Conference all knew each other. So many people knew each other. And we renewed our acquaintances each year. And then, of course, the Florida State Convention. And when I first went, we used to get all excited when we’d break 800 attendees. Then one year, back when I was maybe three or four years sober, we broke a thousand, by now they get 2,500, sometimes almost 3,000. I think we had 2,000 here in Miami in 1987.
AA has grown so much. There were… In those times, there were no treatment centers except for Hazelden and Avon Park, the State Hospital. There were no detox centers. There was nothing like that. Everybody came in directly through either word-of-mouth or a friend that brought them, or reading an article in a magazine or newspaper or hearing something on the radio. Because there was just one treatment center and few detox places to refer them to, not like there are now.
And there was very little drug use. It was never discussed. We used to call some of the people that took mood-altering pills, “pill heads”. You know, medications. As far as the hard-core drugs and marijuana use, there wasn’t any of that that we knew of or to speak of in AA. It wasn’t heard of until the early 1970s, or the late sixties is really when people started going to treatment centers. Most people today have a combined problem. Besides being drunks, they use drugs. Cocaine. Something on the side. Marijuana. We didn’t have that then.
So I, was also fortunate enough to be elected Trustee after I served two years as delegate and I was fortunate to know a lot of the old timers, not only in Dade County. People that got sober in Dade County in the forties, that started a lot of the groups locally. I got to know people in New York and all around the country who were sober when the first hundred members were still alive.
Clarence Snyder whose story is in the original Big Book. The Brewmeister was the oldest living AA member in length of sobriety after Bill Wilson died. He got sober at 19 years of age, either in ’37 or ’38 in Cleveland and Dr. Bob was his sponsor. He had moved to Florida after he had about fifteen or twenty years of sobriety. And so I got to know him and heard a lot from him about the early days of AA. He used to speak around South Florida.
In 1970, we were fortunate to have the International Convention in Miami. And, to show you how AA has grown, we had, I think, about 11,000 people. Today, they get fifty-five to sixty thousand at the International. But that’s the time that Bill Wilson caught pneumonia and wasn’t expected to live. He was going to speak on the opening night of the convention but, he was in the hospital with pneumonia. And it was not known whether he could. We didn’t know whether he was going to make it or not. And, Wesley P. who was a well-known AA member from Pompano Beach, spoke in his behalf. Before the meeting started, the chairman of the meeting said, “Let’s have a moment of silent prayer for Bill Wilson’s recovery.” And the people checked the hospital charts. An hour later Bill Wilson’s crisis broke, and he survived. That was on Thursday night. On Sunday morning he showed up, in a wheelchair with tubes sticking out of him, breathing tubes. He got up on the stage and I was fortunate enough to be in the front row and heard him talk that Sunday morning. Very emotional time. Because he died the following January in Miami. He died here in Miami.
Some of the people that I know were close to him at the time, Charlie B, whose granddaughter Ingrid is a member of the Coral Room now, he was the security chairman for the convention. And so he arranged to meet Bill and Lois at the airport for that convention. But they ended up taking him to the hospital shortly afterwards. But he met them. Their job, assuming he hadn’t gotten sick, was to keep the crowds away from him at the meetings so he could enjoy the convention. But, of course, that didn’t happen, he was in the hospital all that time. But he did make that Sunday morning appearance.
So, my years in this program have been wonderful. I was fortunate enough to be elected as a Trustee and even afterwards I was able to speak at conventions all over the country. I got to know a lot of people from all over the United States that I wouldn’t have normally got to meet had I not been involved in General Service. It was really a great experience. Ah, spiritually uplifting to meet some of these old-time pioneers that, are still in the program.
Clancy I, of course, he isn’t one of the old old timers. I think Clancy has may five or six, seven more years than I do in the program. You know, there are people in Dade County that have close to fifty-five years. So, you know, it was a privilege to get to meet these people. [End of Sam S.’s memories].
Considering the preceding account, by Sam S. Our Area 15 Panel 25 delegate, was given from his memory, this document will conclude with the present list, in 2022 of the names of those that have represented South Florida Area 15 to the General Service Conference and their Panel numbers.
Drag me to add paragraph to your block, write your own text and edit me.
The following narrative of Miami-Dade County’s beginnings of Alcoholics Anonymous is a conglomeration of a number of saved documents discovered within the archives of District 10, Area 15’s saved and stored materials. Various memories and documents will appear to conflict, however this Archivist has attempted to weave together a general picture of the infancy of AA in the Miami area. Conflicts will be noted.
It appears that the nationally distributed Liberty Magazine, released in September of 1939, became the calling card of the Alcoholics Anonymous to Dade County. A Frank Plummer has been mentioned, in Miami from the Northeast, as possibly the first believed contact from the Miami Area to the New York Office, (though only a reply and correspondence letters dated October 6 and November 4th, 1940 from Ruth Hock is any evidence, as she asked Frank to look up some AA inquiries), and Frank agreed to run down inquiries given to him by secretary Ruth Hock. Little correspondence followed and Frank may have left the area returning back to the northeast.
On April 24, 1940, Roger Garrett [308 NE 13th Terrace], wrote New York for help for himself receiving a reply from Ruth Hock on May 4th. Then on July 1st, 1940, the non-alcoholic wife of a potential member, Agnes Thomason wrote to New York for help for her husband, Joe, which was prompted by her reading the Liberty Magazine article “Alcoholics and God”. Joe T. [500 80th St., Miami] received his reply on July 9, 1940. Both Roger and Joe were initially sent information and by November 1940 Roger and Joe were united and aided by Irwin Meyerson, a traveling salesman from the Ohio AA collaboration started in Cleveland, and staying sober together would be instrumental in forming the first Group in Dade County.
In December, 1940, Carl Shotter arrived from Houston, Texas and settled for awhile in Ft. Lauderdale. The previous month, in November, Carl had been in touch with the New York office and expressed a desire to start a group in Miami. Ruth Hock put him in touch with Joe and Roger. Carl contacted the newspapers in Miami (Daily News and Miami Herald), and they were receptive to the idea of running a series of articles on AA. On December 16th, Carl wrote to Ruth that he had gotten in touch with Joe T. and they went to work on Charles (Hook) Gordon, who was just released from jail. Also, Roger G. was contacted by Carl and Carl was enthusiastic about both men. On December 23rd, 1940, Carl S. attended a meeting at the Miami Beach home of Joe T., along with Roger G. and a visitor from New York, Charlie Crossland, which was documented as the FIRST Miami Area Meeting of Alcoholics Anonymous. Frank Plummer, and probably other A.A.’s, visited Miami, and had written New York, before Roger and Joe, but now, when any out-of-town A.As were coming to Miami, New York directed them to these two, Roger and Joe. So when Joe Munn (2161 NW 27th Ave, Miami) wrote for information and help, he was sent to these two. They had established a GROUP and the first Meeting of Record was held Dec. 23, 1940 at Joe T.’s home and was attended by Roger G., Carl Shotter, a visitor from Houston, Texas, and Charlie Crossland, here as a visitor from New York.
AA activity on part of these men included Ft. Lauderdale and St. Petersburg (where there were two men that were interested). Also, Charles Crossland (from New York City) took part in these activities. By the end of the year, Carl thought they “seem to be getting on a good firm foundation”. Carl leaves the Ft. Lauderdale area (apparently back to Texas), in March, 1941, but Joe T. (aided by his wife, Agnes who helped with correspondence) was still going strong and in April of 1941 Roger G. wrote to New York that the Miami Group was meeting every Monday night at the Miami Beach Chamber of Commence where Joe T.’s wife, Agnes worked.
A letter, dated March 1945, to the then New York Secretary Bobbie B. (Margret Berger), by Basil Abrams says “they are looking forward to celebrating their 5th anniversary on April 21.” He [Basil] wondered if he could ascertain the date of their beginning as “there is controversy as to whether it was 1940 or 1941”. [see copy of Bobbie’s letter, Mar. 22, 1945 to Basil in reply] ( in that letter Bobbie reiterated the correspondence that Ruth Hock carried on with Agnes Thomason and then states that in July of 1941 Bill Hampden ( 2749 SW 5th St, Miami) is recorded as the first secretary of the Miami Group).
In May, 1941, Agnes wrote that they were working out a permanent meeting place with one of the judges in Miami. Joe Munn, a new recruit (via a letter for help from New York in March 3, 1941) was reported to be very enthusiastic about AA and the Thomasons. There had been publicity in the newspapers for the past few months about A.A. and Joe and Agnes were good correspondents with Ruth Hock in the New York Office. In June, Agnes wrote that “everything is going along.” Meetings had been set for Monday nights and for a few weeks they had been meeting in the Chamber of Commerce Building.
Joe M. became one of the regulars and by July 1941 there were 10 members. On July 31st, 1941, while in the New York office with Ruth Hock, a New York lawyer; Esq. Warren Kennedy wrote to Joe T. advising him that his identical twin was “in dire need of help of A.A. methods” in Miami, while during this same time, that Ruth was replying to Andrew L. Kennedy, (252 NW Second Street, Miami, FL ) that there existed help for him in Miami Beach and to contact Joe T. at 500 80th St, Miami Beach.
By August 1941, Joe turned over correspondence duties to Bill H. (William Hampton), who was now called Secretary-Treasurer. Bill H. later in the month said there are now twenty-five to 30 Miami Group Members with a Fred Kautzman mentioned and a Ned (or Fred) Kant, rambling in the group. By September 15th, 1941, Ruth was feeding Bill H. names of people in the Miami area who had requested to be contacted and who had been looking for and requesting AA in Miami. By the end of November ‘41, ( letter from Bill H. to New York), word had it that Bill W. was considering a trip down to Miami during next fall or winter and Bill H. welcomed Bill W. down to see for himself, “that we are building something down here that you, as the founder will be proud to see. We also feel that we have reached a stage in our growth where your personal advice and guidance would be incalculable benefit.” “P.S. Any of our forty members will consider it an honor to have you and yours as a guest or guests in any or all of our homes.”
During this same correspondence from Bill H. in Miami to Ruth Hock in New York, Bill H. gave word that Lucian Wyatt, whom had requested to find the Miami fellowship was in-fact a member of the Group and also sending news that Andrew Kennedy “has steadfastly rejected a belief in any Power greater than himself and was presently in the hospital where he’s damning God, AA, his friends, everything.” Bill H. proposed that may be a good thing “ as the idea is clearly gaining so that he is having to fight it savagely. Perhaps this will be his last battle before he surrenders.”
It was in August of 1942 that Bill W. made his first of two visits to Miami. There was an average membership of 45, meetings twice a week – Sunday, Musicians Hall, 600 N. Miami Ave & 6th Street, (with a buffet luncheon) and Thursday, a closed meeting at The Olympia Building . The last Thursday in the month a meeting is in a private home. Note: the address of the Musicians Hall, was acquired from a cursively written letter from Mae Winkleman to Bobbie Burger, NY Secretary dated August 13, 1942. Bill W.’s reply to Mae W. is dated August 20, 1942 as Bill Thanks Mae for the warm welcome and hospitality during his recent visit to Miami and the Miami Group.
The District 10 Archived letters do have gaps in our time line and research indicates that Hurricane Andrew, in 1992, may have wiped some documents away. The written archived letters resume briefly by a letter to Mae in February 11, 1943, from Bobbie B. expressing regret for Mae’s loss of her husband and lauding the courage and support of the Group here in Miami. Then again, in 1943 brought growing pains and complaints from some of the wives because they could not attend Closed meetings.
As troubles erupted in Miami and the wives of alcoholics were disgruntled that they could not attend the closed meetings, Bill W. writes to one of the wives, [October 8, 1943] Mrs. Brunch, assuring her that “yes, the wives and people surrounding the alcoholics could also use the help and solutions that the Steps and program provide” (possibly the beginning of the Al-Anon Family Groups in Miami) and “that love and tolerance will eventually win out over fear and criticism whether that comes from the wives or the alcoholics.” The next archived letters would resume on April 10, 1944.
In early 1944, Bruce H. and some others started Group #2, later the Sunshine Group. In April 1944 Basil Abrams notified New York that the original Miami Group was hunting “permanent quarters,” and in May of 1944 Bill W. was here again with his wife, Lois.
In April of 1945, Sylvia Lathero becomes Corresponding Secretary, Fred Kautzman is Executive Secretary of the combined Groups of Miami, the beginning of Intergroup, and they have 5 District Secretaries, through whom they assigned 12 step calls. With the forming of the Central Office (or Intergroup Headquarters) at ANONA, ANONA was the heart of all A.A. in Miami. Chas Moyer was the First President of Anona Club.
Among others who corresponded with New York during these early years, were Naon Craft, Lee Thorndyke, and Chester Caldwell and with ANONA as headquarters by 1950, only 5 short years after the founding of ANONA, there were nine (9) active groups in Miami listed with Intergroup, among them the Northeast, Northwest, North Side, Central, Downtown, Boulevard, Hialeah and Coral Way.
To fill in some blank spots in the above history, we turn to SOME SCRAMBLED HISTORY AND OBSERVATIONS, transcriptions from a recording by Harry Owen, an early member of A. A. in Miami. He died January 31, 1975 He did not claim to be one of the Founders in Miami but he was one of the oldest members still alive at that time (circa 1974) – with continuous sobriety.
About a year before his death, Harry gave his recollections of how A.A. started in Dade County. The talk was tape recorded by Al Landers in the New Horizon Room. Al is the author of this article we refer to now. Maxine Kautzmann, wife of Fred K., (Fred owned a lumber yard at about N. W. 2nd Ave. and 4th Street), was a night nurse working in a sanatorium in Miami, where she met and married Fred Kautzmann who came to the hospital to be treated and dried out from drunken escapades.
After one of Fred’s drunks, Maxine and Fred’s mother sent Fred to stay with his sister in Georgia to recuperate. Maxine read the Liberty Magazine article regarding A.A. She is of the opinion that the article gave no address where you could write for help or a Big Book. She recalls that it cost 5 cents. This has also been confirmed by New York (no address, that is). She doesn’t recall how she got the address, she wonders now why she didn’t write to Liberty Magazine. Anyway, she did get the address somehow and guesses that approximately 9 months after reading the article she received the Big Book, or, approximately June or July of 1940.
Maxine and Fred’s mother read the book and mailed it to Fred in Georgia, wondering whether or not it was the right thing to do. Fred became a believer on first reading and never drank again.
A nurse, named Mrs. Sutton, had a patient named Mae Winkleman who was dying from alcoholism in the Sun Ray Sanatorium – almost a basket case. She (Mrs. Sutton) contacted Fred, who made the first 12 step call on Mae – March 1941.
Maxine thinks that could have been the first 12th step call ever in Dade County but it’s not likely, as you will see later. Jim Hicks (believed home, 2171 NW 55th Street, Miami), recalls the story of Mae. He remembers that some A.A. people heard of Mae needing help and it took them two or three weeks to find her. If there were some A.A. people in Dade County trying to contact Mae at about the same time as Fred made the call, it follows that some of those A.A. members must have 12th step each other beforehand, and if that’s true, then Mae couldn’t have been the first person to receive a 12th step call.
Maxine recalls that a non-alcoholic lady [Agnes Thomason], at the Miami Beach Chamber of Commerce called a meeting for A.A.’s in the Chamber of Commerce Building and they met there for two or three months and that might have been the first A.A. meetings ever held in Dade County, other than in someone’s home and except for a meeting called at the Sun Ray Sanatorium by nurse Sutton for Mae Winkleman after Fred’s call. Maxine cleared up the results of what happened to the 12th step call on Mae saying that she sobered up and lived a normal, happy, sober life for several years before she died of natural causes, as the first lady A.A. member in Dade County. Maxine said that Miami’s A.A. Birthday is April, 1941, and Fred K.’s last drink was June 26, 1940. New York confirms the Miami Birth date, as well as that of Jacksonville’s AA Birth Date. She also said that prior to an A.A. listing in the phone directory, the operators would voluntarily refer phone calls concerning A.A. to Fred K’s phone number at home – Miami was much smaller then and phone operators gave a more personalized service. Miami proper had a population of 172,172 in 1941.
If we change Harry's story to read:- “as a result of the Liberty Magazine article, published September 30, 1939”, as opposed to, “as a result of the Jack Alexander article published in March 1, 1941”, then everything begins to fall into place. That version would account for Maxine’s own recollection that Joe Thomason, Joe Munn, Fred Kautzmann and others attended an A.A. meeting in the Sun Ray Sanatorium which was arranged by the nurse, Mrs. Sutton, on behalf of the late Mae Winkleman in early April, 1941.
For lack of proof, it looks like a draw between Roger G., Joe T., Joe M. and Fred K. It was certainly close and seems that some time went by before they learned of each other. It seems that they all learned of A.A. as a result of the Liberty Magazine article or its fall out but didn’t get acquainted with each other until about the time the Saturday Evening Post (Jack Alexander) article was published, which must have been pure coincidence and somehow, they all learned of each other about the same time.
The nurse, Mrs. Sutton, seems to have been the catalyst that brought them together at the Sun Ray Sanatorium in early April, 1941, and A.A. took off from there.
According to Al L.’s transcription of Harry O.’s recorded tape and Al’s research in September of 1975, “It stacks up close to this:
First 12th step meeting between two alcoholics in Dade County might have been between Charles Meyers (sober 8 month) and Joe Munn, a fresh drunk, at 71st Street and Collins Avenue, Miami Beach. (Remember Roger G. and Joe T. were acquainted with Irwin Meyerson).
Question: [Could the reference to Charles Meyers be Irwin Meyerson, from Ohio, mentioned in earlier documented letters?]
Second 12th step call might have been when Fred Kautzmann, alone, called on Mae Winkleman at the Sun Ray Sanatorium.
Maxine said that Fred’s first 12th step call was on Mae Winkleman and that shortly after, there was a meeting for Mae at the same Sun Ray Sanatorium set up by the nurse Mrs. Sutton, at which 12 or 14 people attended, including Fred and Maxine Kautzmann, Joe Munn and his girlfriend, Tallulla, Joe Thomason and wife, Agnes, plus others, including the visitor from Ohio, Charles Meyers. Some of whom never made the program. All of the women present, except Mae, are presumed to be non-alcoholic.
Next was probably the meeting in the Lumber Yard (NW 2nd Ave. and 4th Street) owned by Fred K., until one of the non-alcoholic wives (Agnes Thomason ) arranged for meetings to start in the Miami Chamber of Commerce which lasted 2 or 3 months.
Next, the meeting place was changed to the Olympia Building, which lasted a few weeks, or months – Jim Hicks advises they met both at the Musicians’ Hall on Sundays and the Olympia building office on Thursday of the same week.
From there, they moved to the Musicians’ Hall on North Miami Avenue and 6th Street,(according to Harry) and from there, rented the Anona Club building on the Miami River near Flagler Street on October 1, 1945. Harry pin-points the Olympia Building meetings before the Musicians’ hall. Jim disagrees with Harry on this point.
In speculation, it seems likely that Maxine, as a non-alcoholic, made the first 12th step call from the Miami area on her own husband, Fred, but that Joe Munn was the first to be 12th stepped by another alcoholic.
Harry thought that Fred was the seventh member but what he must not have known was that Fred had been a one man A.A. member with his non-alcoholic wife, Maxine, before some other people met Fred. You must remember that there was no “where and when” meeting list booklets back in those days.
It seems that the first “organized A.A. meeting ever held in Dade County was the Sun Ray Sanatorium, about the first week of April 1941. Thereafter, the recognized phone number to call regarding A.A. was probably the home of Mr. and Mrs. Fred Kautzman, until the Anona Club Room was rented on October 1, 1945.
This researcher will now reiterate and continue a documented history of AA in Dade County by reviewing a History Presentation presented in 2002, by Gwen G. of the Primary Purpose Group which meets at the Friendship Club, presently located on Miami Gardens Drive (7680 NW 186th St, Hialeah, FL 33015)
1945 - In the fall of 1945, 13 Miami Group members loaned a total of $1850 to rent a permanent meeting place at 23 NW South River Drive, on the 2nd floor overlooking the Miami River. The Anona Club was open from 11am to 11pm and offered evening AA meetings hosted by the many groups who shared the room while looking for permanent meeting places of their own. Active within the Anona Club were: Charles M. (the club’s first president), Fred K., Joe M., Phil H., Bob B., Naomi C., Lee T., Chester C., Red S. and Dick R. Prior to leasing the Anona Club, many meetings were held at Richmond’s Men’s Store located on Flagler Street at NE 2nd Avenue.
1946 – In October, after both Naomi and Lee took their turns in the role of secretary, Sylvia rotated back into the position again and 2 new groups were formed: the Miami Beach Group and the Northside Group in NW Dade County. The Miami Beach Group is the oldest group in Dade County and is still meeting today.
1947 – In April, with Chester C. serving as Executive Secretary, there is the first record of the Miami Group changing its name to the Central Group. At this time, Chester announced the formation of 3 new neighborhood groups: the Coral Way Group, the Hialeah Group and the NW-NE Group, believed to be the Northside Group. In September 1947, with James T. as the new Executive Secretary, the Central Group formally changed its name to Greater Miami Intergroup. A letter from Sylvia stated thatthere were then 7 groups in the Miami area. That same month, Bob B. started a second club - the Alco Club - located on SW 8th Street.
1949 – On February 16th, the North Dade Group was started at 12305 NE 6th Avenue in North Miami.
1950 – By the end of 1950, there were 9 groups in Dade County listed with Greater Miami Intergroup - in reality, however, there were only 7 groups, as two had folded by then. In 1950, and for several years thereafter, there were no public treatment facilities in Dade County providing help for the alcoholic. The Miami Retreat on 79th Street and NW Miami Avenue might admit some alcoholics, but it was known as “the dungeon” because every room was locked and padded. Alcoholics were treated with paraldehyde, a very powerful medicine. Jimmy S., a current member of the Principles Group in North Miami and the oldest member of AA in Dade County today, came to AA in July of that year.
1952 – In August, George L. of the Primary Purpose Group got sober at the New Horizon Group. She is the oldest woman member of AA in Dade County today. (in 2002)
1955 – In March, a Southeast Banquet was held at the Fontainebleau Hotel in Miami Beach; this was possibly the first annual Intergroup banquet.
1956 – Harriet R. climbed the stairs of the Anona Club for her first AA meeting. She later became an Area 15 Delegate (Panel 27) for General Service. Harriet was a prominent member of AA in Dade County and performed much service in District 10 General Service until she passed away in January of 2001. Back then there was no chip system, no medallions, nor any large AA anniversary celebrations. Members were not allowed to speak for the first 90 days; they were told to shut up and listen! Strict records of information on the newcomer’s sobriety were kept and sent to New York. The Intergroup secretary was paid $50 per month.
1957 – In August, Claire M. came to the Coral Room. Today she is one of the oldest members of AA in Dade County. She has dedicated her sober life to the suffering alcoholics and drug addicts in our prisons and is the sponsor of the “Madan Act” which has helped so many. Claire spoke on the same program as Lois W. during the Founder’s Day meeting at Akron, Ohio in June 1981. She was also one of the featured speakers at the 1985 International Convention in Toronto, Ontario, along with Ray O’K. and her son Jim B., who was one of the founders of Ala-teen in the 1950s.
1960 – On April 24th, the 5th Annual Southeast Banquet was held at the Miami Women’sClub. Jack E. of the Hialeah Group spoke and there were 100 attendees.
1965 – There were 25 unofficial groups in Miami. The original Anona Club was gone; by that time groups were expanding and people were no longer going into the downtown area. Avon Park State Hospital was the only treatment facility back then - there was no other place to take the drunks, with the exception of a couple of halfway houses that were really flophouses. A new Anona Club was started, with places for drunks to dry out. Also back then, there were no day meetings during the week; there were only night meetings and a few weekend day meetings. People who worked nights complained that they could not get to meetings. On August 20th, 1965, Sam S. of the South Dade Group came to AA. He is a past Delegate (Panel 25) for Area 15 and a past Trustee for General Service in New York.
1970 – AA celebrated its 35th year! On July 3, the 5th International Convention was held at the Fontainebleau Hotel on Miami Beach. There were over 15,000 in attendance (at the 2000 International Convention in Minneapolis there were over 60,000 in attendance) and the theme was “Unity”. Wesley P. was the Convention Chairman, and he extended greetings to AA to President Richard Nixon, Florida Governor Claude Kirk, Miami Beach Mayor Jay Dermer and a host of other celebrities and dignitaries praising the accomplishments of our wonderful fellowship.
1971 – On January 24th, Bill W. passed away from emphysema at the Miami Heart Institute on Miami Beach; he had been a heavy smoker throughout his life. Bill’s last words were: “Pass it on”. To this day, the Miami Beach Group continues to meet at the Miami Heart Institute. (in 2002)
MIAMI-DADE GROUP HISTORIESThe Miami Beach Group was started in 1946 by Phil and Ethel L. It is the oldest still functioning group in South Florida. The Miami Beach Group held two open meetings weekly for 42 years. In the winter of 1988 a candlelight, closed discussion meeting was added, and in October 1989 a closed Big Book meeting commenced. Today there are two weekly meetings here at the original Miami Heart Institute, where Bill W. spent his final days.
The North Dade Group began on February 16, 1949. Four seasoned members who were interested in the welfare of AA thought a north location would be desirable and helpful; these members were: Harry A., Walter D., Dr. R., and Mitch W. The first open meeting of the new North Dade Group was held at 12305 NE 6th Avenue, North Miami, in a vacant 10 store space. On November 11, 1949, the store space was rented, so the group moved to a one-car garage at the back of 123 NE 4th Avenue. That location soon became so crowded that the group was forced to seek a new location: The North Miami Community Center on Griffin Blvd. at NE 7th Avenue, just north of West Dixie Highway. Meetings were held on the open porch that surrounded the building. On January 13, 1950, Harry A. arranged to have meetings held in the North Miami City Hall, which was not air-conditioned back then and very hot! The North Miami Group owes so much to Miss May, the then-City Clerk of North Miami, for being their champion over the years. It took time to gain the confidence of the North Miami city fathers, but the group soon did and was allowed to move upstairs. Attendance at one weekly meeting averaged 10 at most. On April 19, 1950, the North Miami Group began to hold closed meetings on Wednesday and Sunday nights. This move marked a turning point in the group’s effectiveness in carrying the message of recovery, as well as in its attendance rate.
The Boulevard Group held meetings on Tuesday and Thursdays. They first met in a church basement on Biscayne Blvd. across from 54th Street, then moved to a location on NE 2nd Street. They were originally called The North Dade Sponsor Group.
The Arch Creek Group was the second group founded in North Dade County. Started by Bud D. (who was sponsored by Jimmy S.), it was first called the Slippers Group. At the beginning, the Slippers Group moved back and forth between two churches on NE 163rd Street. Back then 163rd Street (where Bud’s parents had a restaurant) was a dirt road! The Slippers Group eventually moved down to their long-term location at 128th Street and North Miami Ave., where they re-named themselves the Arch Creek Group.
The Little River 79th Street Club room was started in the early 1950s, west of Biscayne Blvd., (also a two-lane road back then, long before the arrival of “I-95”!).
The County Line Group was the third group started in North Dade. The group currently meets at NE 4th Ave. and 165th Street, but started out in an abandoned old bar on the east side of Biscayne Blvd. This is where the present-day Aventura stands, but back then it was a very desolate area of the county.The founding members of these 5 wonderful groups were Harry A., Walter D., Charley M., Midge W., John C., Ed A., Bud D., Martha R., Bill R., Ray G. and unnamed others. Over the years, these groups helped so many alcoholics add hundreds of years to their collective sobriety. May God continue his blessings on these fine groups of AA!
The Sunset Group originally began meeting on Galloway Road; the meeting place was a big room then, and on Saturday nights an average of 40 to 50 people would attend the speaker meeting. In 1965, when Sam S. came to AA, the Sunset Group had been meeting in the Galloway Road location for about 3 years; since then, it has moved to at least 6 different locations. On March 23rd, 1978, a very grateful alcoholic named Gwen G. walked into her very first AA meeting at the old Sunset Room on the north side of Bird Road, just east of the railroad tracks. The room was smaller than the one where the current Sunset Group meets, and it was a noon meeting. The speaker was an old woman named June – and Gwen G. has been sober ever since.
The Coral Gables Group was located at 348 Minorca from around 1958 until 1965; Claire M. was the room manager at the time, and she performed this service for 11 years. In 1965, the Coral Gables Group was re-located to a very small room on the corner of Salzedo and Minorca; 6 meetings a week were held at the new meeting location.
The South Dade Group was formed in 1965. It was located on SW 169th Street and US Highway 1; four meetings a week were held back then. The New Horizon Group was originally located on Palm Avenue in Hialeah, and the room was open all day. The group later moved to the Circle in Miami Springs.
The West Miami Group was founded by Edith D. The group meeting room was originally called the Serenity Room, but is now known as the Harmony Room.
The Al-Hi Group was located in a room behind the old Seminole Bar in Hialeah, back in the 1960s; the room was open only for meetings. The Al-Hi Group later moved to a church in North Hialeah and met there until the group closed in 2002.
The new Anona Club (called Anona-new) had rooms for skid-row drunks back in 1978, but it is no longer in existence.
The Biscayne Room was founded by Ed C. At first, the group hosted Saturday night dances and Sunday night Step Meetings, where well-known Dade County speakers such as Eddie E. gave Step series. This group is no longer in existence.
The old Friendship Group met on Flagler Street in a large, 2-story home. The group hosted a midnight meeting until it folded in the early 1970s.
The New Hope (a.k.a. 5500 Club) Group met on Flagler Street across from the cemetery. It was originally run by old-timers Jim and Dora H., but it is no longer in existence.
You have possibly recognized that many remembrances of previous and fellow archivists may have conflicted with earlier facts and interpretations. This is a “work in continual progress”, and as more documents, and if lucky, those closer to the names and events reported, appear before us, a refinement of the early history of Dade County AA can and hopefully will be updated.
Now, reviewing a transcribed, recorded cassette of the Panel 25 Delegate of Area 15 South Florida, Sam S., sobriety date is Friday, August 20th, 1965, whose first meeting was at the Original Sunset Group on Galloway Rd which was a little north of the traffic light on Sunset Dr, on 87th Avenue.
“I think the Sunset group was about four years old. Maybe only three. I don’t remember for sure. My second meeting, a couple of days later was at the Coral Gables speaker meeting on Monday night. The Coral Room at that time was up on the corner of Salzedo and Majorca, a very small Coral Room. Everybody loved it, though. And it was there until 1968 when, they moved the Coral Room to 348 Majorca, in the middle of the block., it was there for about twenty years.”
The groups were small in those days. The night I went to my second meeting, I was taken down to Perrine, where I lived, to be shown where the South Dade group met on US 1. It was also a small room, and, that became my home group, and I went there and is still is my home group. There were only about fifteen members, but we had our own room. Only open for meetings, we had four meetings a week. In those days, all our meetings were at night. There were no daytime meetings.
I went to South Dade and got to know everybody in that group. I never drank again after my first meeting. After being sober about six months, I got a driver’s license and a car, and I started going all over Dade County. And I would go to meetings at Sunset and then the Coral Room.
There was a group on Flagler St. in what was then called the Friendship Club. There is now a Friendship Club way up in the north of Dade County. The first Friendship Club, housed The Flagler St. Group and several others that met at a house right across Flagler St. from Miami Senior High School. That was a two-story old house. It may still be there as a real estate office or they may have torn it down. Back then they had meetings there practically every day. They had a meeting room, a kitchen and a bar and they served meals, I think soup and sandwiches. And, of course, cokes and coffee and everything. And there was a big front porch and people used to sit out on the front porch. And then there were rooms upstairs and some of the members lived up there and paid rent to live upstairs. I guess 1970 or ’69, somewhere along in there, they lost their lease and had to move. And that Flagler Street Group never reopened.
Just before I came in, the original Flagler Group was, I think, 5100 Flagler St. and it was run by a couple named Jim and Dora who are probably mentioned in the archives somewhere. I never got to that group. Of course, one of the oldest meeting place I recall in Dade County that’s still in operation is the Serenity Room (now known as the Harmony room) where the West Miami Group meets. It was a spin-off from the old South Miami group which met down in a warehouse district in South Miami along the railroad tracks. That was also before my time, but I knew people who belonged to it. Elaine & Eddie D., who broke away and started the West Miami Group. That became what’s now the West Miami group in what they call the Harmony Room. It’s been there since the early sixties. I don’t know what year they ended up there. And it was there when I came in in 1965.
In Hialeah, there were two rooms. on Palm Avenue, New Horizons which is still in existence in a different location. It’s in its third location now across from the cleaners on the Miami Springs Circle, but it was on Palm Avenue, and it was much smaller. There were some people in there that decided they needed a place for drunks to sleep. A guy name John M. he was staying there at night late and if somebody needed a place to sleep, he would let them sleep on the couch in the New Horizon room. When I was maybe two or three years sober, they moved over to where they were for so many years in Miami Springs before they moved to their present location.
The Al-Hi Group was near the Seminole Bar. But they had three or four meetings at night. And that also moved after I was sober three or four years. It moved into a church in Hialeah on what was probably the extension of NW 79th Street, but it’s not there anymore.
The far north Dade Group was the Biscayne Room which was started by a fellow by the name of Ed C. Ed found a nice little room with a coffee bar and a room in back. And after a year or so, they used to have dances in there on Saturday night and they expanded and took over the other half of that building. Ed C. went to some of the other members, the older members of the group and raised some money from them and they eventually bought the building from those contributions. The group met in the building that was then owned by some of the AA members. Although AA had nothing to do with the ownership directly. So, those were the club rooms that we had. And there were also meetings here and there in churches.
The Homestead group at that time did not have its own room. They met in churches in Homestead. There was only one group that I remember.
The South Dade Group was a spin-off of what was at one time called the Perrine Group. They met in a house but that was before my time. The South Dade Group was a year old, so it was eleven months old when I got sober in AA. But the one that was there before was called the Perrine group. They had a house rented and it folded up, allowing the opening of the South Dade Group which is still in existence. And it’s in its fourth location. It’s still my home group.
The Sabal Palm Group wasn’t there and a lot of the other groups that have sprung up over the years were not there then. A lot of church groups, smaller groups.
I think we, in Dade County, only had twenty-eight groups and now there are over a hundred. Something like that. So, you know, AA was much smaller. The people were closer in those days because it was sort of the old lifeboat theory.
After I was sober a couple of years, the guy that brought me into AA got me involved in General Service. I was the General Service Representative for the South Dade Group when I started going to the Quarterly Assembly. The first one I went to was in Naples at the Naples Beach Club and that was in 1968, maybe 1967. There were only about 70 people there, but I was impressed with the amount of old-time sobriety that was there. They had a lot of retired people that came down from all parts of the country in the fall for many years, and they came down and got active in service, in addition to the local people. And so, I started going regularly to these Quarterlies, and in 1968, I went to my first assembly where we elected a delegate. I can’t even remember his last name Bob [Bud S.]. We had a big fight over who was going to get elected. But we finally elected a fella who’d come all the way from Tampa.
I continued to go to those Quarterlies. And, in 1972, I was elected as Area Chairman. I went through Dade County as Committee Member and then Committee Chairman. And then eventually I became South Florida Area Chairman in 1972. And, in October 1974, I was elected delegate {Panel 25].
Now, I also was going to State Conventions and Southeastern Conventions in those days. The Southeastern Conference is what we liked to call it. The Southeastern Conference is the oldest of its time in the United States. It was really a convention, but it was called a Conference. And it’s still in existence but it’s not as big as it used to be because so many State Conventions have sprung up over the years. But the Southeastern Conference is the oldest next to the International Convention. I think it’s the oldest Area Convention that is still going.
In those days, there were a lot of convention-goers from around the southeastern states. There are, well I think there are, thirteen states in the Southeast Region, I’m sorry, The region has, I believe, thirteen Areas. You’ve got Florida, North and South Florida. You’ve got Georgia, North and South Carolina, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Tennessee, West Virginia, and Kentucky, of course, we have, Nassau, Bahamas, the Virgin Islands and the Cayman Islands.
So people in the Southeastern States that went during those days when AA was small to the Southeast Conference all knew each other. So many people knew each other. And we renewed our acquaintances each year. And then, of course, the Florida State Convention. And when I first went, we used to get all excited when we’d break 800 attendees. Then one year, back when I was maybe three or four years sober, we broke a thousand, by now they get 2,500, sometimes almost 3,000. I think we had 2,000 here in Miami in 1987.
AA has grown so much. There were… In those times, there were no treatment centers except for Hazelden and Avon Park, the State Hospital. There were no detox centers. There was nothing like that. Everybody came in directly through either word-of-mouth or a friend that brought them, or reading an article in a magazine or newspaper or hearing something on the radio. Because there was just one treatment center and few detox places to refer them to, not like there are now.
And there was very little drug use. It was never discussed. We used to call some of the people that took mood-altering pills, “pill heads”. You know, medications. As far as the hard-core drugs and marijuana use, there wasn’t any of that that we knew of or to speak of in AA. It wasn’t heard of until the early 1970s, or the late sixties is really when people started going to treatment centers. Most people today have a combined problem. Besides being drunks, they use drugs. Cocaine. Something on the side. Marijuana. We didn’t have that then.
So I, was also fortunate enough to be elected Trustee after I served two years as delegate and I was fortunate to know a lot of the old timers, not only in Dade County. People that got sober in Dade County in the forties, that started a lot of the groups locally. I got to know people in New York and all around the country who were sober when the first hundred members were still alive.
Clarence Snyder whose story is in the original Big Book. The Brewmeister was the oldest living AA member in length of sobriety after Bill Wilson died. He got sober at 19 years of age, either in ’37 or ’38 in Cleveland and Dr. Bob was his sponsor. He had moved to Florida after he had about fifteen or twenty years of sobriety. And so I got to know him and heard a lot from him about the early days of AA. He used to speak around South Florida.
In 1970, we were fortunate to have the International Convention in Miami. And, to show you how AA has grown, we had, I think, about 11,000 people. Today, they get fifty-five to sixty thousand at the International. But that’s the time that Bill Wilson caught pneumonia and wasn’t expected to live. He was going to speak on the opening night of the convention but, he was in the hospital with pneumonia. And it was not known whether he could. We didn’t know whether he was going to make it or not. And, Wesley P. who was a well-known AA member from Pompano Beach, spoke in his behalf. Before the meeting started, the chairman of the meeting said, “Let’s have a moment of silent prayer for Bill Wilson’s recovery.” And the people checked the hospital charts. An hour later Bill Wilson’s crisis broke, and he survived. That was on Thursday night. On Sunday morning he showed up, in a wheelchair with tubes sticking out of him, breathing tubes. He got up on the stage and I was fortunate enough to be in the front row and heard him talk that Sunday morning. Very emotional time. Because he died the following January in Miami. He died here in Miami.
Some of the people that I know were close to him at the time, Charlie B, whose granddaughter Ingrid is a member of the Coral Room now, he was the security chairman for the convention. And so he arranged to meet Bill and Lois at the airport for that convention. But they ended up taking him to the hospital shortly afterwards. But he met them. Their job, assuming he hadn’t gotten sick, was to keep the crowds away from him at the meetings so he could enjoy the convention. But, of course, that didn’t happen, he was in the hospital all that time. But he did make that Sunday morning appearance.
So, my years in this program have been wonderful. I was fortunate enough to be elected as a Trustee and even afterwards I was able to speak at conventions all over the country. I got to know a lot of people from all over the United States that I wouldn’t have normally got to meet had I not been involved in General Service. It was really a great experience. Ah, spiritually uplifting to meet some of these old-time pioneers that, are still in the program.
Clancy I, of course, he isn’t one of the old old timers. I think Clancy has may five or six, seven more years than I do in the program. You know, there are people in Dade County that have close to fifty-five years. So, you know, it was a privilege to get to meet these people. [End of Sam S.’s memories].
Considering the preceding account, by Sam S. Our Area 15 Panel 25 delegate, was given from his memory, this document will conclude with the present list, in 2022 of the names of those that have represented South Florida Area 15 to the General Service Conference and their Panel numbers.
Drag me to add paragraph to your block, write your own text and edit me.