There are differing versions of how the Workshop started. Some say as early as 1949, some men started a woodworking/carpentry shop where they worked during the day and held meetings at night. Others say it didn't start until the summer of 1957 when a group of artists and writers established a group at the carpenter’s shop on Sullivan Street. It was above a funeral parlor and next to a liquor store. Their goal was to have a place to work, stay sober, and have meetings. What we know for certain is that it was in a carpenters' shop, hence the name The Workshop.

By 1958, they had outgrown the space and found a new location in the West Village. In September of 1958, the first meetings were held in a storefront at 50 Perry Street. It had either been a candy store or a German bakery. Meetings have run continuously there ever since.

Initially, there were four 8:30 PM meetings a week, with a core group of about 15 members. They sat in a semi-circle on furniture that had been dragged in off the street–a coffee table, a couch, overstuffed and straight-backed chairs, and a loveseat. There was no podium or counter, but there was a bathroom. The room had only one light, a lone electric bulb hanging by a cord from the center of the ceiling. They froze in the winter and sweltered in the summer.

There was an old-fashioned alarm clock set for 10:00. ‘NO SOULS SAVED AFTER 10 PM.’ was announced at the end of the meeting. When the alarm went off it scared the hell out of most of the speakers, even though they knew about it in advance. It took a year to get rid of the clock, but we remained strict about stopping every meeting at 10:00 sharp.

Perry Street grew and grew. Many business meetings included lively discussions about whether the group should move to larger quarters. Those who wanted to go were told, “You can go and start another meeting if you like. We’re staying here.” They usually stayed.

Perry Street meetings were never canceled. Even when the famous New York Blackout of 1965 occurred, the scheduled speaker walked down from the Upper East Side.

Holidays being a difficult time for many alcoholics, we began having our soon-to-be-famous Thanksgiving Open House. A potluck buffet started around noon and continued until the evening meeting at 8:30. Each year more and more people came. After about twenty years, the group could no longer support the large crowds. The tradition ended in 1982.

• MEETINGS: increased from four per week to seven.

• RENT: under $100 a month

There were very few late meetings at this time, so Perry Streeters traveled around the city to find them.

• 1971 “It was also pointed out that the high cost of the Annual Bill W. Dinner was making AA into a rich man’s club.”

• 1975 Here’s a good one: “Mention was made of a rodent problem. Rudy found a rat in the garbage can at his meeting. It is not known whether the rat was sober 90 days or not. Rudy killed the rat. The Co-chairpeople were to notify all the coffee chairpersons to close the bathroom window when they leave, as it is believed the rats come in there.”

• 1978 “There was concern over the ‘steady stream of cockroaches’ parading across the west wall.”

• 1978 “There was a motion to announce before the start of each meeting, ‘Anyone who has taken alcohol or any other mood changers today may not share.’ Motion passed.”

~ The midnight meetings for Christmas and New Year's go back to the 1970’s, and probably earlier. These meetings have always been very special to us.

~ The “Our Father” was the prevalent prayer used to close meetings.

~ Coffee was served until the mid-eighties. The chairperson arrived 2 hours early to make it. The door opened an hour before the meeting began.

~ “No infants, children, pets or bikes” originated in the 70’s.

~ The chairperson’s counter was by the bench in the back.

~ 70s Business Meeting Madness: Quotes from the minutes.

• Meeting List:

~ 8:30 PM NIGHTLY (Problems In Sobriety wasn’t in the meeting book. It was considered a private meeting for members to discuss problems in sobriety. Crosstalk and feedback were encouraged.)

~ 12:15 PM TUESDAY AND THURSDAY

~ 3 PM SATURDAY

~ 11 AM SUNDAY

• MEETINGS: meetings increased to eleven per week.

• RENT: in 1975: $145 a month Coffee and cups in 1975: $242.08 a month

The first group in NYC to officially go “clean and dry” was “Clean And Dry.” We were the next group. Until this time, there was some dispute about whether one could be high and sober at the same time. The debate continued into the ‘80s.

• 1983 “Motion accepted that a sign be posted behind the coffee counter stating that the California style greeting of the person sharing is optional at Perry Street.” California style greeting: “Hi, So & So” in response to “Hi, my name is So & So, and I’m an alcoholic.”

• 1985 “A motion to add in the announcement ‘Any visual display of weapons can be grounds for dismissal from this room until discussed at the next business meeting’ was floored.”

• 1988 “Dance: Claude was very pissed that volunteers didn’t show up to help clean PS3 after the dance…The need for future planning floated in the air like swamp gas...”

~ The holiday marathon meetings began in 1983. Perry Street has always called them “marathons,” eschewing the term “alkathon.”

~ Holding hands at the end of a meeting began around 1982 or 1983.

~ AIDS defined much of Perry Street's life during the ’80s. A whole sobriety generation was lost. We lost dear friends, sponsors, sponsees, and precious institutional memories. No one knew what it was at first. There were many funerals and memorial services.

• MEETINGS: increased to twenty per week.

• RENT: in 1985: $875 a month

• COFFEE EXPENSES: in 1985: $480 - $600 a month