I’m at Bill Wilson’s grave on a drizzly fall day, the leaves changing to gold in Vermont’s Green Mountains, looking over offerings people have left: AA chips in English and French, coins, personal notes.
I pick up a small plastic bottle, wondering what’s inside. On one side, there’s a photo of a man in a black beret and white mustache, peering provocatively over lowered sunglasses. On the other, it says, “Gary C. Sought More Than Sobriety. 1/29/83. Helped millions.”
Yikes. Am I holding what’s left of Gary C.?
I can’t tell for certain, but the possibility gives me pause. You know you’ve left a big impression when people from all over the world visit your grave and leave something deeply personal behind.
Such is the case for Bill Wilson, co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous.
“A lot of people do come here as a pilgrimage,” Liz W. tells me that afternoon. “It’s kind of even a mecca for some people.”
Liz is the volunteer coordinator at the Wilson House, Bill Wilson’s birthplace and now a historic inn and 12-step meeting center in East Dorset, Vermont.
I’d been wanting to visit for a few years and finally made it at the end of September. It turned out to be a beautiful old house stuffed with artifacts, with plenty of people willing to share the stories behind them.
Staying at the Wilson House
It’s hard to feel like a stranger at this big, red Greek Revival building, built as a hotel in 1852. Somebody might greet you from the row of white rocking chairs on the porch. Once you step through the door, people welcome you and want to get to know you.
After his parents divorced in 1906, Bill spent his adolescence in East Dorset. His father moved to British Columbia, and his mother went to Boston to study osteopathic medicine. Bill and his younger sister, Dorothy, lived with their maternal grandparents, the Griffiths.
My first night in the house, I meet Louie A., a man in recovery from heroin addiction who lives in Plymouth, Massachusetts. Louie is visiting the Wilson House for the 33rd time in four years.
“I fell in love with the place,” he tells me.
Between volunteering here and prowling the halls during bouts of insomnia, he knows the Wilson House well.
“I do a lot of meditation early in the morning when everybody’s sleeping. It helps me to stay sane.”
I ask Louie to show me his favorite meditation spots. It’s not very late, but all the other guests have already gone upstairs to their rooms, so the house is quiet.
He leads me through the two downstairs sitting rooms full of grand old furniture. He points out a couch marking the spot where Wilson was born during a snowstorm in 1895, in what was once a small room behind the inn’s bar.
Beside the couch, a tasseled lamp is left on around the clock as an eternal flame. A portrait of Wilson as a grown man hangs on the wall above.
We stare reverently at the couch.
Farther back on the first floor are a large kitchen and dining area and a huge meeting room. The Wilson House hosts daily AA meetings.
Liz, who attended her first AA meeting at the Wilson House 26 years before my visit, says meeting sizes are unpredictable.
“People often ask me how many folks are going to be in a particular meeting, and it’s like anywhere between two and 100.”
Historic Rooms and a Garden Built on Donations
The guest rooms are named for people connected to AA history. I stay in the Marty Mann room, named for an early female AA member and a pioneer in alcoholism education.
A queen-size bed takes up most of my room, and I have good storage space with a big closet and dresser. The smaller rooms include single-bed options, and many rooms share bathrooms.
There are plenty of bathrooms, so I never have to wait. My favorite has a pink clawfoot tub. The halls are a bit creaky and well-loved. With every step, you can tell you are staying somewhere historic.
It’s rainy during my visit, so I don’t hang out in the backyard. But Liz is also the gardener and has done a beautiful job with the outdoor space.
There are picnic tables, meditation benches, a fire pit surrounded by Adirondack chairs and two bathtubs planted with herbs and edible plants, high enough to discourage hungry bunnies.
Liz had the genius idea to put the word out to the local community: If people were dividing perennials, she’d take any extras. The garden is planted largely with donations.
How the Wilson House Was Saved
The Wilson House probably would have been demolished long ago if it hadn’t been for the late Albert “Ozzie” Lepper.
The property had several names over the years. It became the Mount Aeolus Inn in 1920, eventually closed and spent years deteriorating before Ozzie came along in the 1980s.
“The building was basically condemned, or going to be,” says Michael, the host who checks me into the hotel and gives me a quick tour. “Literally part of it was sinking into the ground. And there was a tree growing up through the kitchen. It came right through the floor.”
Ozzie recognized the inn’s historical significance and purchased it in 1987. Restoration began that year, and the hotel reopened as the Wilson House in 1988.
“And it’s been being fixed up ever since,” Michael says.
Ozzie rallied volunteers to help restore the building. When I first arrive, my taxi driver, Rob, tells me he helped put the roof on many years ago.
The Wilson House is now owned and operated by a nonprofit organization and still depends heavily on volunteers.
Liz feels that Ozzie accomplished his mission, and it’s obvious as soon as people see the front porch, her favorite part of the house.
“The rocking chairs have become iconic. People gather out there. Just as in the case of you and David, you’re folks who came from different parts of the world and you’ve connected here.”
Indeed, I’ve just returned from lunch with a new friend from St. Louis.
“Our whole mission is people sharing recovery with other people in recovery.”
License Plates and Other Recovery Artifacts
License plates with AA messages hang on the beams in the large meeting room. Some are more easily deciphered than others.
“Can you figure this one out?” Louie asks me, a sparkle in his eye.
I ponder the plate, feeling dumber by the second until I admit defeat. Louie gleefully points to a mirror behind me. In the reflection, the characters read “Bill W.”
Other examples include SOBAH, IOUAA, HPIOU, KM2BLV, GODSWAY, AATHNX and several I never figure out.
“We have a rule,” Liz tells me.
The plate must be a real one that someone drove around with, she explains, making a public commitment to their recovery.
“It needs to have a recovery message on it.”
After 26 years at the house, Liz knows many of the stories behind the license plates. One of her favorites belonged to a woman who wanted her five friends to deliver the plate in person to the Wilson House when she died, rather than having a memorial service.
“That room definitely gives me chills. It’s a good reminder of people who came before us. A lot of the license plates are from local folks who have since passed. So for those of us who live here, it has special meaning.”
Nearby is the Griffith House, where Bill spent his teen years with his maternal grandparents. It now houses an archive with treasures such as Bill’s crib and early editions of the AA Big Book.
Louie gives me a tour, opening a drawer to show me a typed list of stories that would appear in the original Big Book, along with the storytellers’ full names and addresses.
Getting to East Dorset and Exploring the Area
Since I dislike driving in unfamiliar places, and, OK, many familiar ones, I opt to take a bus from Albany, New York, then a taxi from Manchester Center to East Dorset.
The Vermont Translines bus is super clean and cushy, and I enjoy the views. I also like meeting my taxi driver, Rob, owner of Northshire Taxi, and getting his perspectives on Vermont.
But even I have to admit it would be a hell of a lot easier to have a car in East Dorset.
Friends, there’s not a whole lot here! I spend two nights, and that’s enough to see everything I can on foot.
I’m super excited to visit Two Witches Ice Cream, one of the few businesses within walking distance of the inn. Tragically, its soft-serve machine is down during my visit, so it’s closed.
If I’d had a car and it hadn’t been raining, I would have liked to visit Emerald Lake. Lois Burnham’s family spent summers there, and the lake is part of Bill and Lois’s early history together. They later married, and Lois went on to co-found Al-Anon.
Manchester and Bennington offer more shops and restaurants for travelers exploring the area by car.
Volunteering at the Wilson House
Do you want to visit the Wilson House? How do you feel about working vacations?
“We survive because of volunteers,” Liz tells me. “We can’t possibly get all the work done without them.”
During my visit, she describes opportunities that include short stays at the inn while helping out, as well as serving and washing dishes at the weekly Friday night community supper.
At the time, the Wilson House is also working on a former general store across the street, with plans for additional rooms. Liz is especially excited about creating more accessible lodging, and people handy with hammers are in demand.
She also dreams of having an archivist volunteer to get historical materials in better order.
Current projects and opportunities may change, so prospective volunteers can contact the house through its official website.
But the No. 1 requirement?
“A commitment to recovery,” she says without hesitating.
#QUITLIT: The Big Book Found Its Way Home
SOBER TRAVEL – WHAT A TRIP! is The Sober Curator’s guide to exploring the world alcohol-free. From insider travel tips and honest destination reviews to our curated Sober Retreats Calendar, we help you plan trips that are fun, fulfilling, and booze-free. Whether your jet-setting overseas or planning a weekend getaway, our stories and resources prove that sober travel is anything but boring. Looking for a sober getaway? We’ve got your back with our Sober Retreat Calendar. Need a night out on the town? Check out our Sober Events Calendar.
We also recommend soberscribing to The Sober Sip for weekly and monthly travel + events updates. Have a life-changing sober trip to share? Send your tips and photos to thesobercurator@gmail.com—we’d love to feature your journey.
🏝️ Submit a Sober Retreat Recovery-focused, wellness, spiritual, creative, and adventure retreats. Listings start free. Featured and Sponsored placements available for retreats that want full editorial coverage. Submit your retreat →
SOBER RETREATS: with Senior Travel Sober Curator Contributor Teresa Bergen is your go-to space for alcohol-free travel tips, insider guides, and honest reviews from a sober perspective. Teresa blends her passions—animals, wildlife conservation, sustainability, geography, culture, outdoor adventure, and yoga—into enriching travel stories that inspire mindful exploration. From kayaking and hiking to visiting historic cemeteries and sacred spaces, she uncovers the beauty where history, art, and spirituality meet.
Planning a sober retreat? 🏝️ Submit a Sober Retreat: Recovery-focused, wellness, spiritual, creative, and adventure retreats. Listings start free. Featured and Sponsored placements available for retreats that want full editorial coverage. Submit your retreat →
SOBERSCRIBE NOW!
Resources Are Available
If you or someone you know is experiencing difficulties surrounding alcoholism, addiction, or mental illness, please reach out and ask for help. People everywhere can and want to help; you just have to know where to look. And continue to look until you find what works for you. Click here for a list of regional and national resources.
Follow The Sober Curator on X, the artist formerly known as Twitter
Where is the Wilson House?
The Wilson House is at 378 Village St. in East Dorset, Vermont. It is the birthplace of Alcoholics Anonymous co-founder Bill Wilson and operates as a historic inn and recovery gathering place.
How much does it cost to stay at the Wilson House?
Check the Wilson House website for current room rates and availability for your travel dates. Review individual room descriptions when booking, since bathroom arrangements and accommodations differ.
Is breakfast included?
Yes. The Wilson House serves a continental breakfast each morning. Many guest rooms have shared bathrooms, while the apartment suite has a private bathroom.
Can I visit without staying overnight?
Yes. The house welcomes visitors. Its published hours are 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Check the visitor information for updates and special-event closures before traveling.
Can I attend a recovery meeting at the Wilson House?
Yes. The house hosts AA and other recovery meetings. Consult the meeting schedule on the official website for current times and meeting details.
