Construction at Dr. Bob’s House highlights Akron’s 12-step legacy

It all began with a meeting in Akron in 1935 between two men struggling with alcoholism. Bill Wilson, a New York businessman, met with Dr. Robert Smith, an Akron surgeon known as Dr. Bob, at 855 Ardmore Ave. in Highland Square. Their conversation helped lay the foundation for Alcoholics Anonymous, a recovery program that would eventually spread around the world. Nearly 90 years later, 12 steps, reminiscent of AA’s 12-step program, lead to the entrance of Dr. Bob’s two-and-a-half-story wooden house. Now, Dr. Bob’s Home and Museum plans to build a 16-by-28-foot pavilion connecting its properties at 855 and 859 Ardmore Ave. and 122 Everett Ave. — which house the museum, gift shop, archive and welcome and education center. The covered space will provide a place for visitors to gather, sit and reflect while visiting the historic site. Inside Dr. Bob’s Home, many of the house’s furniture and keepsakes are original, while others were recreated to reflect how the house looked when