The History of Jonestown
Cult leader Jim Jones created Jonestown in the South American country of Guyana for the members of the People's Temple. In November 1978, Jones and more than 900 of his followers committed mass suicide at Jonestown.
Background
James Warren Jones originally belonged to a mainstream Christian church where he became an ordained minister. In the 1950s in Indianapolis, Indiana, he started the People's Temple, which began as a kind of mission for the unemployed, sick and homeless. He preached about racial and economic equality. Over time, Jones's philosophy became socialist and even communist.
Investigations
The government began to investigate Jones for his alleged arthritis and cancer cures. The increasingly paranoid Jones moved his followers to Ukiah, a community in northern California. The group moved to Los Angeles and later San Francisco, as Jones preached about the end of the world through nuclear attack.
Move to South America
After Esquire magazine published an unfavorable article about the People's Temple, Jones moved his membership to Guyana and established Jonestown in the mid-1970s. The cult leased land in the middle of the jungle and started an agricultural co-op.
The "Translation"
Jones began preaching about what he called the "Translation," essentially a mass suicide where he and his followers would transcend this life together and enter the next world. Cult members practiced dying as a group by pretending to drink poison.
Firefight
Rumors began to circulate about Jones' dependence on prescription medication and abuse of cult members. Those who fled the cult told tales of being virtually imprisoned at Jonestown. Congressman Leo Ryan became concerned and planned a visit to Jonestown in November 1978. While touring the compound, 16 cult members decided they would like to leave with Ryan and his entourage. While the group waited for their plane, Jonestown security guards began firing at them. The Congressman, three journalists and one of the fleeing cult members were killed. Eleven others were wounded.
Mass Suicide
The cult members regrouped at the compound to discuss their options. They decided it was time to carry out their well-rehearsed group suicide. Most cult members voluntarily drank grape Kool-Aid laced with cyanide, Valium and other poisons. Investigators later reported several bodies with syringe marks, indicating possible forced poison injections. Others were shot. A few escaped into the brush of the jungle.
Death Toll
More than 900 people died at Jonestown. About one-third of the victims were children. The tropical South American climate led to quick deterioration of the bodies, so a thorough investigation could not be conducted. News quickly spread around the globe as the media showed aerial footage of hundreds of bodies lying dead in the heat.
Tags: cult members, People Temple, History Jonestown, Jones moved, November 1978, preached about, South American