The Road to Jonestown

by Jeff Guinn

  Lynetta Jones had become one of Goodlett’s patients: Carlton B. Goodlett, “Notes on Peoples Temple,” last modified November 21, 2013, Jonestown Institute.

  Peoples Temple members sent him gifts of homemade candy: Talbot, Season of the Witch, p. 276.

  Once, Planning Commission members were left waiting: Jim Jones Jr. interview.

  THIRTY-THREE: NARROW ESCAPES

  Only in closed meetings did he rant for hours: Teri Buford O’Shea interview.

  Jones once urged followers not to use Crest toothpaste: Mills, Six Years with God, p. 136.

  On a pleasant day when Jones was present: For my description of this event, I referred to Reiterman, Raven, pp. 201–2; Scheeres, A Thousand Lives, p. 27; RYMUR 89-4286-FF-1-106-d (Stephan Jones’s account); and my own interviews with Alan Swanson and Jim Jones Jr., who were both present in the Redwood Valley temple parking lot when Jones was “shot.”

  In the early 1970s, San Francisco’s two major daily newspapers: Talbot, Season of the Witch, pp. 76–83.

  dozens of letters praising Jones and the Temple began arriving: This detail and almost every other one cited about Kinsolving and his investigative series come from the Examiner stories themselves: “The Prophet Who Raises the Dead,” “ ‘Healing’ Prophet Hailed as God at S.F. Revival,” “D.A. Aide Officiates for Minor Bride,” and “Probe Asked of People’s [sic] Temple,” published by the Examiner on consecutive days, September 17–20, 1972, and also “The People’s [sic] Temple and Maxine Harpe,” “The Reincarnation of Jesus Christ—in Ukiah,” “Jim Jones Defames a Black Pastor,” and “Sex, Socialism, and Child Torture with Rev. Jim Jones,” which were withheld by the Examiner after the first four installments were printed. All eight articles can be viewed on the Jonestown Institute website.

  they were summoned into action for this: Reiterman, Raven, pp. 212–13; Mills, Six Years with God, pp. 181–82; Thielmann, The Broken God, pp. 82–83.

  Stoen suggested ominously: In 2005, Lester Kinsolving suffered a heart attack. Tim Stoen, now decades removed from his involvement with Peoples Temple, heard about Kinsolving’s illness and wrote his former adversary to apologize for his opposition to Kinsolving’s Temple series, to acknowledge that Kinsolving was right and “I was totally wrong,” and to ask forgiveness. According to the Santa Rosa Press Democrat, where Kinsolving forwarded a copy of the letter, the former journalist said, “I was deeply moved and very grateful that [Stoen] wrote me. . . . Heavens, I’m a Christian. We have no choice but to forgive.” In his 2015 memoir, Marked for Death, Stoen does not refer at all to Kinsolving or the Examiner investigative series.

  Jones turned to one of the newest Temple members: Thielmann, The Broken God, pp. 82–83.

  Moore learned about it only: John V. Moore interview.

  THIRTY-FOUR: REACHING OUT

  Kinsolving’s stories helped with Temple recruitment, too: Mills, Six Years with God, p. 183.

  One of the prospective members who’d read the Examiner stories: Tim Carter interview.

  About the same time Tim Carter first visited: I met Merrill Collett at a book festival in 2013. Afterward he sent me an email about his unpleasant experience at Peoples Temple. He subsequently supplied more details, again via email, at my request.

  Johnny Moss Brown, a native of the Fillmore District: Laura Johnston Kohl and Tim Carter interviews.

  Maria Katsaris loved children and animals: Rebecca Moore and Fielding McGehee interviews; Reiterman, Raven, pp. 188–98.

  Her first church assignment was in the letters office: Tim Carter interview.

  When four reporters from the Fresno Bee were briefly incarcerated: Edith Roller Journal, 9/12 and 9/19/76, Jonestown Institute.

  At one Geary Boulevard service, Jones launched into: Tim Carter interview.

  Jones taught his followers: Hue Fortson interview.

  But outside the Los Angeles temple on January 7, 1973: Mills, Six Years with God, pp. 203–4; Reiterman, Raven, pp. 230–31. It is possible that the fainting spell suffered by the elderly woman was staged by Jones so he could demonstrate his healing powers. According to Jeannie Mills in Six Years with God, before the old lady collapsed Jones told the congregation that “I have had a revelation that something strange might happen tonight. No matter what happens, I don’t want anybody to call an ambulance.” But after examining the fallen woman, that is what Marceline Jones, a trained nurse, did. It is highly unlikely she would have deliberately sabotaged her husband’s plan, since she was cooperating with him in public during this time. Perhaps he failed to inform her in advance. My opinion is that whether or not Jones intended to stage a “raising up” that night, Marceline genuinely believed the woman needed medical assistance, and, acting on her best professional judgment, sent for an ambulance. It was a genuine medical emergency, with long-term, cataclysmic results for Jim Jones.

  he bragged in subsequent sermons: Tape Q 612, Jonestown Institute.

  Los Angeles police had long memories: Joe Domanick interview. Domanick, who won a prestigious Edgar Award for his investigation of the LAPD, discussed the department’s long history of vendettas. The opinion that they eventually acted on a departmental grudge against Jim Jones is my own. I would add that I agree with Domanick’s view that recent LAPD administration has effectively initiated a more progressive atmosphere and positive attitude among city police.

  THIRTY-FIVE: THE GANG OF EIGHT

  in fact, it was better, more righteous, to be black: Moore, Pinn, and Sawyer, eds., Peoples Temple and Black Religion in America, p. 174.

  Archie Ijames’s position became more ceremonial: Tim Carter interview.

  The Temple purchased three apartments: Mills, Six Years with God, pp. 210–14.

  One young woman fled: Ibid., pp. 214–15.

  Jim Cobb was a different matter: Reiterman, Raven, pp. 219–25.

  They left behind a letter: Copies are available to peruse at the California Historical Society in San Francisco and on the Jonestown Institute website. It’s a lengthy document. At the CHS, its official location is CHS MS 3802, Box 11, Folder 70.

  Jones walked purposefully onto the stage: Tape Q 1057-3, Jonestown Institute. The date of this Temple service is unknown, but clearly it takes place soon after the Gang of Eight defections and is the first time Jones has publicly addressed the subject. Don’t just read the transcript. Set aside time and listen to the whole thing. Jones had to be at his best that day, and he was.

  THIRTY-SIX: CONSEQUENCES

  They must be more observant: Alan Swanson and Teri Buford O’Shea interviews.

  Blank pieces of paper were distributed: Juanell Smart, Hue Fortson, Teri Buford O’Shea, and Tim Carter interviews.

  or else boasted about his sexual prowess: Tim Carter interview.

  Sandy Bradshaw wrote, “The only person”: RYMUR 89-4286-BB-6-JJJJJJJ.

  The changes were more incremental: Laura Johnston Kohl and Rebecca Moore interviews.

  a small item with the headline: RYMUR 89-4286-I-1-a-6-g.

  Jones orchestrated the whole thing: Stoen, Marked for Death, p. 98.

  Peter Wotherspoon was a pedophile: Neva Sly Hargrave and Tim Carter interviews.

  more troubling to several P.C. members: Fielding McGehee and Juanell Smart interviews.

  Efrein complied—disobeying could have been interpreted: Laurie Efrein Kahalas, Snake Dance: Unravelling the Mysteries of Jonestown (Toronto: Red Robin Press, 1998), pp. 150–57.

  “Nothing is to be said in public or private”: Edith Roller Journal, 1/4/77, Jonestown Institute.

  Most dissatisfied members were destitute: Alan Swanson interview.

  “I had no idea of how I was supposed to look”: Teri Buford O’Shea interview.

  Bonnie Burnham, frustrated by contradictions: Thielmann, The Broken God, pp. 93–95.

  Afterward, Marceline stayed overnight with Burnham: Ibid., pp. 100–101.

  He announced that anyone leaving the Temple must move: Garry Lambrev interview; Edith Roller Journal, 8/1
7/75, Jonestown Institute.

  at one point he spoke on the telephone: Tape Q 775, Jonestown Institute.

  That April, Jones reminded everyone: Tape Q 1057-4, Jonestown Institute.

  In a subsequent sermon, he described: Tape Q 958, Jonestown Institute.

  THIRTY-SEVEN: THE PROMISED LAND

  sometime, somehow, true believers would throw off their shackles: Moore, Pinn, and Sawyer, eds., Peoples Temple and Black Religion in America, pp. 19, 76.

  Elderly African Americans, mostly recruited in San Francisco: Fielding McGehee interview.

  Tim Stoen presented them: Mills, Six Years with God, p. 227.

  The Mertles were one of the few couples in the Temple: Ibid., pp. 224–30.

  On September 10, 1973, the seven-member Temple board: RYMUR 89-4286-A-32-A (rest indecipherable).

  At the next meeting: RYMUR 89-4286-A-32 (rest indecipherable).

  In early December 1973, Tim Stoen led: Stoen, Marked for Death, pp. 5–7.

  Guyana was in economic distress: Kit Nascimento interview.

  The National Service was Burnham’s brainchild: Desmond Roberts and Kit Nascimento interviews.

  While Port Kaituma itself wasn’t much: Gerald Gouveia interview.

  They reached an agreement for an initial lease: RYMUR 89-4286-C-4-a-7; Reiterman, Raven, pp. 275–76.

  The Guyanese jungle is triple canopy: Tim Carter interview. Much of my additional description comes from personal experience. In November 2014, photographer Ralph Lauer and I flew to Port Kaituma and were guided from there to the old Jonestown site. The jungle has almost completely reclaimed the area, so much of what we saw—and had to work our way through—was similar to the first experience of the Jonestown Pioneers and their Amerindian guides.

  when they tried, the chainsaw blades shattered: Tim Carter interview.

  Jones demanded detailed records of all daily expenditures: RYMUR 89-4286-A-3-B-13 and QQ-8-d-1.

  Worm larvae permeated the jungle soil: RYMUR 89-4286-EE-1-S-178.

  lighting deliberate “burns” to rid partially cleared land: Jim Jones Jr. interview.

  Yet the Pioneers persevered: Leigh Fondakowski, Stories from Jonestown (Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 2012), pp. 197–98, 202–3.

  he first teased followers by announcing: Tape Q 1057-4, Jonestown Institute.

  Jones demanded that all those with life insurance policies cash them in: Mills, Six Years with God, pp. 217–18.

  members were expected to hand Jones: Ibid., pp. 216–18.

  The church printing operation turned out a snappy “Operation Breadbasket” pamphlet: California Historical Society, MS 4124, Box 1, Folder 3.

  at least once committing statutory rape: Tape Q 775, Jonestown Institute.

  Jones expected the women to get abortions: I was told this by one of the former Temple members who aborted a child by Jones. She asked that her name not be published.

  Los Angeles police had received numerous complaints: Reiterman, Raven, pp. 231–33. Raven’s is by far the best, most complete description to be found of Jones’s arrest and its immediate aftermath.

  THIRTY-EIGHT: KIMO

  Stephan Jones thought that his father: Stephan Jones, Bucknell University presentation.

  Tim Stoen was the exception: Stoen, Marked for Death, p. 114.

  After the little boy’s second birthday: Ibid., p. 90.

  In sermons during private Temple meetings: Reiterman, Raven, pp. 235–36.

  he first offered to exchange himself: RYMUR 89-4286-l-1-a-6c.

  Adams and the first few Temple women in Georgetown: Laura Johnston Kohl interview.

  Adams was allowed to continue the affair: Teri Buford O’Shea and Laura Johnston Kohl interviews.

  Jones made a major misstep: Stoen, Marked for Death, p. 109; Reiterman, Raven, pp. 247–50; Eileen Cox, “A Guyanese Perspective of Jonestown, 1979,” Jonestown Report 15 (November 2013), last modified December 13, 2013, Jonestown Institute.

  Jones and Mertle purchased fruit in Port Kaituma: Mills, Six Years with God, p. 282.

  Almost overnight, her shyness morphed: Tim Carter interview.

  in the event of his death he wanted Marceline: RYMUR 89-4286-1099.

  In February 1974, she sent: RYMUR 89-4286-EE-4-AAC.

  Jones made it known that he’d sent her away: Tim Carter interview.

  Jones embellished the story: Mills, Six Years with God, pp. 275–78.

  Stephan warmed to her a little more: Stephan Jones, “My Brother’s Mother,” Jonestown Report 11 (November 2009), last modified March 14, 2014, Jonestown Institute.

  they signed last will and testaments: RYMUR 89-4286-B-1-i-1a through 1i; RYMUR 89-4286-B-1-k-1a through 1i.

  Sandy Ingram gushed that the ragged patch: Edith Roller Journal, 9/9/75, Jonestown Institute.

  Jones, Carolyn, Maria, and a few others began making: RYMUR 89-4286-A-40-a-42b.

  she soon bragged that meals for each communal: Garry Lambrev, “My Friend Teresa King: From the Avenue of Fleas to Jonestown,” Jonestown Report 12 (October 2010), last modified December 28, 2013, Jonestown Institute.

  “If you come for one of us”: Fielding McGehee interview.

  a few weeks later Jones sternly noted: Edith Roller Journal, 9/6/75, Jonestown Institute; Scheeres, A Thousand Lives, p. 47.

  That same September, Jones reemphasized that point: Surviving participants from this Planning Commission meeting have different recollections of the approximate date. Based on my own research, late September 1975 seems most likely. Tim Carter, Teri Buford O’Shea, and Laura Johnston Kohl interviews.

  in one service, he demanded: Edith Roller Journal, 8/9/75, Jonestown Institute.

  In October there was a startling defection: Mills, Six Years with God, pp. 12–16.

  November 5, state assemblyman Willie Brown called on: Stoen, Marked for Death, p. 117.

  THIRTY-NINE: CITY POLITICS

  George Moscone’s background was classic poor-boy-makes-good: Much of the history cited in this chapter is based on Talbot’s Season of the Witch. To save endless “Ibid.” citations, I refer the reader to Talbot, pp. 143–54, 233–34, 248–54, and 278–80. I think it’s impossible to understand the experiences of Jim Jones and his followers in San Francisco without understanding the city itself, and for that, it’s necessary to read Talbot’s book cover to cover. The opinions expressed in this chapter, though, are my own.

  On November 4, 1975: All voting totals in the November 4, 1975, mayoral election and December 11 runoff were supplied to me by the city of San Francisco.

  A spokesman for the Moscone campaign later told: San Francisco Examiner, November 19, 1978.

  Jones bragged that his followers produced: Fondakowski, Stories from Jonestown, p. 166.

  Jones had an additional asset: Jim Jones Jr. interview.

  When Moscone called Jones: RYMUR 89-4286-X-3-i-22.

  The Temple also produced a list of members: California Historical Society, MS4126, Box 2, Folder 9.

  beyond Michael Prokes being named: Reiterman, Raven, p. 268.

  Once, when Brown missed speaking: Edith Roller Journal, 6/6/76, Jonestown Institute.

  FORTY: MORE MONEY

  Marceline had personal accounts of as much as $200,000: RYMUR 89-4286-A-37-a-31.

  his mother, Lynetta, had accounts totaling $89,584: RYMUR 89-4286-RR-1-F-3.

  Throughout his life, Jones was never able to accept: Jeanne Jones Luther and Ron Haldeman interviews.

  in 1975 he assigned Tim Stoen to research: Stoen, Marked for Death, p. 118.

  dressing his female couriers in I. Magnin suits: Layton, Seductive Poison, pp. 83–84.

  at least one authorized her, along with Stephan and Marceline: RYMUR 89-4286-RR-1-A.

  Amerindians were hired on as crew: RYMUR 89-4286-A-26-d-16dd, A-26-e-1b.

  Jonestown would become self-sufficient: Laura Johnston Kohl and Teri Buford O’Shea interviews.

  In fact, the total was around $30 million: Tim Carter and Teri Bufo
rd O’Shea interviews. This figure was also quoted to me by another former Temple member involved in these overseas transactions who asked not to be identified.

  Jones asked that everyone donate their wristwatches: Edith Roller Journal, 4/13/76, Jonestown Institute.

  FORTY-ONE: DEFECTORS

  “I was born to put the whammy”: Edith Roller Journal, 5/22/76, Jonestown Institute.

  She and Walter defected on July 4: Reiterman, Raven, pp. 286–93; Stoen, Marked for Death, pp. 125–26.

  investigators found several undated documents: RYMUR 89-4286-B-3-h-3, 4, and 6.

  Neva Sly fled, leaving behind: Neva Sly Hargrave interview.

  Joyce Shaw left, too: Ibid.; Reiterman, Raven, pp. 298–300.

  The possibility that he’d fallen asleep: A continuing point of contention between Peoples Temple survivors is whether Bob Houston was killed on Jim Jones’s orders. Clearly, with Jones, anything was possible. Yet for all his threats to anyone who left the Temple, and for all the verbal roughing up these defectors frequently endured from Temple thugs like Chris Lewis, there is no other instance where physical violence, let alone a fatal attack, was carried out. Even if Bob Houston actually typed and signed a letter of resignation on the morning of the day he died, Jones had no immediate reason to kill him. Though I can understand why others who were personally familiar with Jones believe otherwise, my own opinion is that on learning of Houston’s death, Jones thought he might as well make some use of it. So he had a letter of resignation typed above Houston’s signature on a blank sheet of paper and made it known that Houston had died only hours after quitting the Temple—an example of what might happen to anyone else who gave up Jones’s protection by leaving.

  Bob Houston’s father, Sam, worked as a photographer: Reiterman, Raven, pp. 1–3.

  somewhat less so among colleagues: Jim Wright interview. At the time, Wright was the majority leader of Congress. As such, he regularly heard complaints from some members about others. Wright repeatedly emphasized that although he liked Leo Ryan, he also believed that the California congressman was “more interested than most” in personal publicity.

  Now she was given darker assignments: Teri Buford O’Shea interview.