History of Site – Alternative Considerations of Jonestown & Peoples Temple

Path between houses in Jonestown, May 1979

7 January 1998 – Started development of site
12 February 1998 – Site introduced on the Internet
23 February 1998 – Added four new articles: “The Deaths of Two Daughters: Grieving and Remembering,” “Jonestown: Catalyst for Social Change,” “Notes on Peoples Temple,” and “Together We Stood, Divided We Fell,” along with credentials
22 July 1998 – Added seven new articles: “Resources on Peoples Temple,” “Thoughts on Jonestown and Peoples Temple,” “Three Groups in One,” “Suicide Tape Transcript,” “Our Daughter is in a Cult! What Can We Do?”, “In Search of Truth and Understanding about Jonestown,” and “A Witness to Tragedy and Resurrection,” along with credentials. Added a few more links on Other Sites of Interest page
October, 1998 – Added article by Mary R. Sawyer and article by Archie Smith, Jr.
February, 1999 – Uploaded three new lists under Frequently Asked Questions: Those Who Died in Jonestown; Those Presumed to Have Died in Jonestown (including a list of children); and a List of Survivors. [In September 1999, the list of children was absorbed into the list of those who died, and the list of survivors.]
14 May 1999 – Lists of those who died, survivors, updated
17 September 1999 – Complete overhaul of lists of those who died and those who survived updated and posted. These lists are the most complete and comprehensive currently available.
12 November 1999 – Published the jonestown report on line at http://www-rohan.sdsu.edu/~remoore/jonestown/jtreport1.html and on 13 November 1999 the site Alternative Considerations of Jonestown & Peoples Temple moved from the University of North Dakota to its new home at San Diego State University, with a new URL: http://www-rohan.sdsu.edu/~remoore/jonestown. Please make a note of this change and bookmark the new URL.
12 December 1999 – Uploaded Jonestown Audiotape Primary Project, which provides summaries and transcripts of twenty audiotapes, as well as all of the FBI summaries of the Peoples Temple tapes in its possession. Added a new feature, “What’s New” to guide viewers to new items on the site. Also added the names of African American speakers willing to discuss their experiences as Peoples Temple members and resients of Jonestown, now in the jonestown report.
5 March 2000 – Created An “Archive” in which to store old or out-dated material which may be of some use to researchers.
25 April 2000 – Added fourteen new summaries and tape transcripts to Jonestown Audiotape Primary Project.
19 June 2000 – Added a list of people who have died since 18 November 1978 to the “Frequently Asked Questions” page under Who Has Died Since 18 November 1978?
2 November 2000 – Published Volume 2 of the jonestown report, an update of scholarly research and information for the year 2000. Available by clicking here
8 January 2001 – Made comprehensive updates and revisions to a number of files, including the lists of those who died in Jonestown, and those who survived. The list of the deceased, which also appears under Frequently Asked Questions, can now be quickly accessed from the Contents by clicking on Who Died in Jonestown
9 February 2001 – Uploaded over 70 photos for free use by the public, available at Public Domain Photo Archive.
6 July 2001 – Uploaded 20 new tape summaries and transcripts, added revised indexes to tape transcripts currently online, added guide to the so-called “Death Tape.” All available through Jonestown Audiotape Primary Project.
22 July 2001 – Reorganized the pages of the site.
30 October 2001 – uploaded volume 3 of the jonestown report.
5 February 2002 – 16 new tape transcripts and summaries added to Jonestown Audiotape Primary Project. In addition, a new section called Primary Source Documents from Peoples Temple was created, featuring original documents from the organization.
13 June 2002 – completely revised and updated lists of those who died, those who survived, and a new category — those who died before 18 November 1978 — were added to the site.
6 July 2002 — a new file was added listing members of Peoples Temple (or their heirs) who may be entitled to Unclaimed Property from the California State Controller’s Office.
30 October 2002 — Volume 4 of the jonestown report was uploaded.
6 December 2002 — Eleven new tape transcripts uploaded, at Jonestown Audiotape Primary Project.
4 April 2003 — The “Last Words” of Richard Tropp were added to the Primary Sources section of the website. Then on 7 April, the “Last Words” of Annie Moore were added.
11 April 2003 — Thirteen more tape summaries and transcripts were added to the site, at Jonestown Audiotape Primary Project, bringing total number to 96 tapes online.
4 August 2003 — Major re-design and re-conceptualization of site occurs. Uploaded with articles on 25th Anniversary and volume 5 of the jonestown report.

Originally posted on January 13th, 2013.

Last modified on May 9th, 2020.