| |
[Ed.
note: Peoples Temple used coded messages in shortwave broadcasts between
Jonestown, Georgetown and San Francisco, in part to circumvent FCC
regulations on conducting business over amateur airwaves. In the first
section of codes, for example, Peoples Temple cloaked its legal discussions
– which were not permitted under its HAM radio license – with references
to medical procedures.
To ensure that different
radio operators understood each other, the Temple created a code book
of aliases and cryptic phrases, the contents of which are published
below.
Although the book is undated,
the “Us” and “Them” listings includes Debby Layton among the Temple
antagonists, and Terri Buford among the loyalists. This means the
book was compiled sometime between May 1978, when Debby defected,
and October, when Terri left Jonestown.
There are several sections
to the code book, and several styles of type, suggesting more than
one compiler. One result of this compilation by multiple users is
some of the categories are alphabetized only by first letter, and
some not at all. The reverse dictionary aspect of the book – the listing
of the people for whom there are codes – is also alphabetized
only by first letter. If you wish to locate the code name for a specific
individual, we recommend you use your “Find” function for that person.
Following the main code
book are several supplemental sheets of codes also located in Temple
files now housed at the California Historical Society.
Following all code sheets
is an alphabetical listing of the people named in the book, along
with whatever identifications we have of them.
The code book was recovered
in the Jonestown community following the mass deaths and released
under the Freedom of Information Act. The copies of these lists were
furnished by the California Historical Society.
We have tried to make the
entries internally consistent, correcting misspellings and punctuation
errors, noting abbreviations, and cross-referencing codes wherever
possible. For copies of the original pages of the code book, contact
this website at remoore@mail.sdsu.edu or fieldingmcgehee@yahoo.com.]
Legal Problems
| [translated
code] |
[code
entry] |
| Action
Equality, Inc. |
Freddie |
| Air
compressor |
Microscope |
| Affidavit |
case
history, incident report, progress chart |
| Appeal |
take
new blood slides |
| Apostolic
Corp. |
Alice,
Mr. Ames, Avon |
| Articles
of Incorporation |
First
Aid Book |
| Arrested |
had
asthma attack |
| Attorney |
cardiologist |
| Attorney/Fees |
had
_____ patients |
| Attorney/Client
confidentiality |
CPR
classes |
| Appellate
brief |
report
on blood slides |
| Audit |
check
blood pressure |
| Appraise,
Appraiser |
sample |
| Attorney
General |
Mrs.
Bailey, Mr. Black, Mrs. Ericson |
| |
|
| Bail |
flowers
& cards |
| Blood
test for paternity |
check
for broken bones |
| By-laws |
First
Aid class notes |
| Breach
of confidentiality |
failed
CPR final |
| |
|
| Citizenship,
renounce |
took
off guest list |
| Cash |
Mr.
Bowen, Agnes, Mrs. Fenton |
| Conspiracy |
Voluntary
action, Mrs. Dietrich |
| Counter
offer |
get
second opinion on idea of surgery |
| Conservatorship |
nosebleeds |
| Change
of venue |
call
Edward in ____ (place) |
| Civil
lawsuit |
measles |
| Calif.
Appeals Ct. |
Dr.
Albert, Dr. Appleton |
| Calif.
Supreme Ct. |
Dr.
Archer, Dr. Atkins |
| Conviction |
high
fever |
| Court |
Mr.
Ashford, Mrs. Fennell |
| Court
ruled against us |
bedrest |
| Court
ruled in our favor |
Jogging |
| Criminal
charge |
Daniel,
Dixon |
| Court
judgement |
Ashford’s
ideas |
| Confiscation |
close
examination |
| Custody
suit |
Draper |
| Custody
of children awarded to |
sent
x-rays to ___ |
| Conflict
of interest |
emotional |
| Case
moved to |
Edward
visiting _____ |
| Continued
hearing to |
changed
dr., new appt. ____ |
| Corporation |
free
clinic of Dr. Dowling |
| Corporate
resolution |
guest
book page |
| |
|
| Deed |
School
record |
| District
attorney |
Radiologist,
Mrs. Caswell, Mr. Boyden |
| Divorse
[Divorce] |
Mrs.
Dutton |
| Dissolve
the corporation |
talk
to Mrs. Dewalt |
| Escrow
closes on ___ |
going
to call Drake on _____ |
| Deposition |
physical
exam on ____ (date) |
| Extradite |
Mrs.
Fomasi, Mrs. Foley |
| Discovery |
visiting
hours |
| |
|
| Federal |
Mr.
Adair, Mrs. Boyce, arrogant, cautious |
| Freeze
assets |
allergy
diet |
| Fuel
tanks in Willits [California] |
Edith’s
medical dictionary |
| Franchise
Tax Board |
Mrs.
Duncan, Desoto, Mr. Daly |
| |
|
| Grand
jury |
Mr.
Disney, Dora, Cox |
| Guilty |
edema,
obese |
| Not
guilty |
thin,
skinny |
| |
|
| Hearing,
court |
Ashford’s
next appt/ is _____ |
| |
|
| Illegal |
gossiping,
tantrums |
| Injunction,
enjoin |
close
the door, conclude reasearch [research] |
| Interrogatories |
medications
list |
| Indictment |
Mrs.
Albee’s letter |
| |
|
| Judge |
Feinburg |
| Jury |
old
friends, classmates |
| Has
jurisdiction |
specializes
in |
| Jail |
Mr.
Askers, Mrs. Abrams |
| |
|
| Libel |
Mr.
Alessi |
| Lie
detector tests |
Breslin’s
book |
| |
|
| Malice |
Mr.
Brill |
| |
|
| Notarize |
put
in confidential file, verify |
| Not
admissible in court |
lacks
substance |
| Note
(real estate) |
post
office box renewal ticket |
| |
|
| Order
to show cause |
Mr.
Buckley |
| Operating
as a church |
Sunday
school, family counseling |
| |
|
| Police |
Dr.
Ace, Dr. Ball |
| On
probation |
continue
medication til ____ |
| U.S.
Peoples Temple Corp. |
Mr.
Arms, Mr. Barra |
| Peoples
Forum, Inc. [Temple newspaper] |
Mr.
Bain |
| Pets
Unlimited |
Barney,
Able |
| Paternity |
blood
pressure, weather report |
| Public
defender |
Mr.
Burke |
| |
|
| Record
the deed |
have
Bogner read it |
| Recorder’s
office |
Bogner’s
house |
| Religious
mailers |
Youth
Group movies |
| The
Ranch |
Mrs.
Bush’s place, Mrs. Curry’s |
| RWV
[Redwood Valley] Parsonage |
Cole |
| RWV
church |
Colbern |
| |
|
| Search
warrant |
Thermometer |
| Sexually
molested |
amnesia |
| Slander |
kidney
problems |
| State’s
evidence |
Mr.
Conley |
| Subpoena |
movie
ticket |
| Sue |
make
a movie |
| Serena
Hunt |
Mrs.
Bragg, Mr. Bold |
| Subpoena
records |
balcony
movie ticket |
| Soliciting
clients |
invite
to the picknic [picnic] |
| State
bar |
Dr.
Fox, Mrs. Forrester |
| Seel
[Sell] |
take
blood samples, talk to Edna |
| Guyana
PT Corp. |
Mrs.
Bambas, Mrs. Bartman |
| Serve
lawsuit |
made
brownies/cookies for ___ |
| Be
served with lawsuit |
got
her library card |
| Send
person over in spite of legal situation |
keep
off sweets |
| U.S.
Supreme Court |
Mrs.
Brunner |
| |
|
| Testify |
talk
in private to _____ |
| Tax
exemption |
paramedic
classes, history lessons |
| Trial |
dialysis,
angiograms |
| Truth
Enterprises [a PT corporation] |
Mr.
Finn, Mr. Budiman |
| |
|
| Valley
Enterprises [a PT corporation] |
Mrs.
Flynnstone |
| Valley
Publishing |
Mr.
Cardinal |
| Visitation
rights |
keeps
regular exercise |
| |
|
| Welfare
dept. |
Mr.
Fabian, Mrs. Capoville |
| Witness |
neighbor,
Mrs. Chadwick |
| Writ
of mandate |
Mr.
Fernwood’s report |
| Take
under submission |
Mrs.
Buckner is checking it over |
| |
|
| More: |
|
| Freedom
of Information Acts |
ask
Mrs. Cheney about it |
| Power
of attorney |
Mr.
Conklin’s birthday |
| Bring
back the children (talking about it) |
made
communion on Sunday |
| Social
Security |
Mrs.
Connell, Mr. Arnstein |
| Customs |
Mrs.
Augustine, Mr. Becknell |
| Phone
patch |
send
some good reading material |
| |
|
| Organizational
problems |
|
| _____
has run away |
getting
married |
| _____
has quit |
reading
English lit. |
| _____
has died |
saw
Fraser |
| _____ has been talk[ed] to by TOS eats too much |
eats
too much |
| _____
is paranoid |
gets
regular eye exams, generous |
| _____
is talking negatively |
taking
karate lessons |
| _____
is being divisive |
likes
to cook alot [a lot] |
| _____
is named as party in the lawsuit |
_____
said hi to ____ |
(system for explaining
how attorney reacts to our suggestion, on a ratio basis: 8R3 says,
“What were the test results?” We say, “one out of five,” or “two
out of five” or “three out of five etc.”)
1 – go ahead with it, or yes, he agrees and supports it
2 – has misgivings, hesitates
3 – wait, maybe later, time is not right yet
4 – ABSOLUTELY NOT
5 – NO – – if we do it, we may lose our attorney, he is emotional
6 – Charles [Garry] resents Mark [Lane]/ Don [Freed] on this.
7 – Mark resents Charles on this.
| 24
hour standby |
tell
Bogita hello |
| Things
are terrible |
the
toddlers went to the beach today |
| High
spirits |
had
punch at the party |
| Low
spirits |
ran
out of punch at the party |
| Tape |
has
a good memory |
| Conservative |
Mrs.
Carson’s friends |
| Liberals |
Mr.
Beaman[’]s friends |
| Radicals |
Mrs.
Donovan’s friends |
| Insurrection |
surprise
party tonight |
| ____
wants to come over |
____
is thinking of going back to night classes, what do you think? |
| Hang
up with sex |
always
talking about lectures they have attended |
Radio … radio … radio … radio … radio usage
| Radio
operations |
Mrs.
Carney’s work, Brisbane |
| FCC
[Federal Communications Comm.] |
Felton,
Mr. McGill, Mrs. Kurklander |
| ARRL
[American Radio Relay League] |
Mrs.
Donohue’s house |
| Working
from new list |
send
me a picture of your new dog |
| Working
from an old list |
I
still have the picture of the dog you sent |
| Check
your codes |
Exactly
what time do you have, Sarah? |
| This
next word should be added to the list |
Jennifer
misspelled the word ____ on her spelling test today |
| This
is a new name to be added |
Have
you ever met _____? They are nice people |
| We
are revealing too much |
I
always get a cold this time of year |
| This
is going to be bullshit |
Amanda
told me _____, Brooks said |
| Don’t
talk on this subject anymore |
I
never thought it would come to this |
| We
can’t discuss this on this medium |
Oh,
well, Mike– Just keep us posted! |
| Marco
[Medical Amateur Radio Council] |
Mrs.
Elsworth |
| Dr.
Walt |
Mr.
Colburn |
| Danger
of losing license |
Mrs.
Dreyer will probably stop by soon |
| Stop
using codes to move frequencies |
Sarah
ought to write more letters |
| Problems
with monitors on this end |
By
the way, Mike, have you ever met (Vivian) my cousin? |
| Warning
Citation: FCC |
Mrs.
Ford called today, she asked about your family |
| [Warning
Citation:] ARRL |
Mr.
Butler stopped by my job today |
| Called
to answer questions to FCC |
I
can never find enough time to jog |
| Station
license suspended |
Sometimes
I do take in a movie when I can |
| Revoked |
I
really like to roller skate in the park tho [though] |
| This
is not a code |
We
had a few sprinkles today, but not enough to help out in the
garden |
| Exact
opposite of what I say |
I
hope it rains sometime soon, I want to go fishing. Mr. Copeland,
Mrs. Drefiuss |
| |
|
| Numbers: |
|
| [$]10 |
Mrs.
Dupree |
| [$]100 |
Mr.
Royce |
| [$]1000 |
Mrs.
Fazio |
| [$]10,000 |
Mr.
Babbitt |
| [$]1
million |
Mrs.
Kristenson |
| PR
People |
|
| |
|
| Agnos,
Art |
Dr.
Toban |
| Alexander,
Kendra (Nor. Cal. CP) |
Mrs.
Vallier |
| Arras
(Teresa King’s mother) |
Mrs.
Webb |
| |
|
| Baker,
Margie (Board of Educ.) |
Mrs.
Starks |
| Banks,
Dennis |
Mrs.
Vandermark |
| Battle,
Will (Officers for Justice) |
Rev.
Unger |
| Bradley,
Tom |
Mr.
Sonada |
| Brann,
Joan (U.S. State Dept. reception center) |
Mrs.
Winni |
| Bransford,
Noel & Gladys (Holland Roberts Center) |
Mr.
& Mrs. Zuger
|
| Brewer,
Tom (I [International] hotel active with PT at Examiner |
Mr.
Wyler |
| Briggs,
State Senator [John] |
Mr.
Wainwright |
| Brightman,
Leigh [Lehman] |
Dr.
Yule |
| Brooks,
State Senator |
George
Simms |
| Brown,
Jock |
Mr.
Pipps |
| Brown,
Willie |
Dr.
Van Horne, Mr. Sakata |
| Burke,
Yvonne B. |
Mrs.
Schiller |
| |
|
| Cavalieri,
Kimi (Chilean) |
Mrs.
Teshima |
| Cardwell,
Monty (Quaker/Council of Churches) |
Mr.
Womack |
| Chandler,
Marvin (Council of Churches) |
Dr.
Wirth |
| Chukseev,
Vitaly (TASS local) |
Dr.
Wisner |
| |
|
| Damu,
Jean (Peoples World) |
Mr.
Vargus |
| Davidow,
Mike |
Dr.
Wollett |
| Davis,
Angela |
Mrs.
Treadwell, Elvira |
| Davis,
Gloria |
Mrs.
Zarr |
|