Peoples Temple Files Recovered by FBI

As part of the clean-up operations following the mass deaths in November 1978, officials and personnel from both the American and Guyanese governments collected thousands of pages of documents, both from Peoples Temple’s headquarters at Lamaha Garden in Georgetown and from Jonestown itself. Most of the documents gathered by the U.S. State Department and the military eventually made their way to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, which organized and catalogued the documents into 118 sections. These documents include financial reports, medical records, committee meeting minutes, letters, diaries, and membership cards – in short, the physical paper legacy of Jonestown as the Temple itself documented it.

The records on this page were released in their entirety to this website in 2009, as part of its managers’ ongoing litigation under the Freedom of Information Act over Temple records held by the FBI.

The table below lists each section by number as the records were originally released to the site in 2001, from Section 43 to Section 160 (some sections were split into two for the 2009 release). The second column designates the sections released by the FBI in 2009, corresponding to the Guyana Index, which the agency prepared in 1979 as part of its investigation into the Temple. The short description in column three also comes from the Guyana Index. The fourth column is the complete pdf of each section or split section from the 2009 release, and the fifth column – where hotlinked – opens to pages where sections have been split into individual documents. Numerous sections for which the PDF has been completely broken down and transcribed as individual documents – e.g., FF-3, “Handwritten Affidavits” – are designated as such.

The citation for these documents should open with the FBI’s official designation of these records, which is “RYMUR 89-4286.” Each individual page in these records has a unique number. The folder marked “B-5 Legal” at Section 67, for example, begins with a page marked “B-5-a(1)”. The complete citation for that page, then, would be “RYMUR 89-4286-B-5-a(1)”.

FBI Section Number (2001)
FBI Section Designation (2009)
Guyana Index Description
Complete PDF
Individual Documents
43
A-1
Financial
44
A-2
Financial
45
A-3
Financial
46
A-4
Financial
Documents
47
A-5
Financial
Documents
48
A-6–A-12
Financial
Documents
48
A-13
Financial
Documents
49
A-14–A-17
Financial
Documents
49
A-18
Financial
Documents
50
A-19–A-23
Financial
Documents
50
A-24
Financial
Documents
51
A-25
Financial
Documents
52
A-26
Financial
Documents
53
A-27
Financial
Documents
54
A-28
Financial
Documents
55
A-29
Financial
Documents
56
A-30
Financial
Documents
57
A-31
Financial
58
A-32
Financial
59
A-33
Financial
Documents
60
A-34
Financial
Documents
60
A-35
Financial
Documents
60
A-36
Financial
Documents
60
A-37
Financial
Documents
61
A-38
Financial
Documents
61
A-39
Financial
62
A-40
Financial
Documents
63
B-1
Legal
64
B-2
Legal
65
B-3
Legal
66
B-4
Legal
67
B-5
Legal
68 – 73
C-1 – C-3
Edith Roller Journals
74
C-4
Guyana Land Lease
74
C-5
White Night
74
C-6
Guest Book
75
C-7
Daily Operations
75
C-8
Admin. Functions
76
C-9
FBI/Interpol/Radio Traffic
Documents
76
C-10
Correspondence & Phone Bill
Documents
77
C-11
Admin. Functions
77
C-12
Admin. Functions
78
D-1
Guyana Contacts
Documents
79
D-2
Guyana Contacts
80
D-3
Guyana Contacts
Documents
81
E-1
Radio Communications
Documents
81
E-2
Radio Communications
82
E-3
Radio Communications
83
E-4
Radio Communications
Documents
84
E-5
Radio Communications
Documents
85
F-1
Social Security & Pensions
Documents
86
F-2
Social Security & Pensions
Documents
87
F-3
Social Security & Pensions
Documents
88
G-1
Communist contacts USSR
88
G-2
Communist contacts Korea, Cuba
89
H-1
Weapons
90
I-1
Media & PR contacts
91
J-1
Medical Records
Documents
91
J-2
Medical Records
Documents
91
J-3
Medical Records
92
K-1 Pt 1
Informant tapes & photos
Documents
93
K-1 Pt 2
Informant tapes & photos
Documents
94
K-1 Pt 3
Informant tapes & photos
Documents
95
L-1
Letters to PT
95
M-1
Letters from PT
95
N-1
Letters to Jim Jones
95
O-1
Letters from Jim Jones
96
P-1
State Dept Contacts
97
Q-1
Paula Adams
97
R-1
Terri Buford
98
S-1
Joseph Mazor
99
T-1
Mike Prokes
99
U-1
John Victor Stoen
99
V-1
Tim Stoen
100
W-1
Membership Lists
100
W-2
Membership Lists
100
W-3–W-4
Membership Lists
101
X-1
Miscellaneous
102
X-2
Miscellaneous
103
X-3
Miscellaneous
104
X-4
Miscellaneous
105
X-5
Miscellaneous
105
X-6
Miscellaneous
106
X-7
Miscellaneous
Documents
107
Y-1
Personnel Envelopes
Documents
108
AA-1
Leo Ryan
109
BB-1
Paula Adams
110
BB-2
Sharon Amos
111
BB-3
Debbie Blakey
Documents
112
BB-4
Philip Blakey
Documents
112
BB-5
Jean Brown
Documents
112
BB-6
Sandy Bradshaw
113
BB-7
Terri Buford
Documents
114–115
BB-8–B-16
T Carter M Cartmell, E Chaikin, J Cobb, L Collier, H Fortson, N Ijames, Janaro, J W Jones Jr
116
BB-17
Jim Jones
117
BB-18–B-21
Marceline, Stephan, Suzanne, Tim Tupper Jones
118–120
BB-22–B-30
M Katsaris, C Layton, K Layton, Larry Layton, Lisa Layton, C Lewis, A Moore, M Prokes, L Schacht
121-123
BB-31–B-32
Tim Stoen, D Touchette
124
CC-1 Pts. 1 & 2
PT Member Cards
125
DD-1
Personality Cards
Documents
126
EE-1
Letters to Dad (A-F)
127
EE-1
Letters to Dad (G-J)
128
EE-1
Letters to Dad (K-M)
129
EE-1
Letters to Dad (N-Z)
130
EE-2
Letters to Jim Jones
131
EE-3
Self Evaluation
132
EE-4–EE-5
Letters to Jonestown & Censor Examples
133
FF-1
Affidavits re: Grace Stoen
134
FF-2
Affidavits re: Grace Stoen handwritten
Documents
135
FF-3
Affidavits handwritten
136
FF-4
Sworn Affidavits
137
FF-5–FF-8
Statements RE: Leave US, Affidavits RE: Healing, Sexual, Paternity
138
FF-9–FF-13
Affidavits-Terrorists, Handwritten Statements, Statements, Confessions
139
GG-1–GG-3
Russia, Cuba, Other Countries
140–142
HH-1–HH-5
Public Relations-PT Journal, Media, Scientology-Delancey, Support Letters
143
HH-6
History of Jim Jones
143
HH-7–HH-8
Telephone contacts, History
Documents
143
HH-9
Photographs
144
II-1
Concerned Relatives
145
JJ-1
Radio
Documents
146
KK-1–KK-5
Legal: Corporate, Citizenship, Current, Phyllis Houston, Insurance
Documents
147
LL-1–LL-7
CA State Depts: Congress, Governor, LA, Mendo Cty, SF-Cit/Cty, Welfare-Medical, Misc
148
MM-1–MM-8
US Govt-Congress, Customs, Hew, FCC, IRS, Dept Justice, President, State Dept
149
NN-1–NN-8
Individuals-Attys, D Banks, D Freed, C Garry, C Goodlett, M Lane, G Lindsay, J Mazor
150
OO-1
Medical – Drug Inventory
Documents
151
OO-2
Supplies Medicine
Documents
152
OO-3
Medical – Misc Inventory
Documents
153
PP-1–PP-6
PT Operations-Weapons, Cudjoe, Analyst Minutes, Pol Parties, Travel
154
PP-7-PP-8
PT Operations-Medical Dept, Agricultural
155
PP-9–PP-10
PT Operations-Info Passed Guy–US; Education
Documents
156
PP-11–PP-12
PT Operations-Notebook, Requisitions
Documents
156
PP-13–PP-15
PT Operations-Inventory-Baggage, Organizational, Misc
Documents
157
QQ-1–QQ-5
Financial-Currency, Finance, Paylist, Imprest (Sampling), Drug-Pharmacy
158
QQ-6–QQ-10
Financial-Escrow, Bonds, Expense Journal, Authorization, Donation Reports
Documents
159
RR-1–RR-2
Banks-RE Lynetta Jones, Carolyn Layton
Documents
159
RR-3–RR-7
Banks-BofA-Schacht, Guyana National Co-Op, B of Nova Scotia, Foreign Banks, Domestic Banks
Documents
160
SS-1
Counter Conspiracy