This page lists articles, tapes, documents and resources which have been added to this website within the past 15 months. Previous pages with substantive revisions are listed in italics. (Note: This does not include entries from the jonestown report, an annual publication featuring articles, remembrances, personal reflections, and artistic interpretations of Peoples Temple.)
Website News
Wikileaks Fragility Affects Jonestown FOIA Releases (December 2022)
Peoples Temple in the News
MGM Acquires Option to Road to Jonestown, DiCaprio Slated to Star as Jones, by Jeff Guinn (February 2023)
Jonestown Research
Four Investigations by Joel X. Thomas
The Jonestown Express, November 17, 1978: Life on the Eve of Tragedy (November 2022)
The Jonestown Radio Tower, (September 2022)
The Infrastructure of Jonestown’s Recording and Speaker Systems: A Photographic Overview (January 2022)
Mystery of Q042 Death Tape Unspooled (January 2022)
French and Spanish versions of the map of the 20,000-acre leasehold for Jonestown in the Northwest District of Guyana, prepared by Renato Urbano (January 2022)
Jonestown in the Arts
Six Unique Books, by Jolene McDonald (January 2023)
Jonestown: The Forensic Photos: A review, by Jason Schwechter (February 2023)
Szürke Zóna Podcast (“Grey Area Podcast”) presents “A jonestowni tömeges szektaöngyilkosság” (“The Jonestown mass cult-suicide”) A Hungarian (Magyarországról) Podcast (2022)
Part 1
Part 2
Articles
Translations of Q 042 (The Death Tape), prepared by Russell Urbaine (January 2023)
Suicide for socialism?, by Maurice Brinton (1979; republished January 2023)
Was the CIA Behind the Jonestown Massacre?, by Jeremy Kuzmarov, CovertAction Magazine (October 2022)
Making Sense of the Nonsensical: An Analysis of Jonestown, by Neal Osherow (December 2022 [originally published 2003])
People’s Temple and Jonestown: A Corrective Comparison and Critique, James T. Richardson (January 2023 [originally published 1979])
“Verbal Orders Don’t Go—Write It!”: Building and Maintaining the Promised Land, by Heather Shearer (2018; republished January 2023)
Articles and Podcasts by Shannon Howard (August 2022)
Commentary and Opinion
Two Commentaries by David Ballard
Beyond Lynetta, by Jolene McDonald (March 2023)
Meet the New Boss (January 2023)
One Must Consider Context (January 2023)
You Meet the Strangest People…, by Gregory Curtis (November 2022)
Frequently Asked Questions
Why did Jim Jones wear sunglasses? (January 2023)
Where did Peoples Temple get its start? Was it always known by that name? (January 2023)
Did the recording of Temple services or Jonestown meetings affect how people participated in them? (May 2022)
Were cattle prods used for discipline in Peoples Temple? (January 2023)
Were members of Peoples Temple forced to go to Jonestown against their will? (January 2023)
Were any holidays celebrated in Jonestown? Were people given time off on other days? (January 2023)
Who was Chris Lewis? (March 2022)
Primary Sources
Proposed timeline and plans for exodus [1973] (March 2023)
The Letters, Reports and Diaries of Paula Adams (March 2022)
Organizational Charts, Rosters & Listings, Jonestown 1978 (March 2023)
The Prosecutions of Larry Layton (August 2022)
Histories of Peoples Temple, Biographies of Jim Jones (June 2022)
The Freedom of Information Act and Jonestown
FBI Sections
Section 43 • A-1 • Financial (June 2022)
Section 44 • A-2 • Financial (January 2023)
Section 45 • A-3 • Financial (January 2023)
Section 57 • A-31 • Financial (February 2023)
Section 65 • B-3 • Legal (August 2022)
Section 75 • C-7 • Daily Operations (March 2023)
Section 75 • C-8 • Administrative Functions (March 2023)
Section 89 • H-1 • Weapons (February 2023)
Section 95 • M-1 • Letters from PT (May 2022)
Section 95 • N-1 • Letters to Jim Jones (March 2022)
Section 96 • P-1 • State Dept Contacts (February 2023)
Section 97 • Q-1 • Paula Adams (March 2022)
Section 97 • R-1 • Terri Buford (April 2022)
Section 109 • BB-1 • Paula Adams (March 2022)
Section 117 • BB-18 – BB-21 • Marceline, Stephan, Suzanne, Tim Tupper Jones (June 2022)
Section 132 • EE-4 – EE-5 • Letters to Jonestown & Censor Examples (June 2022)
Section 147 • LL-1–LL-7 • CA State Depts (May 2022)
The State Department Cables 1980-1981 (June 2022)
Tapes
Mystery of Q042 Death Tape Unspooled, by Joel X. Thomas (January 2022)
The Songs on Q042 (January 2022)
1977 Phone Call between Jim Jones and Housing Commissioner Tony Ubalde, C-7-h-12a – h-12h (March 2023)
Transcripts of Jean Brown calls with Daniel Sheehan, Mark Lane (September 1978) (April 2022)
Transcript, notes of Marceline Jones call to daughter Suzanne (September 1978) (June 2022)
Transcriçao Q 042, prepared by Renato Urbano (Traduçaco do Portugês Brasileiro) (January 2022)
Q 164 Jonestown Express plays, short community meeting (October 1978) (January 2022)
Q 185 News and commentary (August 10, 1978) (January 2022)
Q 223 News and commentary (July 28, 1978) (January 2022)
Q 321 News and commentary (October 27, 1978) (January 2022)
Q 345 Jonestown Express, community celebration (Sept 10, 78) (January 2022)
Q 351 News and commentary, Jonestown community meeting (7/10/78) (May 2022)
Q 361 News and commentary, early September 1978 (May 2022)
Q 373 Jones reads Guyana history in Jonestown community meeting (May 2022)
Q 409 Jonestown Express performance, 1978 (December 2022)
Q 421 Jonestown Express performance, 1978 (December 2022)
Q 435 Jones reads news (Aug 26, 1978) (December 2022)
Q 438 Jonestown Express performance, 1978 (May 2022)
Q 451 Jonestown Express, community celebration (Sept 11, 78) (January 2022)
Q 497 Dedication of LA Temple, September 1972 (May 2022)
Q 580 Jones interview defends Temple against Kinsolving, 9/72 (May 2022)
Q 585 Telephone calls, Spring 1977 (December 2022)
Q 652 Audio letter to Temple member (May 2022)
Q 780 News and commentary (April 4, 1978) (January 2022)
Q 785 Dub of He’s Able (December 2022)
Q 794 Jones in press conference on Eldrige Cleaver, 6/76 (December 2022)
Q 851 Jones receives MLK Humanitarian Award, January 1977 (May 2022)
Q 871 Elderly woman wishes to remain in Jonestown, 7/4/78 (May 2022)
Q 894 Relatives speak to JT residents on HAM radio (December 2022)
Q 895 Debbie Layton letter home from England, early 70s (January 2022)
Q 903 Laurence Schacht gives lesson on physical exams (January 2022)
Q 937 Jones extols virtues of Jonestown to community, late 1977 (January 2022)
Q 938 Jonestown meeting, Christmas 1977 (December 2022)
Q 948 Jonestown meeting, Christmas 1977 (December 2022)
Q 950 Redwood Valley sermon (May 1972) (December 2022)
Q 976 Jones reads news, 6/20/78 (May 2022)
Q 982 Jonestown community meeting, winter 1978 (May 2022)
Q 1029 Two LA sermons, late 1972 (May 2022)