Jonestown

:For other uses, see Jonestown (disambiguation)

The beginning of Jonestown

Jim Jones's the Peoples Temple was formed in Indianapolis, Indiana during the late 1950s. Jones and his 140 followers then moved to Redwood Valley in Mendocino County, California, as they believed that they would be safe from nuclear fallout in case of a nuclear attack on the United States. In the late 1960s, members of Jones's congregation had dwindled to less than a hundred and were on the verge of collapse but Jones managed to secure an affiliation with the Disciples of Christ and in turn kept the survival of the Temple.  Jones's affiliation with the church boosted the Temple's reputation and spread his influence in the West Coast area.  Jones then moved his congregation again to his main church in San Francisco in 1971 and opened another one in Los Angeles.

Related Topics:
Peoples Temple - Indianapolis, Indiana - 1950s - Redwood Valley - Mendocino County, California - Nuclear fallout - Nuclear attack - United States - 1960s - Disciples of Christ - West Coast - San Francisco - 1971 - Los Angeles

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After several scandals and investigations in San Francisco, Jones decided that by creating a utopian community in Guyana, he could further cement his absolute power over his members far away from the intervention of US authorities or worried members' relatives. In 1974, he leased 300 acres (1.21 km²) of land from the Guyanese government and members of the People's Temple started the construction of Jonestown, under the supervision of senior members who were assigned by Jones to oversee the construction. Jones then went back to California before he encouraged all his followers to move to Jonestown in 1977. Jonestown's population increased greatly from 50 members in 1977 to over 900 at its peak in 1978.

Related Topics:
Utopia - Guyana - Cement - 1974 - Acre - California - 1977 - 1978

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