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Jonestown: Quick Facts

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Facts

Also Known As Jonestown massacre
Date November 18, 1978 (Anniversary in 5 days)
Location Guyana

Did You Know?

  • Some conspiracy theorists claim that Jonestown was part of a CIA conspiracy, but no evidence has been produced to support this.
  • Jones was able to accumulate cynanide by first securing a jeweler's license.
  • Jonestown had a weekly program on Georgetown radio to advertise the compound.
  • While in the compound, Jim Jones sat on a throne and likened himself to Jesus Christ and Vladimir Lenin.

Photos and Videos

Large metal vat in the foreground with a dark liquid inside, surrounded by scattered cups and boxes, with numerous bodies lying on the ground near a wooden walkway in Jonestown, Guyana.
Locator map of Guyana marking Jonestown in the country's northwest interior and Georgetown on the Atlantic coast, with Venezuela, Brazil, and Suriname shown nearby.
Jim Jones
The chilling story of the Jonestown Massacre
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Key People

Jim Jones
Jim Jones
American cult leader