Blog 18: Genealogy of Serial Killers, Cult Leaders, Murderers and Miscreants - Jim Jones
- Nicole Joseph
- Sep 29
- 24 min read
Trigger Warning: Family Violence, Emotional Abuse, Substance Abuse, Physical Abuse, Mental Abuse, Childhood Abuse, Infanticide. Please do not continue if any of the above topics trigger you.
Understanding the Impact of Generational Trauma through Genealogy.
The Reverand Jim Jones was once a model citizen who many looked towards for guidance, but would ultimately be responsible for the death of over 900 people.
By examining generational trauma and historical context through genealogical methodology, we may begin to uncover the systemic and psychological factors that contributed to such a drastic and horrifying transformation.
Contradictions in Information
Genealogists work with a range of primary, secondary, and tertiary sources to reach evidence-based conclusions. However, inconsistencies are frequent—particularly in the 18th and 19th centuries—where documentation may vary or be absent altogether. Information may include contradictions or what is referred to as “Negative Evidence.” Such discrepancies, including contradictions in names, dates, and locations, may be attributed to linguistic barriers, low literacy, shifting political borders, human error, and recordkeeping practices. In some cases, unexpected or incomplete information can be just as telling as the data that exists.
Lynetta Jones, commonly known as Jim Jones mother is recorded by the 1910 and 1920 census takers as having the names "Lunett Putnam" and "Lunette Putnam" respectively.
![Today, we are discussing the genealogy and history of James Warren Jones, commonly known as Jim Jones, the founder and leader of the Peoples Temple and Jonestown, where over 900 people committed themselves to his religious teachings and/or were forced to drink juice laced with cyanide [1].](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/a0cdbf_babd0ca5cc994dcab9f4afe90c6dcc86~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_147,h_112,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,blur_2,enc_avif,quality_auto/a0cdbf_babd0ca5cc994dcab9f4afe90c6dcc86~mv2.jpg)
Paternal Line - Jim Jones Grandparents
John Henry Jones | Mary Catherine Shank |
b. 13 April 1848 d. 27 June 1941 | b. 6 January 1863 d. 23 April 1918 |
Jim Jones’s paternal lineage can be traced to early 19th-century Indian pioneers. His great-great-grandfather, Edmund Jones, acquired 160 acres in Randolph County, Indiana, cultivating the fertile alluvial soils of the White and Eel River Valleys. The Jones family, like many settlers of the time, embodied an agrarian work ethic [2, p. 552]. Edmund’s son Warren Jones, Jim’s great-grandfather, expanded these holdings to 240 acres. A Baptist and Democrat, Warren represented both the religious and political affiliations typical of mid-nineteenth-century Indiana farming families [3, p.1474].
The Baptist Church published the 1852 Rules of Decorum and Articles of Faith, which emphasized orderly worship under a moderator with strict adherence to core Protestant beliefs. The Articles of Faith aligned themselves with most mainstream Protestant Christian Churches of the time. They believed in the Holy Trinity, infallibility of the Old and New Testament scriptures, total depravity of human nature, all persons were born in the spirit of God, atonement for sin, faith of Gods elect could be found in their good works; belief in Baptism via Immersion, the Lord’s Supper, Jesus Christ, the resurrection, keeping the sabbath Holy, and the righteous will live in the peaceful presence of God while the wicked shall remain in the torment of hell [4].
Childhood and Early Life of John Henry Jones
According to the 1850 U.S. Federal Census, John Henry was born in April 1848 in Morgan County, Indiana, into a farming household with modest means, his father’s real estate valued at $400. He was the second-oldest male but third third-oldest sibling [5].
By 1860, the family had relocated to Washington Township, Randolph County, where Warren Jones’s holdings had increased to $2,000 in real estate value and $400 in personal property value. The household included John Henry’s father and mother, as well as 8 siblings. Eleven-year-old John Henry attended school alongside his siblings and could read and write [6]. By the 1870 U.S. Census, the family still resided in Washington Township, with both John Henry, then age 21, and his brother Levi working on the family farm while continuing their schooling [7]. John Henry took time away from farming to teach in both Randolph and Wayne Counties. He had three children with his first wife, Clement L Jones, John E. Jones, and Eliza F. Jones. It was not until the 1880s that he once again took up farming. After the death of his first wife, he married again. John Henry owned 108 acres of land by 1914. He earned money raising and selling hogs alongside farming [8].
Marriage and Family
He married his second wife, Mary Catherine Shank of Wayne County, Indiana on 7 December 1878 [9]. Like many at this time, the two would go on to have 10 children in common, one of which was James Thurman Jones, Jim Jones’ father. Mary Catherine Shank would be in charge of the farming household and raised the children in the Quaker values of the times.
The world they raised their children in differed greatly from the world we experience today. The makeup of the fledgling United States was more like a patchwork quilt than a melting pot, with many of the newer settlements being comprised of large numbers of like-minded immigrant groups. Familiar languages, religions, and cultural norms brought from the “old” world helped create a tapestry that allowed individual cultures to subsist in a new land. For example, it was common to see three distinct Catholic Churches in one area to cater to different populations: one that was German-speaking, one Polish-speaking, and one English-speaking. Communities were made of Individuals who congregated with like-minded individuals.
Religious and Civic Engagement
John Henry and Mary would grow up in an area of Indiana that had strong Quaker, Baptist and Methodist ties. John Henry was affiliated with the Quaker (Friends) Church, raising his family in accordance with Quaker values. He was known to be contemplative by his contemporaries but was not politically active, though he did participate civically through the Knights of Pythias [10, p. 1475]. His wife Mary, was a traditional farming-class housewife and mother.
Quakers, also known as the Society of Friends, were originally established in the 1600s in England. Quaker tradition emphasized the “Inner Light” within each individual and promoted spiritual equality, which underpinned widespread Quaker opposition to slavery. Quakers believed in an “Inner Light” of God within every person and believed everyone could reach purity with divine help through obedience. It was a Quaker's action in this life that reflected their belief in God. Quakers believed they were to, with assistance from the Divine, urge societal change for the better, which led many Quakers to work in social welfare, be pacifists, and advocate for the marginalized [11, p.1]. Even though Quakers did not have a concise theology, they did have standards and rules. Quaker discipline could be strict: members might be disowned for excessive drinking, failing to pay debts, marrying outside the faith, or neglecting worship [12, pp. 15–16].
Many Quakers migrated to Indiana from the Carolinas and Tennessee following the War of 1812, and Indiana would see their first official yearly meeting in 1821 [13, p. 3].
A schism occurred shortly thereafter within the Indiana Society of Friends in 1828 that led to the development of two Quaker groups: the Orthodox who were more conservative and relied on traditional Quaker ideals of simplicity in all aspects of life and the newer, more progressive church, known as the Hicksites, that brought in outside methods of worship, specifically influenced by evangelicalism [14, p. 4].
Quakers historically have been considered a socially progressive religion, with all persons being deemed equal regardless of race, gender, and/or social standing. People were spiritually equal, meaning that all people were worthy of God, a mindset that led the vast majority of Quakers to oppose slavery. This became a contested point in Quaker congregations in Indiana in the mid–1800s, prior to the Civil War, as members were conflicted over whether to obey the Fugitive Slave Law or overtly ignore the law and help escaped slaves. Some Quakers even went as far to open meetinghouses to conference with outside anti-slavery societies. This caused a short-lived schism but would greatly impact the Quakers for years to come as they lost many members as a result of the schism [15, p. 5]. Following the Civil War, the Quakers tried to revitalize their religion by incorporating more mainstream “Wesleyan influences.” Instead of the silent, contemplative meetings of the past run by its own members, Quakers began to hire ministers who led, sometimes, emotionally fueled “revival meetings.” Such services pushed many of the Conservatives even further away [16, p 6].
Maternal Line - Jim Jones Grandparents
Jesse Putnam | Mary Elizabeth Farrell |
b. 16 February 1880 d. Before 1920 | b. February 1886 d. More Research Needed |
Jim’s maternal grandparents were Jesse Putnam and Mary Elizabeth Farrell [17]. The 1900 census lists Jesse living with his widowed mother [18], who endured profound losses, having buried three of her four children and her husband by 1920. Jesse himself worked as a stave stacker [19].
By 1910, Jesse and Mary were raising their family in Patoka Township, Gibson County, Indiana. Jesse, then thirty, farmed the land while Mary, age twenty-three, cared for their children: eight-year-old Lunette (later Lynetta, Jim’s mother) and a younger daughter, age one. Two other children died in infancy [20].
Patoka was a modest farming community in the early 20th century, with its social and religious life anchored by Presbyterian, Methodist, and Church of God congregations [21, p.4]. The town once boasted two flour mills, two distilleries, a hub-and-spoke factory, a packing house, and two planing mills. By the mid-1930s, however, economic decline and the Great Depression had shuttered most of these enterprises, causing people to leave and seek employment elsewhere [22, p.3].
According to the 1918 World War I Draft Registration Card, “Jess” Putnam was of medium height and build, with blue eyes and light brown hair. His occupation was listed as Blacksmith. By 1918 the family had moved from Indiana to Lake City, Arkansas [23].
Jesse died before the 1920 census, leaving Mary widowed with two daughters, Lynetta, age 17, and Thelma, age 11. Cecil Dickson, “Lunette’s” first husband also lived with the family, working as a brakeman on the railroad. The census lists Mary sewing from home to provide income, while Lynetta had no occupation recorded [24].
Jim Jones's Parents
James Thurman Jones | Lynetta Putnam |
b. 21 October 1887 d. 29 May 1951 | b. 16 April 1904 d. 10 December 1977 |
Father, James Thurman Jones
James Thurman grew up in a Quaker household with many other siblings. From John Henry's union with Mary Catherine Shank, he was the third child but firstborn male from this union. As a young man, World War I was raging, and he registered for the draft as required by law. He listed his occupation as a Machinist. He is listed as being of medium height, medium build, gray eyes and black hair [25].
James entered the military and was deployed as part of Co. "B" 41st Auxillary Forestry Battalion, with the U.S.S. Olympia leaving from New York, New York on 26 Feb. 1918. He is listed as a private and his emergency contact is his father in Lynn, Indiana [26]. He returns on the U.S.S. Rhode Island from France on 23 June,1919 with the 39th Company 20th Engineers as a private [27].
James Thurman Jones returned from World War I with chronic respiratory problems caused by exposure to mustard gas [28]. Although he received disability payments and worked intermittently, his income proved insufficient to sustain his family. His wife, Lynetta, later described him as a “semi-invalid” [29, p.1]. Within the community, James Thurman occupied a contradictory place: well-liked by many [30, p.5], yet also known as the town drunk, spending much of his time in the local pool hall [31, p.1].
James Thurman Jones and Lynetta Putnam were married on 20 December 1926, James Thurman being 39 and Lynetta being 22 [32]. James Thurman Jones and his wife had a strained relationship due to his inability to financially provide, alongside his constant drinking and neglect. Prior to his death in 1951, Lynetta and James Thurman had already separated [33, p. 11].
Mother, Lynetta Putnam
The 1920 U.S. Federal Census records 17-year-old “Lunette” (Lynetta) Jones as married to Cecil G. Dickson, age 20 [34]. While no divorce record has been located for this union, subsequent marriage certificates clarify the timeline. On 10 March 1923, Lynetta married Elmer Stevens [35], while only three months later, on 23 June 1923, Cecil Graham Dickson wed Edna Jessie Stone [36]. Lynetta’s marriage to Stevens proved short-lived: the couple divorced on 10 July 1924, with desertion by Lynetta cited as the cause [37].
Lynetta’s early adult life was marked by a series of strained and short-lived marriages. Following her divorces from Cecil Dickson and Elmer Stevens, she married once more. On 20 December 1926, at the age of 22, Lynetta wed James Thurman Jones, a 39-year-old veteran of World War I [38]. The marriage likely offered Lynetta the promise of stability, as the Jones family was well established in Randolph County. Five years later, on 13 May 1931, their son James Warren “Jim” Jones was born in Randolph, Indiana [39].
Despite the Jones family’s reputation for steadiness, the marriage placed heavy burdens on Lynetta. James Thurman’s declining health and limited earning capacity forced Lynetta to contribute financially, particularly during the hardships of the Great Depression. The family relocated to Lynn, Indiana, where Jim spent his formative years. Lynetta would ultimately remain a steadfast supporter of her son. She died of natural causes in Guyana shortly before the mass deaths at Jonestown, remembered for her unwavering loyalty to Jim and his movement.
Jim Jones
James Warren Jones, Jim Jones |
b. 13 May 1931 d. 18 November 1978 |
Early Life
Jim Jones’s early relationship with his parents was marked by neglect and instability. Both James Thurman and Lynetta Jones failed to provide consistent care, leaving Jim dependent on extended family and the wider community. From a young age, he was often seen wandering the streets of Lynn, Indiana, sometimes in a soiled diaper. Lynetta, never naturally maternal, largely neglected her son, while James Thurman—disabled by a World War I injury—spent much of his time drinking in the local pool hall [40, p. 13].
Local memories of “Jimmy” reveal a complex person, an intense child interested in religion, racial equality, and social equity. His cousin Barbara Shaffer recalled that he loved animals, often surrounding himself with pets, and displayed early ministerial inclinations by performing funerals for neighborhood children’s pets [41]. Others remembered more troubling behaviors: Dan Carpenter described him as a boy with few friends, subject to crying fits, prone to swearing, and speaking of sexual matters in ways that unsettled peers [42]. Yet Lester Wise, who spent a summer with him when they were around ten and eleven, remembered a quieter, more innocent Jim—swimming, playing war games, and attending church together [43].
Although his parents did not attend religious services, a neighbor, Myrtle Kennedy, played a formative role in Jim’s upbringing. She introduced him to the Church of the Nazarene, giving him his first sustained exposure to organized faith [44]. These early influences—marked by parental neglect, community care, and mixed impressions from peers—shaped the foundations of Jim Jones’s complicated character.
As a child, Jim Jones developed an intense infatuation with religion, frequently attending services at multiple churches in and around Lynn. His spiritual curiosity led him not to affiliate with a single congregation but to explore a range of faith communities. He participated in worship across denominations and, strikingly, was baptized multiple times in churches of differing Christian traditions. He gravitated towards the more emotional, evangelical Pentecostal sermons [45, 2020 jim jones documentary]. He even set up a church called, "God's House" over his garage, where he would perform funerals for the dead pets of children and give sermons [46, p. 11]
Jim Jones was regarded as a bright child, testing with an IQ of approximately 115 and excelling in school, where he completed honors classes [47, p. 11]. By adolescence, his religious zeal had begun to merge with a growing social consciousness. At the age of 16, he hitchhiked to Richmond, Indiana, where he preached in a predominantly Black neighborhood, emphasizing themes of racial equality [48, p. 12].
This was 1947, a moment when the doctrine of “separate but equal”—upheld by Plessy v. Ferguson (1896)—remained the law of the land. Segregation structured everyday life: schools, water fountains, and even local businesses were divided by race. Although Indiana lacked the codified Jim Crow framework that defined much of the South, racial prejudice and informal systems of exclusion nonetheless dictated social separation. Jones’s decision to center his early ministry on racial equality placed him at odds with prevailing norms.
Jim Jones and Marceline Baldwin
James Warren Jones, Jim Jones | Marceline Mae Baldwin |
b. 13 May 1931 d. 18 November 1978 | b. 8 January 1927 d. 18 November 1978 |
Jim Jones met Marceline Baldwin at Reid Memorial Hospital in Richmond, Indiana, where he worked part-time as an orderly while still in high school. Marceline, then 22, was a nurse-in-training. The two married on 12 June 1949, when she was 22 and Jones just 18. Marceline had been raised in a conservative Republican Christian household that reflected the traditional values of the Midwest. Her new husband, however, openly ridiculed both her faith in God and the structures of organized religion [49, p. 12].
Because Jones initially aspired to become a teacher, he and Marceline moved to Indianapolis in 1951, so that he could pursue higher education. Early on in his education, he decided he wanted to help more people than a teaching degree would allow. In 1952, while a student minister in a Methodist church, Jones gravitated toward the church’s social mission: alleviation of poverty, collective bargaining, free speech, prison reform, full employment, and racial integration. Yet he rejected what he perceived as the structured and institutional sterility of Methodist worship and “run-of-the-mill” sermons. Instead, he envisioned a kind of evangelical communitarianism—an idealist utopian society grounded in altruism, socialism and expressed through a charismatic preaching style that would resonate across class and racial boundaries [50, p. 12].
Jones himself often located the origins of his social conscience in an encounter during the Great Depression. As recounted in a 1953 Palladium-Item article by reporter William B. Treml, Jones and Marceline described how, as a child of five or six, Jim met an elderly man who confessed he wanted to end his life. The boy reportedly responded, “What do you mean, mister? God’s your friend and I’m your friend. An’ mom will help get you a job!” The man chose life and soon found work in a factory. Jones later interpreted this story as the seed of his lifelong drive to help the oppressed and marginalized [51].
By his early twenties, Jones was already applying this ethic to civic projects. At just 21 years old, he launched a campaign among Catholic and Protestant youth to construct a recreation center on Indianapolis’s south side. Soliciting funds door-to-door, he sought $20,000 to finance a building, basketball courts, tennis courts, and kitchen equipment. The initiative demonstrated his organizational skills, ambition, and rhetorical ability to inspire support across denominational lines. Whether this drive reflected genuine altruism or the early stirrings of the charisma he would later wield with such intensity remains an open question [52].
Early Years of the Peoples Church
Jim Jones soon established his own congregation, Community Unity, in a repurposed Jewish synagogue. There, he fused a message of social justice with a Pentecostal style of preaching that emphasized spirited worship and charismatic spiritual gifts. His sermons drew attention, and he was even invited to deliver guest sermons at a local Assembly of God Church. By mid-1955, Jim and Marceline acquired a building with seating for 700 and incorporated themselves under the name Wings of Deliverance. Formal denominational affiliation came later; in 1960, the Temple joined the Disciples of Christ. They relaunched the congregation as the Peoples Temple. [53, p. 13].
The Disciples of Christ upheld many of the central tenets of Protestant Christianity, while also emphasizing the equality of all believers under Christ and the pursuit of Christian unity. Their theological openness allowed for individual interpretation of scripture, coupled with a sense of accountability to the broader Christian covenant. These principles—egalitarianism, unity, and flexibility in scriptural interpretation—would have resonated strongly with Jones [54].
Yet Jones paired these ideals with the emotional intensity of Pentecostal revivalism: lively worship sessions, claims of divine healing, prophecy, and speaking in tongues. In these early years, his sermons struck a balance between social progressivism and spiritual fervor. By proclaiming that all people, regardless of race or social standing, were equal before God, Jones attracted a broad and diverse following. This synthesis of progressive ideals with revivalist spectacle would later intensify, becoming the defining hallmark—and ultimately one of the dangers—of his ministry.
Jim Jones and his "Rainbow Family"
Jim Jones and Marceline Mae Baldwin built a family that reflected both their personal commitments and their public ideals. In total, they adopted six children and had one biological son. Their first adoption was Agnes Pauline Jones, around the age of ten or eleven, who was part Native American. Agnes’s relationship with the church was marked by tension—she rebelled and left on several occasions, though she later returned. Even after being formally disinherited by Jim, her loyalty to Jim and the Peoples Temple was proven as; Agnes, along with her husband and four children, perished at Jonestown on 18 November 1978 [55].
During the Korean War of the early 1950s, Jim and Marceline expanded their family by adopting three Korean orphans: Suzanne Oboki Jones, Stephanie Jones, and Lew Eric Jones. Their multicultural family reflected both the couple’s ideals of racial integration and Jim’s desire to project an image of a universal family. Tragedy struck in 1959 when five-year-old Stephanie Jones was killed in a car accident while traveling with members of the Peoples Temple [56].
Suzanne Oboki Jones, adopted at age six, would ultimately defect, be an enemy of the Peoples Temple, and was an outspoken critic. Disinherited in Jim’s wills, she distanced herself from the movement. She ultimately married and had 2 children, passing away in 2006 from natural causes. In contrast, Lew Eric Jones, adopted at age two, was remembered as a quiet and gentle youth, deeply loyal to his father. He later married and started a family of his own, but died with his wife and infant son at Jonestown on 18 November 1978 [57].
Another adoptee, Timothy Glen “Tupper” Jones, entered the Jones household through a Peoples Temple couple. Known for his athleticism,love of basketball, and outgoing personality, he was often regarded as the “strong one” among the siblings. Timothy was away at a basketball tournament during the Jonestown tragedy, sparing his life, though his wife, daughter, and much of his extended biological family perished. He struggled for years with anger, depression, and survivor’s guilt, but later married, raised four children, and kept a lower profile than his brothers Stephan and Jimmy Jr.. Timothy passed away in 2019 [58].
Jim Jon “Kimo” Prokes, the biological son of Carolyn Moore Layton and Jim Jones, represented perhaps the most painful rupture within the family. Despite the emotional toll of the affair, Marceline helped raise Kimo [59]. Survivors later recalled Marceline having to be physically restrained while she resisted the poisoning of infants at Jonestown, though three-year-old Kimo ultimately died when Carolyn administered the cyanide-laced drink to him [ 60, p. 88].
The affair deeply damaged Jim’s relationship with his only biological son with Marceline, Stephan Gandhi Jones. Feeling devastated for his mother and disgusted with his father, Stephan harbored years of lasting anger and hatred [61, p. 72]. Like Timothy, he survived Jonestown by being away at the basketball tournament. Over time, Stephan has confronted his family legacy, sharing his experiences publicly and maintaining a website to encourage dialogue and reflection. Today, he lives with his wife and children.
James Warren “Jimmy” Jones Jr., an adopted African American child and Jim’s namesake, was also absent from Jonestown on 18 November. Jim had often emphasized that adopting Jimmy Jr. made him the first white man in Indiana to adopt a Black child—a symbolic act aligned with his public commitment to racial integration [62]. Like his other siblings, Jimmy Jr lost a lot on that fateful day. Jimmy Jr, who was also at the basketball game, lost his wife and unborn child alongside the rest of his family [63]. He, too, had to battle his demons and the hand that life dealt him. He left us some insight into Jim Jones as well.
Growing a Congregation through the Decades
The Peoples Church did not reach the over 900 congregants and community members that were either forced or capitulated to taking/administering cyanide on the18 November 1978 in a day. It took years of gathering followers, which took years of gathering credibility. Jim Jones took inspiration from George Baker, or Father Divine, a charismatic black preacher in Harlem who claimed to be God and claimed to have supernatural powers. More importantly, he founded the Universal Peace Mission in the 1920s that used redistributive economic practices to support a community that would work for little to no pay, then pool their resources and rely on everyone to ethically distribute based on the common good of the community at large [64].
That Fateful Day, 18 Nov 1978
Jim Jones' Peoples Temple gained momentum by blending evangelical practices with promises of social justice. Through healing services for the sick and emphasis on racial and economic equality, Jones offered hope to those marginalized by mainstream society. Most mainstream churches were still segregated in the 1970s; an integrated congregation was a novel idea, not new by any means, but definitely in the minority.
The People Temple’s most ambitious project was the establishment of Jonestown in Guyana, envisioned as a utopian, racially integrated socialist commune. Members, many of whom felt alienated by capitalism and systemic racism in the United States, sought refuge in this isolated settlement where they believed a better world could be built. That dream ended tragically on 18 November 1978, when, following the murder of U.S. Congressman Leo Ryan and others at a nearby airstrip, Jones ordered his followers to participate in what he called “revolutionary suicide” [66]. Armed guards prevented escape as over 900 men, women, and children died by cyanide poisoning, with children killed first. Jones himself did not ingest the poison; he died of a gunshot wound to the head, leaving behind one of the deadliest cult tragedies in modern history.
Sources
[1]Mass Suicide at Jonestown. History. text. https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/november-18/mass-suicide-at-jonestown: 2025.
[2] Smith, John L, "Past and present of Randolph County, Indiana : with biographical sketches of representative citizens and genealogical records of many of the old families," A.W. Bowen, Indianapolis, Indiana,1914; digital Images, Internet Archive (archive.org : accessed 27 August 2025).
[3] Ibid.
[4] Indiana State Library Digital Collection, "Minutes of the Lost River Association," Indiana State Library, September 1852, (https://indianamemory.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16066coll105/id/3811/rec/4 : Accessed 5 September 2025)
[5] 1850 U.S. Federal Census, Owen County, Indiana, population schedule, Morgan, Enumeration District 84 (penned), dwelling 477, family 478, John H Jones, digital images, Ancestry https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/8054/: accessed 4 Sept 2025; from National Archives microfilm publication M432, 1009 roll 164, image 21 of 24.
[6] 1860 U.S. Federal Census, Randolph County, Indiana, population schedule, Washington, Enumeration District 84 (penned), dwelling 305, family 295, John H Jones, digital images, Ancestry https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/7667/: accessed 4 Sept 2025; from National Archives microfilm publication M635_292 roll 164, image 735.
[7] 1870 U.S.Federal Census, Randolph County, Indiana, population schedule, Washington, Enumeration District 84 (penned), dwelling 62, family 62, John H Jones, digital images, Ancestry https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/7163/: accessed 4 Sept 2025; from National Archives microfilm publication M593_354 roll 13.
[8] Smith, John L, "Past and present of Randolph County, Indiana : with biographical sketches of representative citizens and genealogical records of many of the old families," A.W. Bowen, Indianapolis, Indiana,1914; digital Images, Internet Archive (archive.org : accessed 27 August 2025).
[9] Indiana, U.S.,Marriage Certificates,1960 - 2012, database with index, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/61009/ : accessed 4 September 2025), path Indiana, US, Marriage Certificates, 1960 - 2012>John H Jones, marriage 14 September 1882, Wayne County; citing Indiana State Board of Health. Marriage Certificates, 1958–2012. Microfilm. Indiana Archives and Records Administration, Indianapolis, Indiana.
[10] Smith, John L, "Past and present of Randolph County, Indiana : with biographical sketches of representative citizens and genealogical records of many of the old families," A.W. Bowen, Indianapolis, Indiana,1914; digital Images, Internet Archive (archive.org : accessed 27 August 2025).
[11] Heiss, Willard C. "Introductions to the Quaker Records Project," Indiana Historical Society Press, 2008; digital images, Indiana Historical Society, (https://indianahistory.org/wp-content/uploads/a9b3c346e4e669f4c182353d9dd6f35f.pdf : accessed 8 September 2025), 1.
[12] Ibid., p. 15-16.
[13] Ibid., p. 3.
[14] Ibid., p. 4.
[15] Ibid., p. 5.
[16] Ibid., p. 6
[17] Indiana, U.S., Death Certificates, 1899 - 2017,database with images, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/60716 : accessed 25 August 2025), path Indiana, U.S. Death Certificates, 1899 - 2017>Certificate>1908>04, Img 1272 of 2816, Edward Putnam, died Gibson County, 27 June 1908; citing "Indiana State Board of Health ."
[18] “1900 U.S. Federal Census,” Patoka County, Indiana, population schedule No. 1, Gibson, Enumeration District 10, p. 9 (penned), dwelling 171, family 173, entry for Jessie Putnam: digital images, Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 5 Sept 2025); from National Archives microfilm publication roll 372, image 18 of 20.
[19] “1920 U.S. Federal Census,” Lake City, Craighead, Arkansas, digital images, Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/6061 : accessed 10 Sep 2025); entry for Lunette Putnam and Mary E. Putnam.
[20] “1910 U.S. Federal Census,” Patoka County, Gibson, Indiana, digital images, Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/7884 : accessed 30 Aug 2025); entry for Lunett Putnam and Jesse Putman.
[21] Stormont, Gil R. "History of Gibson County Indiana," B.F. Bowen & Co. Inc, Indianapolis, Indiana, 1914; digital Images, Internet Archive (https://dn720303.ca.archive.org/0/items/historyofgibsonc01stor/historyofgibsonc01stor.pdf : accessed 5 September 2025) p. 4.
[22] Ibid., p. 3.
[23] World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918,” digital images, Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com: accessed 1 Sep 2025), entry for Jess Putnam, Craighead County, Arkansas; citing World War I Selective Service System Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918, NARA microfilm publication M1509; Family History Library Roll No. 4582.
[24] “1920 U.S. Federal Census,” Lake City, Craighead, Arkansas, digital images, Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/6061 : accessed 10 Sep 2025); entry for Lunette Putnam and Mary E. Putnam.
[25] World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918,” digital images, Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com: accessed 28 Aug 2025), entry for James Thurman Jones, Randolph County, Indiana; citing World War I Selective Service System Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918, NARA microfilm publication M1509; Family History Library Roll No. 4582.
[26] U. S., Army Transport Service, Arriving and Departing Passenger Lists, 1910–1939,” database with images, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com/searchr/collections/61174 : accessed 28 October 2025) >Outgoing>Olympia>25 Feb 1918 - 5 May 1918> image 70 of 1102, “Headquarters Port of Embarkation, Hoboken, New Jersey: Passenger List of Organizations and Casuals,” p. 65, no. 128, for Jones, James Thurman, PVT, CO. "B" 41st Auxillary Forestry Battalion, departed New York, New York, 26 Feb 1918, aboard the USS Olympic; citing "Lists of Incoming Passengers, 1917–1938," NAI no. 6234465, and "Lists of Outgoing Passengers, 1917-1938," NAI no. 6234477," U.S. National Archives—College Park, Maryland.
[27] U. S., Army Transport Service, Arriving and Departing Passenger Lists, 1910–1939,” database with images, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com/searchr/collections/61174 : accessed 28 October 2025) >Incoming>Rhode Island>4 Jul 1919> image 66 of 122, “Passenger List of Organizations and Casuals Returning to the United States,” p. 5, no. 76, for Jones, James Thurman, 296248, PVT, 39th CO 20th Engineers, departed Brest, France 23 Jun 1919, aboard the USS Rhode Island; citing "Lists of Incoming Passengers, 1917–1938," NAI no. 6234465, and "Lists of Outgoing Passengers, 1917-1938," NAI no. 6234477," U.S. National Archives—College Park, Maryland.
[28] Reiterman, Tim & Jacobs, John. "Raven: The Untold Story of the Rev. Jim Jones and His People," Penguin Group, New York, New York , 1982; digital Images, Amazon (https://www.amazon.com/Raven-Untold-Story-Jones-People/dp/1585426784 : accessed 24 September 2025), p.11.
[29] “Alternative Considerations of Jonestown and Peoples Temple,” The Jonestown Institute, San Diego State University, (https://jonestown.sdsu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/LynettaJonesEarly.pdf : Accessed 13 September 2025); citing Lynetta Putnam The Writings of Lynetta Jones, Lynetta Jones Early Writings, p.1.
[29] Ibid., p. 5
[30] Ibid., p. 1
[31] Ibid., p. 5
[32] Indiana, U.S.,Marriage Certificates,1960 - 2012, database with index, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/61009/ : accessed 28 August 2025), path Indiana, US, Marriage Certificates, 1960 - 2012>James T Jones, marriage 20 Dec 1926, Gibson, Indiana; citing Indiana State Board of Health. Marriage Certificates, 1960–2012. Microfilm. Indiana Archives and Records Administration, Indianapolis, Indiana.
[33] Moore, Rebecca, "Understanding Jonestown and Peoples Temple," United Kingdom: ABC-CLIO, 2018. Online Book, Google Books (https://www.google.com/books/edition/Understanding_Jonestown_and_Peoples_Temp/ht_EEAAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0 : accessed 24 September 2025), p.11.
[34] 1920 U.S. Federal Census, Lake City, Craighead, Arkansas, digital images, Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/6061 : accessed 10 Sep 2025); entry for Lunette Putnam and Mary E. Putnam.
[35] “Arkansas, U.S., County Marriages Index, 1837-1957,” database, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2548/records/978958?tid=205760111&pid=432723922416&ssrc=pt : accessed 25 September 2025), marriage index, Elmer Stevens and Lounette Putnam, 10 March 1923, Arkansas; citing Ancestry.
[36] “Craighead, Marriage Records May 1923 - December 1925,” database with images, Family Search (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HY-67K2-X?view=index&personArk=%2Fark%3A%2F61903%2F1%3A1%3AN993-JVH&action=view&lang=en&groupId=M9SQ-NPH : accessed 25 September 2025), marriage index, Cecil Graham Dickson and Edna Jessie Stone, 23 June 1923, Craighead, Arkansas, USA.
[37] “Arkansas, U.S., Divorces, 1923-1974,” database with images, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/61776/ : accessed 25 September 2025), Divorce Petition Coupon, Elmer Stephens and Lynetta Stephens, 10 July 1924, Craighead, Arkansas, USA.
[38] "Marriage Licenses," Princeton Daily Clarion,Princeton, Indiana, 21 December 1926, p.1, Col 7, entry for James T. Jones & Lynetta Putnam; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/article/princeton-daily-clarion-1926-marriage-ja/180075344/ : accessed 30 Aug 2025).
[39] Indiana, U.S., Birth Certificates, 1907 - 1944, database with images, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/60871/ : accessed 1 Sep 2025), path Indiana, U.S. Birth Certificates, 1907-1944>1931>009, Img 2022 of 2506, James Warren Jones, born Randolph County, 13 May 1931; citing "Indiana State Board of Health Division of Vital Statistics."
[40] Reiterman, Tim & Jacobs, John. "Raven: The Untold Story of the Rev. Jim Jones and His People," Penguin Group, New York, New York , 1982; digital Images, Amazon (https://www.amazon.com/Raven-Untold-Story-Jones-People/dp/1585426784 : accessed 24 September 2025).
[41] "Lynn Residents remember Jones as a young boy,"The Herald-Telephone, Bloomington, Indiana, 22 November 1978, p.6, Col 1, digital image, GenealogyBank (https://www.genealogybank.com/: accessed 3 September 2025), entry for Jim Jones.
[42] Carpenter, Dan, “Countdown to Armageddon: The Reverend Jim Jones and Indiana," Indiana Historical Society, Indiana Historical Society (https://indianahistory.org/stories/countdown-to-armageddon-the-reverend-jim-jones-and-indiana/ : Accessed 3 September 2025); citing Indiana Historical Society. May 30, 2018.
[43] "Tragic story of Jonestown began in region," Palladium-Item Richmond, Indiana, 18 November 1998, p.1, Col 1-4, digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/article/palladium-item-1998-memories-20-years-la/180322737/: accessed 3 September 2025).entry for Walter Baldwin and Jim Jones.
[44] "Memories Con't," Palladium-Item Richmond, Indiana, 18 November 1998, p.2, Col 3-6, digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/article/palladium-item-1998-memories-20-years-la/180322737/: accessed 3 September 2025).entry for Walter Baldwin and Jim Jones.
[45] Carpenter, Dan, “Countdown to Armageddon: The Reverend Jim Jones and Indiana," Indiana Historical Society, Indiana Historical Society (https://indianahistory.org/stories/countdown-to-armageddon-the-reverend-jim-jones-and-indiana/ : Accessed 3 September 2025); citing Indiana Historical Society. May 30, 2018.
[46] Moore, Rebecca, "Understanding Jonestown and Peoples Temple," United Kingdom: ABC-CLIO, 2018. Online Book, Google Books (https://www.google.com/books/edition/Understanding_Jonestown_and_Peoples_Temp/ht_EEAAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0 : accessed 24 September 2025), p.11.
[47] Ibid., p. 11.
[48] Ibid., p. 12.
[49] Ibid., p. 12.
[50] Ibid., p.12.
[51] "'Moms' Help for Ragged Tramp Leads Son to Dedicate His Life to Others," Palladium-Item, Richmond, Indiana, 15 March 1953, p. 14, Col.5-7, entry for Jim Jones; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/article/palladium-item-1953-early-dedication-to/180787664/ : accessed 10 September 2025).
[52] Ibid.
[53] Moore, Rebecca, "Understanding Jonestown and Peoples Temple," United Kingdom: ABC-CLIO, 2018. Online Book, Google Books (https://www.google.com/books/edition/Understanding_Jonestown_and_Peoples_Temp/ht_EEAAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0 : accessed 24 September 2025), p. 13.
[54] Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in the United States and Canada, text (https://disciples.org/our-identity/identity-statement-and-principles/ : accessed 27 September 2025), Disciples of Christ Identity Statement and Principles.
[55] Whatever, “Whatever Happened to Jim Jones' 8 Children,” video, uploaded 6 September 2025; YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h073WEaEEJM : accessed 27 September 2025).
[56] "Joint Funeral Planned for 4 crash Victims," The Indianapolis Star, Indianapolis, Indiana, 11 May 1959, p.11, Col 1-4, entry for Peoples Temple; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-indianapolis-news-jim-jones-peoples/27151082/ : accessed 2 September 2025).
[57] Whatever, “Whatever Happened to Jim Jones' 8 Children,” video, uploaded 6 September 2025; YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h073WEaEEJM : accessed 27 September 2025).
[58] Whatever, “Whatever Happened to Jim Jones' 8 Children,” video, uploaded 6 September 2025; YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h073WEaEEJM : accessed 27 September 2025).
[59] Ibid.,
[60] Lawrence Wright, “Orphans at Jonestown,” The New Yorker (22 November 1993), Alternative Considerations of Jonestown & Peoples Temple (https://jonestown.sdsu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Section-12-Letter-from-PT-members.pdf : accessed 27 September 2025), 66 - 89.
[61] Ibid.
[62] “Jonestown: The Life and Death of Peoples Temple,” PBS Online , PBS (https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/jonestown-bio-jones/ : accessed 27 September 2025), Jim Jones.
[63] Jim Jones Jr. Speaks Out. Oprah.com. text. https://www.oprah.com/oprahshow/mass-murderer-jim-jones-son-speaks-out/all : 2025.
[64] “Jonestown: The Life and Death of Peoples Temple,” PBS Online , PBS (https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/jonestown-bio-jones/ : accessed 27 September 2025), Jim Jones.
[65] Mass Suicide at Jonestown. History. text. https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/november-18/mass-suicide-at-jonestown : 2025.
[66] Reiterman, Tim, and John Jacobs, Raven: The Untold Story of the Rev. Jim Jones and His People. New York: Dutton, 1982.