Greenville, Mississippi Rejects the Ku Klux Klan

Mississippi was a hostile place for African Americans in the first part of the 20th century. 

The Mississippi River Commission and the Army Corps of Engineers

In 1879 Congress created the Mississippi River Commission to oversee federal funds for flood control. 

Sharecropper Migration

At its inception, sharecropping in the Delta held the promise of a decent standard of living and independence. 

Robert Moton and the Colored Advisory Commission

Delta Blues Music

As the flood waters rose, many blues artists were inspired to write songs about the disaster and describe the experience of being in a flood.

Jim Jones

Jim Jones attracted a large following to his Peoples Temple through sermons on tolerance, social responsibility and community. 

Leo Joseph Ryan

In 1972 Leo Ryan was elected to the United States Congress from California’s 11th District. He continued his flamboyant methods, lying down on the ice between fur hunters and baby harp seals on a fact-finding mission to Newfoundland.

November 18, 1978

When Guyanese authorities arrived at Jonestown on November 19, 1978, the only survivor present was Hyacinth Thrash, a 76-year-old black woman who had joined Peoples Temple in Indianapolis.

The Peoples Temple in Guyana

Jonestown was meant to be a utopia and, for a while, it was.

The Peoples Temple in California

In California, the Peoples Temple continued to grow and develop into a political and social advocacy group. 

Race and the Peoples Temple

Peoples Temple welcomed people of every race and ethnicity. The racial integration became self-fulfilling at some point; the congregation itself became the draw.

The Congregation of Peoples Temple

A diverse group, the members of Peoples Temple shared a common goal: to create an egalitarian society free of problems of class and race.