Born in Indiana in 1931, Jim Jones came from a very different background than Noyes but with evidently similar personality traits and perfectionist views. An only child, his parents, James T. Jones and Lynetta, were poor. A sixteen year age difference separated the two. Jim's father was a disabled veteran who worked hard labor jobs when he was able. His mother was a smoking, cursing, beer drinking factory worker educated in business and finance. Lynetta was the breadwinner while James spent most of his time in a rocker listening to the radio. She was active in the labor union movement and came to be "regarded as a troublemaker."
Lynetta was the "dominate force" in her son's life. From her he inherited the "canny aggressiveness . . . general irreverence toward the world . . . and a certain self-righteousness and grandiosity that allowed him to see himself as an independent spirit proudly pushing against the prevailing flows of society." Jones view of a society filled with injustice came from his mother.
The close ties of the Noyes family, and of most other depression era families, are absent in the Jones family. His parents did not go to PTA meetings, school plays, church or even share a bed. There was no real supervision for young Jim and when he was a junior in high school his parents divorced. He often went around dirty and half naked. For company, he always had dozens of stray dogs and cats following him and would take them everywhere. He spent hours training, talking to and playing with them. As a result, neighborhood children were drawn to Jones and he managed to get them to do the chores he didn't want to do, such as feeding and cleaning the animals. Jones, like Noyes, seemed to be a natural leader of children, and throughout their lives and that of Howell, children play a central part.
Very early, Jones learned to manipulate people. He had an ability to hold the attention of his small male followers for hours and was always the leader. He preached, talked, and scolded. There were even "ritualistic" funerals for the pets when they died. He claimed special power, and authority, and brooked no challenge to that authority. Among his playmates, Jones developed his ability to "structure the environment" to control people, developing a "genius" for moving from playmate to dominate and "pushing his authority then backing off." He often did outrageous things to see how people would react.
Jones was introduced to the Nazarene church by a neighbor, Myrtle Kennedy, worried about the small boy and attracted to his charming looks. Soon, Jones began his wanderings from church to church. He had begun his search for the "perfect" church. It was in his contact with the Pentecostal church that he received the closeness and warmth he craved "from the most despised rejects of the community."
Like Polly Noyes, Lynetta Jones had high hopes for her son. She wanted Jim to be a success. She gave up the opportunity to stay at home with him to make sure he could have a college education. She worked everyday at an out-of-town job and saved every penny. "Don't you be nothing like your dad. . . . You have to make something of your life and be somebody. Work at it. Nobody's gonna help you."
He did work at it. Jones became a good student, dated nice girls and a was voracious reader ". . . continuing an earlier pattern of reading widely . . . he studied religion, medicine, and world affairs." He was many things to many people; an innocent to Mrs. Kennedy, a recluse on the playground, at the garage and on the street a "holy terror," and in the neighborhood a "roguish little natural leader."
Jones became obsessed with cleanliness and his appearance. He hated physical activities that would get him sweaty or dirty, preferring mental pursuits. He bathed regularly at a time when the Saturday night bath was the norm for people who rarely had indoor plumbing. Every hair had to be in place, his clothes immaculate and his shoes polished. Until the end, Jones continued to be obsessed with his appearance.
Gradually, Jones' small followers grew up and found sports. Jones turned to more spiritual pursuits, criticizing the alternative pursuits of his past friends as either immoral or a waste of time. Jones sought other followers in neighbors, or pedestrians. For a time he sported white robes when he went out. Later he realized he had to tone down his religious fervor if he were to convince people of his sincerity, and his sanity.
Jones began his studies at Indiana University in 1948. He was dating Marceline Baldwin, the woman he would eventually marry. She was training for a career in nursing and was a dedicated Christian. Jones met Marceline when they both worked in the same hospital, he as an orderly. He managed to win her parents over in a few visits, particularly when he told them he was active in a church in Lynn. However, Jones was distant with his fellow students. During discussions of theology he answered their theology questions only by quoting scripture without discussing the issues. He felt their attitudes were frivolous and indulgent and their lifestyles disgusted him. Jones saw himself as superior to the other students just as he had with his playmates. However, his attempts to get reactions from people were more malicious now. One night he stuck a pin through the upper bunk mattress of his roommate.
In 1949, Jones married Marceline Baldwin. They lived near the University and continued their educations but the glow began to fade when Jones began to express atheistic views. Jones eventually demanded that Marceline give up praying. Her refusal brought threats of suicide from Jones but she continued. Jim also demanded she deny her faith and accept his. From this point on Jones' behavior becomes more erratic. "Unkind one minute, Jim could turn almost saintly the next. He could counsel and expound on the most serious subjects, then suddenly behave like a mischievous little boy."
Jones' former relations with Marceline's family also changed after an instance of sabotage to their automobile aroused family suspicions that he was guilty. He once told Marceline a dear friend was killed in a car wreck, simply to see how much she cared for her friend. These are the beginning of many such accidents. Eventually, poison will become a key part of Jones methods of control and fear. Reiterman says such incidences were to test the loyalty of others. Jones needed to know he was the center of everyone's world.
In 1952 Jim Jones made the move that would have devastating results twenty-eight years later. Perhaps he had been preparing for it all his life. Perhaps it was a sudden decision brought on by all the injustices he believed were in the world. Nowhere had he found a church that could measure up to his standards. Jim Jones decided to enter the ministry. He could fix everything.
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