FBI file on Waco / Branch Davidian compound.

Format:

Book

Government document

Contributor:

United States. Federal Bureau of Investigation, current owner.

Series:

Religions of America.

Religions of America

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Koresh, David, 1959-1993.

Koresh, David.

Branch Davidians.

Waco Branch Davidian Disaster, Tex., 1993.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (438 manuscripts).

Other Title:

Federal Bureau of Investigation file on Waco

Place of Publication:

[Place of publication not identified] : [publisher not identified], 1993.

System Details:

text file

Summary:

The 1993 standoff between federal agents and those inside the Branch Davidian compound at Waco, Texas, resulted in the deaths of approximately 80 Branch Davidians, including leader David Koresh (born Vernon Howell). The tragedy was a bellwether moment in American religious and political history. While widespread dismay was deeply felt over the number of deaths, including over 20 children, raising fears once more of the attraction religious extremism held for America, others used the tragedy at Waco for political gain, stoking anti-government sentiments. How this tragedy evolved tells a story of religious belief in the American landscape. The Branch Davidians derive from the work of Victor T. Houteff, a member of the Seventh Day Adventist Church in Los Angeles, California. In 1930 Houteff declared himself "a divinely inspired messenger of God," authoring The Shepherd's Rod (1931), the manuscript version of which resulted in his disfellowship from the local Seventh Day Adventist congregation. In 1934, Houteff officially left the Seventh Day Adventist Church and relocated to Waco, Texas in 1935 with a small group of followers. Houteff established then the General Association of Shepherd's Rod Seventh-day Adventists, which was renamed in 1942 as the General Association of Davidian Seventh Day Adventists. When Houteff died in 1955, his widow, Florence Houteff, assumed control, to be succeeded in turn, by Benjamin Lloyd Roden in 1965. By 1987, a new would-be successor had emerged named Vernon Howell. After violent armed skirmishes with Roden's son and heir to the organization, George, Howell took final control following the latter's arrest. According to American religion scholar Gordon Melton, after changing his name to David Koresh, Howell "set about the task of discerning his role in the scheme of the book of Revelation, the key to his most unique additions to the Branch Davidian teachings. He was still developing his position still under development at the time of the siege." Prior to the standoff, a series of articles in Waco's local paper had begun reporting on Koresh's likely molestation of children on the compound through his practice of polygamy and taking of under-age "brides." Investigations of the Davidians also produced evidence of a large illegal weapons stockpile. Finally, of equal concern was the possibility that Koresh, who had cast himself as a self-proclaimed apocalyptic visionary, might lead his followers into some form of mass suicide, repeating the tragedy of Jonestown. All of this laid the groundwork for the February 28, 1993, raid that resulted in a gun battle that killed five Branch Davidians and four Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) agents. It was the worst loss of life for federal law-enforcement agents in the twentieth century. The standoff that ensued afterward lasted 51 days. The FBI's tank-and-tear-gas assault took place on the morning of April 19. As the compound caught fire, fanned by 30 mile-per-hour prairie winds, the devastating results placed the death toll over 75 people, including more than 20 children; all the casualties were Branch Davidians, most dying from smoke inhalation, although two dozen were killed by gunshot, either by suicide or by the hand of another compound member. The FBI files here comprise transcriptions of the over 200 tapes recording the negotiations with the Branch Davidians during the stand-off period. The tapes cover a variety of topics beyond the logistics of negotiating the release of compound residents. They also feature most detailed explorations of the religious psyche of the Branch Davidian leader David Koresh, from discussions on the Book of Revelation and Daniel to conversations over whether Koresh himself was Jesus Christ. Also included in the collection are relevant news article amassed by the FBI as part of its file as well as related correspondence.

Notes:

Date range: 1993.

Source institution: Federal Bureau of Investigation Library.

OCLC:

1117372384

Access Restriction:

Restricted for use by site license.