Scott - March 21, 2006 10:39pm.

In the summer of 1984, members of a religious cult known as the Rajneeshees, followers of the Indian guru Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, attempted to gain political control of Wasco County, Oregon by attacking the city of The Dalles in what is considered to be the only known biological attack in the United States during the 20th century. By September of 1984 the town's water supply and at least ten other locations in The Dalles would fall victim to the attacks and more than 700 people would become ill, most from eating at restaurant salad bars contaminated with Salmonella typhimurium.

I wanted to eat at one of those salad bars...

"Julian described how he and Anugiten climbed up a hill to a water tank that overlooked a nearby school. He recalled something being mentioned about trying to pry open the screen on the water tank and hearing rushing water"
                - FBI interrogation of Krishna Diva, transcribed November 15, 1985

I had no idea where to start my search, so I drove up the aptly named "Scenic Drive" and started looking for a water tank or a school, or if I was really lucky, a water tank on a hill above a school (with guys in red robes standing on top trying to pry open a screen and pointing to a salad bar).

No such luck, but I did remember seeing what might have been a water tank when I first drove in...so I headed back that way...

The Rajneeshees first arrived in Wasco County in 1981 settling at "The Big Muddy Ranch", a 64,000 acre ranch 15 miles southwest of the small town of Antelope, Oregon. After constructing a large commune on the property, The Rajneeshees incorporated the land as the city of Rajneeshpuram. At it's height, Rajneeshpuram included it's own post office, airport, fire and police force, school, and restaurants. Years later after the population at the ranch grew to more than 7000 permanent residents, the Rajneeshees would take political control of the city of Antelope, changing it's name to Rajneesh. They would then set their sights on The Dalles

So, I'm on 10th street in The Dalles and I can see a water tank on the hill from where I'm at. It seems like it should be a pretty straight shot to find it but the description makes it clear this will be on a hill above a school. Thinking about the Rajneeshees, my car seems terribly unsuited for all this.

"Bhagwanh Shree Rajneesh bought his first Rolls Royce, a Corniche, in 1980 and had it plated with armor. After establishing his commune in Oregon, followers of the Bhagwan said their leader wanted a new Rolls for each day of the year, and began ordering two a month from dealers...A new Rolls costs from $109,000 to $173,000...and a number of the cars were painted "psychedelic colors"."
                - The Associated Press July 27, 1986

I'm getting closer and there are a lot of roads that head up the hill, but not quite to where I need to be...and then, A SCHOOL BUS! Seriously, it can't be this easy...but then, another school bus, and a third. I'm so excited I drive right past the road that obviously leads to a water tank, but I don't fail to notice the school directly down the hill from the tank.



The water tank is right between the two light poles, slightly up and to the left of the white building, about halfway up the hill.



This seems to be a pretty good bet to me, a water tank on a hill above a school...and there aren't that many schools in The Dalles. It was off 10th street. Turn where you see two signs, one says "Dead End" and the other says "To Sterling Dr."

"Other ideas Puja had of making people sick in The Dalles including the putting of dead rodents, especially beavers into The Dalles water system. Puja had explained that beavers naturally contained bacteria in their bodies. There was some comment that beavers could not be put into the water tanks in The Dalles because of screens over the tanks. Krishna Diva recalls someone jokingly suggesting that the beavers be put into a blender (and liquefied). Someone suggested rats or mice could be injected with a substance and placed into The Dalles water system."
                - FBI interrogation of Krishna Diva, transcribed November 15, 1985

It is believed that at least a dozen Rajneeshees were involved in the biological attack on the Dalles. The leader of the biological weapons program was Ma Anand Puja, the secretary and treasurer of the Rajneesh Medical Corporation and the Vice President of the Rajneesh church. Most information regarding the attack comes from transcripts of interviews with David Knapp, the mayor of Rajneeshpuram, and high-level cult member known to the cult as Krishna Diva.

The cult quickly found itself at odds with both state and local governments, David Frohnmeyer, the Attorney General for Oregon challenged that the incorporation of Rajneeshpuram violated the separation of church and state, an environmental group opposed commercial activities at the ranch, and several of the cult's leaders were being investigated by the U.S. Attorney's Office in Portland on immigration charges. This led to several attempts by the cult to take over the local city and county governments. The city of Antelope with it's 40 mostly elderly or retired residents was no match for the cult, but Wasco County itself would prove to be a different story.

Photo Courtesy Wasco County Historical Museum

Initially the Rajneeshees implemented a "Share-A-home" program, inviting thousands of homeless people from across the United states to move to Rajneeshpuram. Because of Oregon's lax voter registration laws, these new residents would be allowed to vote in the upcoming November election. At the same time, several members of the cult were planning a biological attack on The Dalles in order to make residents sick enough that they could not vote in the election.

Several different biological agents were considered for the attack: hepatitis, typhoid fever, Giardia lamblia, and AIDS, but in the end, Salmonella typhimurium was selected because of it's symptoms were easily confused with food poisoning, it was not as dangerous as some of the others, it was not traceable back to the cult, and it most often only made people sick and did not kill them, though one member of the cult is reported as saying that while they should try not to hurt anyone, a few deaths would be acceptable.

Photo Courtesy Wasco County Historical Museum

The first recorded use of a biological agent as a weapon by the Rajneeshees occurred in August of 1984. Two Wasco County commissioners visiting the cult's ranch were given glasses of water containing Salmonella typhimurium resulting in sickness in both commissioners, with one requiring hospitalization. A third visiting commissioner was not given the contaminated water because that particular commissioner was not considered a threat by the Rajneeshees. Later, Krishna Diva was given an eyedropper filled with Salmonella typhimurium and told to spread it on the doorknobs and urinals at the Wasco County Courthouse, but there were no reported illnesses from that incident.

The courthouse is located at 511 Washington St, just a few blocks south of downtown. It's open to the public 10 AM to Noon, and 1 PM to 4 PM Monday through Friday.



I have no idea if specific doorknobs were contaminated. Interestingly enough, many of the doors in the building have handles and not knobs.



This statue sits in front of the courthouse and was a gift from the city of Antelope to the city of The Dalles, it's the only thing in town I saw that even references the attacks. The plaque on the front reads:

"Dedicated to all who steadfastly and unwaveringly opposed the attempts of the Rajneesh followers to take political control of Wasco County. 1981-1985.

"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing" (Edmund Burke)"

Subsequent attacks would target restaurants, a supermarket, and another attempt at the town's water supply...

In July or August an Albertson's grocery store was attacked while a group of Rajneesees were in town scouting future targets. There is only one Albertson's in town, so I assumed this was it. It's located at 1218 W 6th Street.


"While in the store, Krishna Diva recalls observing Sheela in the produce department sprinkling on the lettuce what he assumed to be a similar substance he had been given by Puja to put on door knobs in the courthouse...Sheela had the container with the substance up her sleeve, at the wrist and palm, to conceal what she was doing. ...When they returned to their vehicle Puja was giggling and saying that she had a good time."
                - FBI interrogation of Krishna Diva, transcribed November 15, 1985



Want to feel awkward? Go into a grocery store and take pictures of the produce... Earlier in the day as I was driving around lost trying to find the Wasco County Courthouse I came across this sign:


Records indicate one of the locations attacked was the salad bar at the Portage Inn, this sign said Portage Grill and the restaurant is now part of a Shilo Inn, but it's located right where the road to Antelope, Oregon meets The Dalles, there is a lunchtime salad bar, the building has obviously been there for 20+ years, and the name is far too similar to be just a coincidence.



The Portage Grill is located at 3223 Bret Clodfelter Way, it's a bit outside of town, near The Dalles Dam. Take exit 87 from the I-84. It's open from around 11am-9pm 7 days a week.


According to Krishna Diva, he arrived at the Portage Inn with a vial of "brownish" liquid given to him by Puja. Because it was later in the afternoon the salad bar was closed and all the food with the exception of the salad dressing had been removed. By Krishna Diva's own account, he emptied the vial into the Blue Cheese Dressing.

It was only me and one other older couple in the resturant the day I was there, so getting close up pictures of the salad bar was a bit tricky. I'm sure of any place in the world, this is the one where odd behavior around a salad bar is going to attract attention.


Guess what dressing I got!!!


In the end, similar attacks would take place in 10 area restaurants and sicken 751 people, with 45 being hospitalized.

The Rajneeshees would ultimately fail at their attempt to swing the election in their favor and several members would eventually confess to the attacks. Soon after, the cult fell apart. Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, the spiritual leader of the Rajneeshees, was indicted on federal immigration charges and after attempting to flee, pleaded no-contest, and was given a suspended sentence on condition that he leave the country. He would eventually speak out against the attacks and continued to claim his innocence in the matter until his death in 1990.

Within a short time the remaining residents of Rajneesh voted unanimously to restore the original name of the city to Antelope. The ranch at Rajneeshpuram is now a Young Life church camp known as "Wild Horse Canyon".