Elohim City, Oklahoma
Private community in Adair County, Oklahoma, US From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Private community in Adair County, Oklahoma, US From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Elohim City[Note 1] (also known as Elohim City Inc.[2] and Elohim Village) is a private community in Adair County, Oklahoma, United States. The 400 acres (1.6 km2) rural retreat was founded in 1973 by Robert G. Millar, a Canadian immigrant, former Mennonite, and "one of the most important leaders" in America's Christian Identity movement, a theology common to an assortment of right-wing extremist groups.[3][4] The community gained national attention for its ties to members of The Order in the 1980s, as well as with convicted Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh in the 1990s.[3][5]
Elohim City, Oklahoma | |
|---|---|
Private community | |
A sign warning the public | |
  Elohim City, Oklahoma  Elohim City, Oklahoma | |
| Coordinates: 35°38′34″N 94°30′54″W | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Oklahoma |
| County | Adair |
| Founded | 1973 |
| Founded by | Robert G. Millar |
| Government | |
| • Leader | John Millar |
| Area | |
• Total | 200 ha (400 acres) |
| Elevation | 390 m (1,270 ft) |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (Central (CST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
| ZIP Code | 74960 |
| Area codes | 918, 539 |
| GNIS feature ID | 2806997[1] |
The enclave consists of approximately one dozen structures, some of them mobile homes and others modernistic dome houses. The center of activity is the church-community center, where residents meet for hour-long sessions each morning.[6]
Robert G. Millar died on May 28, 2001.[7] After his death, his second-oldest son, John Millar, became the leader of Elohim City.[8][3] John Millar died on February 28, 2019.[9]
Robert G. Millar | |
|---|---|
| Born | Robert Grant Millar August 16, 1925 Kitchener, Ontario, Canada |
| Died | May 28, 2001 (aged 75) Elohim City, Oklahoma, U.S. |
| Other names |
|
| Occupations |
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| Children | 8 |
Robert G. Millar emigrated in the 1950s from Kitchener, Ontario to Oklahoma City, where he established a church.[3] In the mid-1960s, Millar moved to Maryland, where he ran an evangelical camp near Ellicott City.[8] This camp was located in Howard County on Frederick Road about one mile (1.6 km) west of US Route 29, at the former location of St. Charles College, a Catholic minor seminary destroyed by fire in 1911.[10][Note 2]
In 1973, Millar returned to Oklahoma with around 18 followers, some of whom were related to him by birth or marriage, to found Elohim City.[8]
In 1986, a Canadian woman and her children sought refuge in the city, contravening a court order awarding custody of the children to her husband. Officers attempting to arrest the woman were met by an armed man.[8]
By the mid-1990s, four members of the Aryan Republican Army (Michael William Brescia, Kevin McCarthy, Scott Stedeford, and Mark Thomas) were residents of Elohim City. Brescia was engaged to Millar's step-granddaughter and stayed in the city for almost two years.[8] Between 1994 and 1995, these four, together with other members of the ARA (known by the media as the Midwest Bank Robbers), were responsible for a series of 22 bank robberies totaling over $250,000 in the American Midwest, which they used to finance white supremacist causes. Millar denied any knowledge of the robberies.[8]
It is believed that the ARA may have also recruited members at Elohim City and/or may have sent recruits to Elohim City for "re-education." Reports also indicate that Elohim City may have provided ARA with training grounds and assisted them in distributing monies received from other groups.[13] The Mueller family, who were brief residents of Elohim City, reportedly left the compound in fear they would be assassinated by the ARA. The Muellers were supposedly privy to information connecting the ARA to the Oklahoma City bombing. Soon after, the Mueller family were tortured and assassinated by Chevie Kehoe and Daniel Lewis Lee under the direction of the ARA.[13]
The remains of former Elohim City guest Richard Snell were released to Elohim City residents following his April 19, 1995 execution in Arkansas. Snell taunted jailers that something drastic would happen on the day of his execution. The Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building was destroyed by explosives in the hours before he died. Earlier criminal proceedings had produced evidence that Snell and other affiliates visited the Murrah Building in 1983 to examine it as a possible bombing target.[14]
However, when Snell watched televised reports of the Oklahoma City bombing prior to his execution, according to Millar, who was with Snell at the time, Snell was appalled by what he saw.[14] This contrasts with reports that he was seen nodding in agreement while watching the broadcast.[14] McVeigh is known to have telephoned Elohim City two weeks before the bombing of the Murrah building.[3]
In 2008 an Adair County man, who had been evicted from Elohim City, was charged with threatening to commit violence against several Elohim City residents.[15][16] He was acquitted in 2009, following a two-day jury trial in which he represented himself.[17]
By 2023, Elohim was seen locally as only a small religious town in spite of its past associations.[18]
The town is run by a board of directors whose members are called "elders".[19] The residents believe in and advocate white supremacism.[6] Polygamy was acceptable at one time.[20]
In an interview with The Oklahoman, Millar asserted that if anyone, including government agents, were to come to Elohim City to commit criminal acts, the community would defend itself.[21]
According to Robert Millar, Elohim City operates a small sawmill and trucking enterprise on its property. Millar's son, Bruce, owns a fleet of motor-freight rigs that he leases to National Carriers Inc., a hauling company that transports general commodities and hazardous materials.[22][23]
Elohim City's particular brand of faith draws heavily from the Old Testament. The community's residents attend daily religious services, and singing and dancing play a large role in the ceremonies. Religious services are held in a meeting center with a domed roof made of polyurethane.[19] An estimated 60% of the community's residents attend these daily 1-2 hour meetings, where they also make announcements or discuss community and family business.[24] Saturday is the community's day of rest.
Robert G. Miller declared that the CSA leader James Ellison was a "prophet full of vision" who would unite the attending groups so they could do battle with the so-called Zionist Occupied Government.[13]
The US government has monitored the private community since the 1980s due to its alliance with various white supremacist groups and members of the Aryan Nations.[25]
Prior to July 1995, FBI informant Richard Schrum was sent to infiltrate Elohim City, but he was unable to find anything illegal on the compound.[26][27]
Sometime before the Oklahoma City bombing, federal officials had planned to raid Elohim City. As a precaution, police scanners were monitored by the community and spotters were on the lookout to advise them of approaching suspect vehicular traffic. During this time, Millar also noted an increase in flights over Elohim City. [28]
An unnamed source, disclosed in a 1995 FBI report, has stated that Elohim City received approximately 96 yards of concrete that had been transported via 122 truckloads from a local concrete company. While the anonymous individual was uncertain of what the purpose of the concrete was, additional sources have indicated the existence of bunkers and weapon storage facilities on the Elohim City compound.
This same FBI document noted that a number of sources alleged the community was generating income through the sale of illegal drugs, which were allegedly produced and grown on the compound.[23] Similarly, Author David Hoffman claims in his 1998 book The Oklahoma City Bombing and the Politics of Terror that at one time, law enforcement officials had received reports that the compound was believed to be generating income through the sale of illegal drugs. He adds that an unnamed source "familiar with the community" had told him about an incident when resident Bruce Millar (a son of Robert Millar) was supposedly "strung out" on methamphetamine.[29][30]
The total population of Elohim City is unknown, but was estimated in the 1990s to be between 70 and 90.[24][31][3]
In 2015, it was estimated that there were about 100 residents, most of them descendants of Robert Millar.[32]
Robert Millar had a total of eight children.[31] His four sons all live at Elohim City.[3]
Other individuals who either stayed or lived at Elohim City (some of whom later appeared in national news) include:
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