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The Bohemian Grove and Other Retreats
s/t: A Study in Ruling-class Cohesiveness
Bohemian Grove is a 2700-acre virgin redwood grove 75 miles north of San Francisco, where the rich, the powerful & their entourage visit with each other during the last two weeks of July while camping out in cabins & tents.
It's an Elks Club for the rich; a fraternity party in the woods; a scout camp for old guys, complete with initiation ceremony & totem owl. It's owned by the Bohemian Club, founded in San Francisco in 1872. The Bohemians started going on their retreat shortly after the club was founded. It became big-time by the 1880s. It continues today.
It isn't a place of power. It's a place where the powerful relax, enjoy each other's company & get to know some of the artists, entertainers & professors included to give the occasion a veneer of cultural & intellectual pretension. Despite the suspicions of many on the Right & some on the Left, it isn't a secret meeting place to plot, plan or conspire. Most important decisions happen in corporate & foundation boardrooms, at the White House & in congressional backrooms. Some wanna-be & has-been Republican politicians visit, including future & former presidents, but they're there to demonstrate what wonderful humans they are, to cultivate potential financial backers or to brag about past exploits.
Readers suspecting that every gathering of the rich & powerful has some deeper purpose may doubt this claim until they see evidence. For those who still might question my conclusions, try reading an excellent 1st-hand account of the Grove by a journalist from Spy magazine who snuck into the encampment in '89. The author had every incentive to tell it as he saw it. More recently, a reporter from Vanity Fair snuck into the Grove during '08 to investigate logging activity as well as the usual goings-on. His experiences are summarized in a 5/09 article, "Bohemian Tragedy".
Every person who's written seriously on the Grove agrees: even tho they provide evidence that there is a socially cohesive upper class in the USA, Grove activities are harmless. The encampment is a bunch of guys kidding around, drinking with buddies, trying to relive their youth & acting silly. These activities do contribute to social cohesion as an unintended consequence--the reason I studied the Bohemians in the 1st place--but the Grove is merely a playground for the powerful & their entertainers that gives us a window into a lifestyle far removed from average Americans.--G. Wm Domhoff (edited)
Bohemian Grove is a 2700-acre virgin redwood grove 75 miles north of San Francisco, where the rich, the powerful & their entourage visit with each other during the last two weeks of July while camping out in cabins & tents.
It's an Elks Club for the rich; a fraternity party in the woods; a scout camp for old guys, complete with initiation ceremony & totem owl. It's owned by the Bohemian Club, founded in San Francisco in 1872. The Bohemians started going on their retreat shortly after the club was founded. It became big-time by the 1880s. It continues today.
It isn't a place of power. It's a place where the powerful relax, enjoy each other's company & get to know some of the artists, entertainers & professors included to give the occasion a veneer of cultural & intellectual pretension. Despite the suspicions of many on the Right & some on the Left, it isn't a secret meeting place to plot, plan or conspire. Most important decisions happen in corporate & foundation boardrooms, at the White House & in congressional backrooms. Some wanna-be & has-been Republican politicians visit, including future & former presidents, but they're there to demonstrate what wonderful humans they are, to cultivate potential financial backers or to brag about past exploits.
Readers suspecting that every gathering of the rich & powerful has some deeper purpose may doubt this claim until they see evidence. For those who still might question my conclusions, try reading an excellent 1st-hand account of the Grove by a journalist from Spy magazine who snuck into the encampment in '89. The author had every incentive to tell it as he saw it. More recently, a reporter from Vanity Fair snuck into the Grove during '08 to investigate logging activity as well as the usual goings-on. His experiences are summarized in a 5/09 article, "Bohemian Tragedy".
Every person who's written seriously on the Grove agrees: even tho they provide evidence that there is a socially cohesive upper class in the USA, Grove activities are harmless. The encampment is a bunch of guys kidding around, drinking with buddies, trying to relive their youth & acting silly. These activities do contribute to social cohesion as an unintended consequence--the reason I studied the Bohemians in the 1st place--but the Grove is merely a playground for the powerful & their entertainers that gives us a window into a lifestyle far removed from average Americans.--G. Wm Domhoff (edited)
268 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1974
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November 13, 2025
G. William Domhoff’s The Bohemian Grove and Other Retreats: A Study in Ruling-Class Cohesiveness (1974) is a landmark contribution to the sociology of power and elite theory. Building upon his earlier works, Who Rules America? (1967) and The Higher Circles (1970), this volume deepens Domhoff’s empirical and theoretical exploration of the American power structure by focusing on the social and cultural mechanisms through which elites reproduce solidarity and maintain class cohesion. Through a detailed examination of elite retreats—most notably the Bohemian Grove in California—Domhoff illuminates how informal networks and leisure institutions serve as integral components of the ruling class’s capacity for coordination and influence.
The book’s central thesis is that the American upper class sustains its power not only through economic and political institutions but also through social and cultural mechanisms that reinforce shared values and class consciousness. The Bohemian Grove, an exclusive men’s retreat located in Monte Rio, California, functions as a microcosm of this process. Domhoff’s sociological investigation reveals that the Grove and similar institutions—such as business roundtables, private clubs, and policy-planning bodies—facilitate elite cohesion by providing settings for socialization, networking, and ideological consensus-building. Far from being mere sites of leisure, these retreats serve a political function by nurturing the interpersonal trust and mutual understanding that underpin coordinated class action.
Domhoff’s methodology is a hallmark of his broader approach to power-structure research. Combining participant observation, documentary analysis, and network mapping, he constructs a detailed portrait of the individuals and organizations that populate the Bohemian Club. His research reveals the interlocking memberships linking corporate directors, government officials, military officers, and cultural elites—illustrating how informal social connections complement formal institutional power. This empirical rigor, coupled with a commitment to theoretical clarity, distinguishes Domhoff’s work from more speculative or conspiratorial accounts of elite influence. Indeed, one of his explicit aims is to demystify elite sociability by situating it within the structural framework of class analysis rather than the rhetoric of conspiracy.
Theoretically, The Bohemian Grove and Other Retreats advances Domhoff’s argument that the American upper class operates as a “ruling class” in the sociological—not Marxist—sense: a relatively unified social group that wields disproportionate influence over the state and the economy. The cohesiveness of this class, he argues, is sustained through a combination of economic interdependence, ideological consensus, and social interaction. Elite retreats, philanthropic foundations, and policy-planning organizations form an interconnected “social upper world” that facilitates the translation of shared class interests into policy outcomes. By examining the cultural and symbolic dimensions of this process, Domhoff broadens the scope of elite theory beyond formal political institutions to include the social infrastructure of power.
Critically, Domhoff’s analysis challenges pluralist conceptions of American democracy, such as those advanced by Robert Dahl, which posit a diffusion of power among competing interest groups. In contrast, Domhoff’s evidence suggests that decision-making in the United States is heavily concentrated within a socially and economically cohesive elite. The Bohemian Grove becomes, in this respect, a symbolic and empirical locus for understanding how elite solidarity translates into political influence. His findings anticipate later scholarship on social capital, network theory, and the sociology of elites, all of which underscore the importance of informal ties in shaping political and economic outcomes.
Despite its scholarly rigor, the book was met with mixed reactions upon publication. Critics accused Domhoff of overemphasizing the unity and intentionality of the ruling class, arguing that he risked conflating social cohesion with political coordination. Others, particularly within Marxist circles, viewed his framework as insufficiently radical—more descriptive than transformative. Nevertheless, Domhoff’s empirically grounded analysis remains influential for its methodological innovation and its challenge to the dominant liberal pluralist paradigm of the postwar period. His insistence that elite cohesion is socially produced rather than merely structurally determined has had a lasting impact on the study of power and governance.
From a historical perspective, The Bohemian Grove and Other Retreats captures a revealing moment in the evolution of American elite sociology. Written during the political turbulence of the early 1970s—amid Vietnam-era dissent, Watergate, and declining public trust in institutions—the book reflects both an academic and cultural reckoning with the realities of concentrated power in ostensibly democratic societies. Domhoff’s work thus resonates beyond its immediate empirical setting, offering a framework for understanding elite integration in contexts ranging from corporate globalization to contemporary policy networks.
The Bohemian Grove and Other Retreats remains a foundational text in the study of power elites and class cohesion. Domhoff’s combination of empirical depth, theoretical clarity, and sociological imagination provides a compelling account of how the ruling class maintains its coherence and legitimacy. By turning the sociological gaze toward the seemingly apolitical spaces of leisure and fraternity, he exposes the subtle ways in which social life sustains political power. The book stands as both a critique of American pluralism and a durable model for analyzing the interpenetration of culture, class, and governance in modern democracies.
GPT
The book’s central thesis is that the American upper class sustains its power not only through economic and political institutions but also through social and cultural mechanisms that reinforce shared values and class consciousness. The Bohemian Grove, an exclusive men’s retreat located in Monte Rio, California, functions as a microcosm of this process. Domhoff’s sociological investigation reveals that the Grove and similar institutions—such as business roundtables, private clubs, and policy-planning bodies—facilitate elite cohesion by providing settings for socialization, networking, and ideological consensus-building. Far from being mere sites of leisure, these retreats serve a political function by nurturing the interpersonal trust and mutual understanding that underpin coordinated class action.
Domhoff’s methodology is a hallmark of his broader approach to power-structure research. Combining participant observation, documentary analysis, and network mapping, he constructs a detailed portrait of the individuals and organizations that populate the Bohemian Club. His research reveals the interlocking memberships linking corporate directors, government officials, military officers, and cultural elites—illustrating how informal social connections complement formal institutional power. This empirical rigor, coupled with a commitment to theoretical clarity, distinguishes Domhoff’s work from more speculative or conspiratorial accounts of elite influence. Indeed, one of his explicit aims is to demystify elite sociability by situating it within the structural framework of class analysis rather than the rhetoric of conspiracy.
Theoretically, The Bohemian Grove and Other Retreats advances Domhoff’s argument that the American upper class operates as a “ruling class” in the sociological—not Marxist—sense: a relatively unified social group that wields disproportionate influence over the state and the economy. The cohesiveness of this class, he argues, is sustained through a combination of economic interdependence, ideological consensus, and social interaction. Elite retreats, philanthropic foundations, and policy-planning organizations form an interconnected “social upper world” that facilitates the translation of shared class interests into policy outcomes. By examining the cultural and symbolic dimensions of this process, Domhoff broadens the scope of elite theory beyond formal political institutions to include the social infrastructure of power.
Critically, Domhoff’s analysis challenges pluralist conceptions of American democracy, such as those advanced by Robert Dahl, which posit a diffusion of power among competing interest groups. In contrast, Domhoff’s evidence suggests that decision-making in the United States is heavily concentrated within a socially and economically cohesive elite. The Bohemian Grove becomes, in this respect, a symbolic and empirical locus for understanding how elite solidarity translates into political influence. His findings anticipate later scholarship on social capital, network theory, and the sociology of elites, all of which underscore the importance of informal ties in shaping political and economic outcomes.
Despite its scholarly rigor, the book was met with mixed reactions upon publication. Critics accused Domhoff of overemphasizing the unity and intentionality of the ruling class, arguing that he risked conflating social cohesion with political coordination. Others, particularly within Marxist circles, viewed his framework as insufficiently radical—more descriptive than transformative. Nevertheless, Domhoff’s empirically grounded analysis remains influential for its methodological innovation and its challenge to the dominant liberal pluralist paradigm of the postwar period. His insistence that elite cohesion is socially produced rather than merely structurally determined has had a lasting impact on the study of power and governance.
From a historical perspective, The Bohemian Grove and Other Retreats captures a revealing moment in the evolution of American elite sociology. Written during the political turbulence of the early 1970s—amid Vietnam-era dissent, Watergate, and declining public trust in institutions—the book reflects both an academic and cultural reckoning with the realities of concentrated power in ostensibly democratic societies. Domhoff’s work thus resonates beyond its immediate empirical setting, offering a framework for understanding elite integration in contexts ranging from corporate globalization to contemporary policy networks.
The Bohemian Grove and Other Retreats remains a foundational text in the study of power elites and class cohesion. Domhoff’s combination of empirical depth, theoretical clarity, and sociological imagination provides a compelling account of how the ruling class maintains its coherence and legitimacy. By turning the sociological gaze toward the seemingly apolitical spaces of leisure and fraternity, he exposes the subtle ways in which social life sustains political power. The book stands as both a critique of American pluralism and a durable model for analyzing the interpenetration of culture, class, and governance in modern democracies.
GPT
December 2, 2014
After reading C. Wright Mills' Power Elite and Domhoff's two Who Rules America books, I endeavored to pick up everything by the latter I could find perusing used bookstores. He writes well and the sociological approach he takes to the issue of class is illuminating. This is not one of his more serious works. It is more of a case study of a well-known and controversial instance of ruling-class behavior.
March 3, 2023
Towards the end of the 19th century, a social club called the Bohemian Club was founded. They bought a small piece of land in the Redwood Forest of California as a place of retreat and it was named Bohemian Grove. The club opened its doors to a limited number of people, only artists and writers, to provide social support for each other. However, being the starving artists they were, they soon had trouble paying rent. Reluctantly they began admitting wealthier businessmen into their ranks for the purpose of facilitating art sales. Soon enough, the businessmen took over and the true bohemians were out although the wealthier members maintained an appreciation for the arts and entertainment as the central purpose of the club. Fast forward about one hundred years and the summer retreat of Bohemian Grove has become an annual gathering for the wealthiest, most powerful businessmen and politicians in America and, by logical extension, the entire world.
Written in the 1970s, The Bohemian Grove and Other Retreats, written G. William Domhoff, is a sober-minded analysis of what the Bohemian Grove is and how it fits in with the power structure of American society. It is written from a structural-functional point of view and covers such topics as who is allowed to belong, what they do during the time spent at the retreat, spin-off clubs that serve a similar purpose, and how it works as a part of the networking system of corporate and government power.
The first half of this brief book is the most compelling as it gives as much detail about the two weeks each summer when the elite gather for rest and relaxation. The environs are nothing short of majestic, suggesting some sort of Elysian Fields or a heavenly forest. It kicks off with a staged ritual pageant to banish worry from the world, a spectacle that Sir James George Frazer would classify as a scapegoating ritual. Richard Nixon famously said that it was the gayest thing he had ever seen. The rest of the time is spent being entertained with music, comedy, and theater, drinking lots of alcohol, socializing, partying, attending lectures, and letting go of all the cares in the world. Domhoff then gives a detailed analysis of how the camp is structured and how its members interact with each other.
The other significant part of the book’s beginning is an examination of who is allowed to join and attend the summer retreat. Attendees of the Bohemian Grove are entirely male. Most are heads of the biggest corporations in America. Other smaller groups are politicians, presidents of prestigious universities, and entertainers. A waiting list of 800 applicants is kept, though few of them ever get accepted. Prospects with literary, artistic, musical, or acting talent get jettisoned to the top of the list, although only those with conservative styles are allowed in; Frank Zappa or William S. Burroughs would never make it, Bing Crosby and Bob Hope would and actually did. 95% of Grove members belong to the most conservative wing of the Republican party.
The author goes on to describe two other similar private social clubs that exist for similar reasons, the Rancheros and the Roundup Riders. These outfits, rather than being art and entertainment oriented, have cowboy themes. The members dress up like Hollywood cattle ranchers and go on extended rides through the forests and deserts of Colorado. Yes, there is something a little bit childish about all this. Although less prestigious then the Bohemian Grove, they have attracted some big names of the corporate and political elite as well; Ronald Reagan belonged to the Rancheros, for example.
The final section of the book is a brief overview of how the Bohemian Grove and the other two clubs function as networking centers for those who rule America. The members insist that these clubs are simply places for them to unwind and escape from the stresses of life at the top echelons of society, but Domhoff says they also use these events to field new ideas off the record while making connections with others who can further their careers in the ranks of power. To Domhoff this is a crucial function because by relaxing, enjoying themselves, and getting to know each other as people, the members form emotional bonds that make them more comfortable and well-established in their pursuit of wealth and power.
Being written in 1971, this is a dated text, although it is safe to assume that there haven’t been any dramatic changes in the Bohemian Grove over the last fifty years except in some of the details. Based on information collected from unnamed informants, it gives a clear picture of what the Bohemian Grove really is and what goes on there. Domhoff’s work has since come under fire, mostly from Marxist sociologists who claim he is not radical or incendiary enough, but you have to consider the possibility that dealing with political and economic inequalities might be more effective if we understand the nature of the monster we are fighting. Otherwise you might end up doing little more than shooting in the dark and changing nothing. (Notice how little left-wing radicals have accomplished in tearing down the capitalist system over the last 100 years) Besides, not everything in academia has to be about blind devotion to revolutionary politics.
In recent times, the Bohemian Grove has drawn attention from all kinds of kooks, conspiracy theorists, and right wing hucksters like Alex Jones who once sneaked into Bohemian Grove and filmed it. His immediate impulse was to commercially produce videotapes of it and sell it to the suckers who follow him. What Bohemian Grove and Other Retreats accomplishes is bringing to light what this group really is, a combination of a summer camp, a spa resort, and a private club with some elements of a fraternal order. It could possibly be considered a secret society because, for no other reason, its membership is so elitist and closed off to the likes of you and me. It certainly is not a satanic cult like the MAGA morons insist it is. That does not mean that Domhoff dismisses the Bohemian Grove as a harmless party for the corporate business rulers of the world; if anything, he insists this makes it even more dangerous for the functioning of a government that is meant to be by the people for the people when in reality it is being run by the corporate elite for the corporate elite. Like George Carlin said, “It’s all one big club and you and I ain’t invited.”
Written in the 1970s, The Bohemian Grove and Other Retreats, written G. William Domhoff, is a sober-minded analysis of what the Bohemian Grove is and how it fits in with the power structure of American society. It is written from a structural-functional point of view and covers such topics as who is allowed to belong, what they do during the time spent at the retreat, spin-off clubs that serve a similar purpose, and how it works as a part of the networking system of corporate and government power.
The first half of this brief book is the most compelling as it gives as much detail about the two weeks each summer when the elite gather for rest and relaxation. The environs are nothing short of majestic, suggesting some sort of Elysian Fields or a heavenly forest. It kicks off with a staged ritual pageant to banish worry from the world, a spectacle that Sir James George Frazer would classify as a scapegoating ritual. Richard Nixon famously said that it was the gayest thing he had ever seen. The rest of the time is spent being entertained with music, comedy, and theater, drinking lots of alcohol, socializing, partying, attending lectures, and letting go of all the cares in the world. Domhoff then gives a detailed analysis of how the camp is structured and how its members interact with each other.
The other significant part of the book’s beginning is an examination of who is allowed to join and attend the summer retreat. Attendees of the Bohemian Grove are entirely male. Most are heads of the biggest corporations in America. Other smaller groups are politicians, presidents of prestigious universities, and entertainers. A waiting list of 800 applicants is kept, though few of them ever get accepted. Prospects with literary, artistic, musical, or acting talent get jettisoned to the top of the list, although only those with conservative styles are allowed in; Frank Zappa or William S. Burroughs would never make it, Bing Crosby and Bob Hope would and actually did. 95% of Grove members belong to the most conservative wing of the Republican party.
The author goes on to describe two other similar private social clubs that exist for similar reasons, the Rancheros and the Roundup Riders. These outfits, rather than being art and entertainment oriented, have cowboy themes. The members dress up like Hollywood cattle ranchers and go on extended rides through the forests and deserts of Colorado. Yes, there is something a little bit childish about all this. Although less prestigious then the Bohemian Grove, they have attracted some big names of the corporate and political elite as well; Ronald Reagan belonged to the Rancheros, for example.
The final section of the book is a brief overview of how the Bohemian Grove and the other two clubs function as networking centers for those who rule America. The members insist that these clubs are simply places for them to unwind and escape from the stresses of life at the top echelons of society, but Domhoff says they also use these events to field new ideas off the record while making connections with others who can further their careers in the ranks of power. To Domhoff this is a crucial function because by relaxing, enjoying themselves, and getting to know each other as people, the members form emotional bonds that make them more comfortable and well-established in their pursuit of wealth and power.
Being written in 1971, this is a dated text, although it is safe to assume that there haven’t been any dramatic changes in the Bohemian Grove over the last fifty years except in some of the details. Based on information collected from unnamed informants, it gives a clear picture of what the Bohemian Grove really is and what goes on there. Domhoff’s work has since come under fire, mostly from Marxist sociologists who claim he is not radical or incendiary enough, but you have to consider the possibility that dealing with political and economic inequalities might be more effective if we understand the nature of the monster we are fighting. Otherwise you might end up doing little more than shooting in the dark and changing nothing. (Notice how little left-wing radicals have accomplished in tearing down the capitalist system over the last 100 years) Besides, not everything in academia has to be about blind devotion to revolutionary politics.
In recent times, the Bohemian Grove has drawn attention from all kinds of kooks, conspiracy theorists, and right wing hucksters like Alex Jones who once sneaked into Bohemian Grove and filmed it. His immediate impulse was to commercially produce videotapes of it and sell it to the suckers who follow him. What Bohemian Grove and Other Retreats accomplishes is bringing to light what this group really is, a combination of a summer camp, a spa resort, and a private club with some elements of a fraternal order. It could possibly be considered a secret society because, for no other reason, its membership is so elitist and closed off to the likes of you and me. It certainly is not a satanic cult like the MAGA morons insist it is. That does not mean that Domhoff dismisses the Bohemian Grove as a harmless party for the corporate business rulers of the world; if anything, he insists this makes it even more dangerous for the functioning of a government that is meant to be by the people for the people when in reality it is being run by the corporate elite for the corporate elite. Like George Carlin said, “It’s all one big club and you and I ain’t invited.”
December 19, 2009
Bohemian Grove is best known because of Alex Jones sneaking in and filming their Cremation of Care "ritual". Jones has done some very good documentaries but that one was a bit hokey. I think he read too much into it as well as making some false claims. Like claiming the big wooden Owl on the grounds was suppossed to be a totem of the demon Molloch. Molloch was a bull, not an owl!
The Cremation of Care seems more like a play than any kind of "Satanic" ritual. This book, which came out way back when Nixon was President doesn't read so much into it as Jones did. He does go into how into putting on plays these elites are. Hey maybe these world elites in their heart of hearts are nothing but a bunch of frustrated drama club fruits. Domhoff also writes about another elite club for world elites where their big thing was enacting their cowboy fantasies. Not every member was down for the program apparently. Tapes came out a few years back of Richard Nixon, who was a member of the Bohemian Grove saying, "It is the most faggy goddamned thing you could ever imagine". Ha ha!
Overall this book really doesn't offer much except a description of the Cremation of Care "ritual", descriptions of the goings on at the grove, talk of a couple of other retreats/clubs and a huge member list which includes Presidents, Senators, heads of corporations, bankers and other super wealthy types. It is outdated considering it was published in the 1970s but it isn't as sensationalistic as the Jones documentary.
The Cremation of Care seems more like a play than any kind of "Satanic" ritual. This book, which came out way back when Nixon was President doesn't read so much into it as Jones did. He does go into how into putting on plays these elites are. Hey maybe these world elites in their heart of hearts are nothing but a bunch of frustrated drama club fruits. Domhoff also writes about another elite club for world elites where their big thing was enacting their cowboy fantasies. Not every member was down for the program apparently. Tapes came out a few years back of Richard Nixon, who was a member of the Bohemian Grove saying, "It is the most faggy goddamned thing you could ever imagine". Ha ha!
Overall this book really doesn't offer much except a description of the Cremation of Care "ritual", descriptions of the goings on at the grove, talk of a couple of other retreats/clubs and a huge member list which includes Presidents, Senators, heads of corporations, bankers and other super wealthy types. It is outdated considering it was published in the 1970s but it isn't as sensationalistic as the Jones documentary.
July 29, 2008
Held my attention for awhile. Then ZZZZZZ
May 14, 2025
Downloaded this from the CIA website and parts of it were cut and uninterpretable. Interesting still.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews