Skull & Bones
Yale University's most famous secret society has counted presidents, Supreme Court justices, CIA directors, and titans of industry among its members. In 2004, both presidential candidates — Bush and Kerry — were members.
In 2004, America chose between two presidential candidates. Both were members of the same secret society at Yale — a society that taps just 15 members per year. When asked about it on national television, both refused to answer. The odds of this being coincidence are, statistically, absurd.
Overview
Skull and Bones, officially known as The Order of Skull and Bones, is a secret society at Yale University founded in 1832 by William Huntington Russell and Alphonso Taft (father of President William Howard Taft). Each year, 15 new members are "tapped" during their junior year. The society's assets are managed through the Russell Trust Association, a tax-exempt corporation.
The society's membership rolls, while officially secret, have been partially documented through leaked lists, investigative journalism, and members' own disclosures. Notable members include Presidents William Howard Taft, George H.W. Bush, and George W. Bush, as well as Secretary of State John Kerry, multiple CIA directors (including George H.W. Bush), Supreme Court justices, and numerous leaders in finance and media.
The 2004 presidential election was remarkable in that both major party candidates — George W. Bush (Bones 1968) and John Kerry (Bones 1966) — were members. When asked about their membership in separate interviews, both declined to discuss it, with Bush telling Tim Russert "it's so secret we can't talk about it."
The Russell Trust Association holds significant financial assets, including real estate and investments. The society's New Haven headquarters, known as "The Tomb," is a windowless brownstone building on the Yale campus. Initiation rituals, described by members and in investigative accounts, reportedly include confessional elements designed to create lifelong bonds of loyalty and mutual vulnerability.
"It's so secret we can't talk about it." — George W. Bush to Tim Russert on Meet the Press, when asked about his Skull and Bones membership during the 2004 campaign
Timeline
Society Founded
William Huntington Russell and Alphonso Taft found Skull and Bones at Yale University.
Russell Trust Association Incorporated
The society's financial assets are incorporated under the Russell Trust Association.
Connecticut incorporation records
First Women Admitted to Yale
Yale goes coeducational. Skull and Bones resists admitting women until 1991.
Both Candidates Are Bonesmen
George W. Bush and John Kerry, both Skull and Bones members, face each other in the presidential election.
Key Players
George H.W. Bush
CIA Director and President. One of the most prominent Bonesmen in modern history.
George W. Bush
Declined to discuss his membership in a 2004 Meet the Press interview, saying 'it's so secret we can't talk about it.'
John Kerry
Faced fellow Bonesman Bush in the 2004 presidential election. Also declined to discuss the society.
Documented Membership and Influence
While complete membership lists are not publicly available, researchers — most notably Alexandra Robbins in her 2002 book "Secrets of the Tomb" — have documented hundreds of members through leaked lists, member acknowledgments, and genealogical research.
The society's membership is disproportionately represented in government, intelligence, finance, and media. Beyond the three presidents, members have included multiple CIA directors, Secretary of War Henry Stimson, Time magazine founder Henry Luce, and numerous Wall Street leaders. The society has historically drawn heavily from wealthy East Coast families, though it has diversified somewhat in recent decades.
The Russell Trust Association's tax filings, available through the IRS, show it manages significant assets including the Deer Island property in the St. Lawrence River and the New Haven Tomb. The association's board consists entirely of Bones alumni.
The Bottom Line
Skull and Bones selects 15 Yale juniors per year. From that tiny pipeline — roughly 800 living members at any given time — it has produced three presidents, multiple CIA directors, Supreme Court justices, and a disproportionate share of the American foreign policy and financial establishment. The Russell Trust Association manages the society's assets through a tax-exempt corporation whose board consists entirely of Bones alumni. These are not allegations. They are facts drawn from IRS filings, Connecticut incorporation records, and the members' own public statements.
The unresolved question is whether Skull and Bones is a cause or a symptom. Critics argue the society functions as a recruitment and bonding mechanism for the American ruling class — that the confessional initiation rituals create mutual obligations that persist for life, and that the alumni network actively promotes fellow Bonesmen into positions of power. The alternative view is simpler: Yale already draws from America's most powerful families, and Bones merely selects 15 of its most ambitious students. In this reading, the society is a social club with good branding, not a power structure.
What makes the question difficult to dismiss is the 2004 election. In a nation of 300 million people, both major-party presidential candidates belonged to an organization with roughly 800 living members. Neither would discuss it publicly. Whether that reflects the society's power or merely the insularity of the American elite, it remains one of the most striking data points in the study of who actually governs the United States.
Primary Sources4 cited
Yale University Records
Available historical records regarding recognized student organizations at Yale.
Russell Trust Association Tax Filings
IRS 990 filings for the Russell Trust Association, the society's corporate entity.
Secrets of the Tomb (Alexandra Robbins)
2002 investigative account of Skull and Bones based on interviews with members and leaked documents.
Connecticut Incorporation Records
State incorporation records for the Russell Trust Association.
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