The United States military and the American Native population have had a complicated relationship throughout history, for very obvious and understandable reasons. Despite this history, however, Native American soldiers have played an integral part in the country’s wartime success.
In no particular order, we’re highlighting 10 Native American wartime heroes. This is, by no means, an exhaustive list so please, let us know who else deserves to be recognized in the comments.
10 – Joseph Oklahombi
Joseph Oklahombi was a Choctaw soldier who served in the U.S. Army as a code talker during the First World War. Private Oklahombi was also the most decorated soldier from Oklahoma during the war, earning the silver star and the French Croix de Guerre.
Oklahombi and 23 other soldiers are credited for capturing 171 Germans and killing at least 79 more while attacking an enemy position in France on October 8, 1918. After capturing a machine gun emplacement, Oklahombi and his men turned the gun on the German forces and held their position for four days while under constant bombardment by mortars until backup forces arrived.
Oklahombi and the rest of the Choctaw soldiers from World War I are credited for using their native language as a code for messages between allied troops—a code that was never deciphered by German intelligence officers. Sadly, Oklahombi was killed in a vehicle accident after returning home from war.
9 – Charles George
Charles George was a Cherokee soldier who served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War with Company C, 179th Infantry Regiment, 45th Infantry Division.
Private First Class George distinguished himself during the evening of November 30th, 1952, as he and his raiding party came under heavy mortar and machine gun fire. Bounding up a hill, George evaded enemy fire and dove into their trenches to engage in hand-to-hand combat.
When the order to withdraw was given, George and two comrades remained to provide cover fire. As they began their own withdrawal after the unit was safely away, an enemy hand grenade was thrown into the trenches. George jumped onto the grenade and absorbed the full impact of the blast, saving his fellow soldiers’ lives at the cost of his own.
Multiple memorials in his home state of North Carolina have been built in honor of George’s sacrifice, including a bridge in the eastern band of Cherokee Indians land, a VA hospital in Asheville, a bronze statue in Cherokee Veterans Park, and an exhibit at the Museum of the Cherokee Indian.
8 – Mitchell Red Cloud Jr.
Mitchell Red Cloud Jr. was a Ho-Chunk soldier who served in World War Two and Korea as a member of the United States Marines and Army, respectfully.
In World War II, he served in combat with the Marine Raiders at the Battle of Guadalcanal before health problems forced him to return to the U.S. Determined to continue his service, Red Cloud avoided a medical discharge and returned to the battlefield to fight in the Battle of Okinawa with the 6th Marine Division in 1945.
In 1950, he enlisted in the U.S. Army and deployed to Korea with the 19th Infantry, 24th Infantry Division. On the night of November 5th, 1950, Red Cloud spotted an imminent surprise attack by Chinese forces. Despite being shot eight times by the enemy, Corporal Red Cloud was credited with single handedly holding off the Chinese forces. At one point, he even commanded his men to tie him to a tree because he was too weak from his injuries to stand. His company found him the next morning surrounded by dead enemy forces.
For his actions, Red Cloud was awarded the Medal of Honor.
7 – Woodrow Keeble
Woodrow Keeble was a Dakota Army National Guard soldier who served in both World War 2 and the Korean War as a member of North Dakota’s 164th Infantry Regiment.
Prior to being called up for active duty in World War Two on February 10, 1941, Keeble was an amateur baseball player being recruited by the Chicago White Sox. His unit was deployed to Guadalcanal in 1942 to assist the First Marine Division which had suffered heavy losses. He was an expert with the Browning automatic rifle and his baseball skills became a battlefield multiplier as he could throw grenades with deadly accuracy. Upon returning from the war, he became a schoolteacher.
When the 164th was recalled for active duty in Korea, Keeble volunteered to go to the front lines. He was attached to the 19th Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division and quickly rose through the enlisted ranks. During Operation Nomad-Polar, he was shot twice, injured by shrapnel, and sustained a concussion but continued to fight. For his heroic actions, Keeble received the silver star which later upgraded to the Medal of Honor after his death in 1982.
6 – Gregory Boyington
Gregory Boyington was an American fighter pilot of Sioux and Irish descent who earned ace status while fighting in World War II.
Boyington commissioned into the U.S. Army Coastal Artillery reserve after graduating from ROTC at the University of Washington in Seattle. In 1935, he transferred to the Marine reserve to become a pilot. He later resigned his commission and joined the first American Volunteer Group “Flying Tigers” of the Republic of China’s air force where he shot down six Japanese aircraft.
In 1942, he returned to the Marine Corps and took command of several squadrons operating in the Pacific theater, including Marine Fighter Squadron 214, better known as the “Black Sheep Squadron.” During this time, Boyington was credited with shooting down fourteen enemy aircraft in a month and eventually surpassed World War I ace Eddie Rickenbacker for most enemy planes destroyed in combat.
In January 1944, Boyington was shot down and recovered by a Japanese submarine crew. He was held as a prisoner of war until the Japanese surrendered in 1945. For his actions during the war, Boyington received the Medal of Honor and Navy Cross.
5 – Charles Chibitty
Charles Chibitty was a Comanche code talker who served with the Fourth Signal Company at Fort Benning, Georgia during World War II. There, he and seventeen other Comanche nation code talkers developed a secret code for preventing German forces from deciphering U.S. messages.
Chibitty was reassigned to the 22nd Infantry Regiment for the invasion of Europe. He was part of the spearhead amphibious division that stormed Utah beach in Normandy on June 6, 1944. Chibitty and the other fourteen Comanche code talkers who were deployed to Europe participated in some of the biggest battles of the war, including the Battle of Normandy and the Battle of the Bulge.
In 1989, Chibitty and other code talkers were presented with the Chevalier of the Ordre National du Merite, and named knights of the National Order of Merit by the French government.
Sadly, the Comanche code talkers were not officially recognized for their contributions to World War Two by the U.S. government until 1999 when Chibitty, as the last surviving member of the group, received the Knowlton award by the Pentagon.
4 – William Alchesay
William Alchesay was an Apache Indian scout who received the Medal of Honor for his actions during the Indian Wars. He was born on May 17, 1853 in Limestone Canyon, Arizona. He joined the Indian scouts at Camp Verde, Arizona in 1872 and served under the command of General George Crook.
During the wars, Alchesay served as an envoy for General Crook to Geronimo, the Apache military leader and medicine man famous for raids against U.S. forces. Alchesay attempted to convince Geronimo to surrender peacefully.
despite their differences, Alchesay and Geronimo remained friends until Geronimo’s death in 1909. Following the war, Alchesay became an advocate for Native American rights. He traveled to Washington D.C. multiple times to meet with presidents Grover Cleveland, Theodore Roosevelt, and Warren G. Harding.
Alchesay was awarded the Medal of Honor for his gallant conduct during his various campaigns and engagements throughout the Indian wars.
3 – William Terrill Bradby
William Terrill Bradby was a Pamunkey volunteer during the American civil war. As a native of Virginia, many Pamunkey Indians joined the confederacy, but some, like Bradby opted to side with the Union Army. Throughout the course of the entire war, approximately 20 thousand native warriors fought on either side of the conflict.
At the start of the war, Bradby assisted the Army of the Potomac as a land guide and scout. later, he joined the union navy and served on a variety of different military vessels and even served as a pilot for vessels in the Union Flotilla on the James River.
While serving aboard the U.S.S. Shokokon, Bradby was wounded by Confederate artillery. Although the injury was considered minor at the time, it created residual health issues for him until his death in 1905.
After the civil war, Bradby worked to maintain the legal status of Virginia Indians. Unfortunately, Bradby wouldn’t live to see his tribe receive federal recognition, which didn’t happen until 2016.
2 – Ely S. Parker
Ely Samuel Parker was Iroquois soldier who commissioned as a lieutenant colonel in the Civil War when he served as adjutant and secretary to General Ulysses S. Grant. One of his most notable contributions to the war effort was penning the final draft of the Confederate terms of surrender following the battle of Appomattox courthouse.
Parker began his career in public service by working as an interpreter and diplomat for the Seneca chiefs in their negotiations with the U.S. government about land and treaty rights. He was also a civil engineer who contributed to upgrades and maintenance to the Erie Canal. It was during his time as an engineer that he first met Grant and built a relationship that would be quite fruitful during and after the war.
After Ulysses S. Grant was elected president, parker was appointed as the commissioner of Indian affairs and tasked with managing the relations between the U.S government and Native Americans. He was the first native to hold this position.
1 – Clarence Tinker
Major General Clarence Tinker was an Osage Nation army officer and the first Native American to reach the two-star general rank. During World War II, he commanded the Seventh Air Force in Hawaii and was tasked with rebuilding the island’s air defenses after the attack on Pearl Harbor.
He commissioned into the U.S. Army in March 1912 as an infantry officer. During World War I, he served stateside. In 1922, he transferred to the Army Air Service and later served as the attaché to the U.S. embassy in London. He also studied at the Army Command and Staff College in the same class as Dwight D. Eisenhower.
In January 1942, he was promoted to major general. In June of that same year, tinker led a force of LB30s from the 31st Bombardment Squadron against Japanese naval forces during the Battle of Midway Island. During the battle, his aircraft was seen falling out of control into the ocean. Tinker and his ten crewmembers were killed and sadly none of their bodies were ever recovered.
And those are our 10 Native American military heroes. There isn’t enough time to cover all the incredible people who deserve to be here, so please make sure to let us know in the comments who else we should recognize.
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