Word Celebrity Blog

Code Talkers

Use of the Native Indian Tongue for Secure Communications

Tradition Of Participation

















American Indians have participated with distinction in United States military actions for more than 200 years. Their courage, determination, and fighting spirit were recognized by American military leaders as early as the 18th century.

"I think they [Indians] can be made of excellent use, as scouts and light troops". -- Gen. George Washington, 1778

Many tribes were involved in the War of 1812, and Indians fought for both sides as auxiliary troops in the Civil War. Scouting the enemy was recognized as a particular skill of the Native American soldier. In 1866, the U.S. Army established its Indian Scouts to exploit this aptitude. The Scouts were active in the American West in the late 1800s and early 1900s, accompanying Gen. John J. Pershing's expedition to Mexico in pursuit of Pancho Villa in 1916. They were deactivated in 1947 when their last member retired from the Army in ceremonies at Ft. Huachuca, Arizona. Native Americans from Indian Territory were also recruited by Teddy Roosevelt's Rough Riders and saw action in Cuba in the Spanish-American War in 1898. As the military entered the 20th century, American Indians had already made a substantial contribution through military service and were on the brink of playing an even larger role.


Contributions In Combat






















It is estimated that more than 12,000 American Indians served in the United States military in World War I. Approximately 600 Oklahoma Indians, mostly Chotaw and Cherokee, were assigned to the 142nd Infantry of the 36th Texas-Oklahoma National Guard Division. The 142nd saw action in France and its soldiers were widely recognized for their contributions in battle. Four men from this unit were awarded the Croix de Guerre, while others received the Church War Cross for gallantry.

The outbreak of World War II brought American Indians warriors back to the battlefield in defense of their homeland. Although now eligible for the draft by virtue of the Snyder Act, which gave citizenship to American Indians in 1924, conscription alone does not account for the disproportionate number of Indians who joined the armed services. More than 44,000 American Indians, out of a total Native American population of less than 350,000, served with distinction between 1941 and 1945 in both European and Pacific theaters of war. Native American men and women on the home front also showed an intense desire to serve their country, and were an integral part of the war effort. More than 40,000 Indian people left their reservations to work in ordnance depots, factories, and other war industries. American Indians also invested more than $50 million in war bonds, and contributed generously to the Red Cross and the Army and Navy Relief societies.

"There was a camaraderie [in the Air Force] that transcends ethnicity when you serve your country overseas in wartime". --Sen. Ben Nighthorse Campbell, Cheyenne Korean veteran

Battle experienced American Indian troops from World War II were joined by newly recruited Native Americans to fight Communist aggression during the Korean conflict. The Native American's strong sense of patriotism and courage emerged once again during the Vietnam era. More than 42,000 Native Americans, more than 90 percent of them volunteers, fought in Vietnam. Native American contributions in United States military combat continued in the 1980s and 1990s as they saw duty in Grenada, Panama, Somalia, and the Persian Gulf.


























Native Americans As Warriors

As the 20th century comes to a close, there are nearly 190,00 Native American military veterans. It is well recognized that, historically, Native Americans have the highest record of service per capita when compared to other ethnic groups. The reasons behind this disproportionate contribution are complex and deeply rooted in traditional American Indian culture. In many respects, Native Americans are no different from others who volunteer for military service. They do, however, have distinctive cultural values which drive them to serve their country. One such value is their proud warrior tradition.

In part, the warrior tradition is a willingness to engage the enemy in battle. This characteristic has been clearly demonstrated by the courageous deeds of Native Americans in combat. However, the warrior tradition is best exemplified by the following qualities said to be inherent to most if not all Native American societies: strength, honor, pride, devotion, and wisdom. These qualities make a perfect fit with military tradition.

"To be an American Indian warrior is to have physical, mental, and spiritual strength. A warrior must be prepared to overpower the enemy and face death head-on. We honor our veterans for their bravery and because by seeing death on the battlefield, they truly know the greatness of life". -- Winnebago Elder

American Indian soldiers, sailors, marines, and airmen have fought heroically in all of this entury's wars and armed conflicts. They have not only been formally recognized for their bravery through military decoration but through anecdotal observation as well.

"The real secret which makes the Indian such an outstanding soldier is his enthusiasm for the fight". --U.S. Army Major, 1912

More important, however, is the warrior's spiritual strength. Many traditional cultures recognize that war disrupts the natural order of life and causes a spiritual disharmony. To survive the chaos of war is to gain a more intimate knowledge of life. Therefore, military service is a unique way to develop an inner strength that is valued in Native American society.

Having a strong sense of inner spirituality is also a part of the Indian character. Many Native Americans are raised on rural or remote reservations, an environment that fosters self- reliance, introspection, and a meditative way of thinking. These character traits can be very beneficial when adapting to the occasional isolation of military life in times of both peace and war.


Honor, Pride, Devotion

Warriors are honored - honored by their family and their tribe. Before going into service and upon their return, warriors are recognized by family and community. Recognition takes place through private family gatherings, or through such public ceremonies as tribal dances or inter-tribal ceremonies.

"After I got home, my uncles sat me down and had me tell them what it [the war] was all about. One of them had been in the service in World War II and knew what war was like. We talked about what went on over there, about killing and the waste, and one of my uncles said that God's laws are against war. They never talked about those kinds of things with me before". -- Cherokee Vietnam Veteran


Native American Code Talkers




Code talkers was a term used to describe people who talk using a coded language. It is frequently used to describe Native Americans who served in the United States Marine Corps whose primary job was the transmission of secret tactical messages. Code talkers transmitted these messages over military telephone or radio communications nets using formal or informally developed codes built upon their native languages. Their service was very valuable because it enhanced the communications security of vital front line operations during World War II.

After a string of cryptographic failures, the American military in 1942, was desperate for a way to open clear lines of communication among troops that could not be easily intercepted by the enemy.

In the 1940s there was no such thing as a "secure line. All talk had to go out onto the public airwaves. Standard codes were an option, but the cryptographers in Japan could quickly crack them. And there was another problem: The Japanese were proficient at intercepting short-distance communications, on walkie-talkies for example, and then having well-trained English-speaking soldiers either sabotage the message or send out false commands to set up an ambush. That was the situation in 1942 when the Pentagon authorized one of the boldest risks of the war.






















The name code talkers is strongly associated with bilingual Navajo speakers that were specially recruited during World War II by the Marines to serve in their standard communications units in the Pacific Theater. Code talking, however, was pioneered by Choctaw Indians serving in the U.S. Army during World War I. These soldiers are referred to as Choctaw Code Talkers.

To confound the enemy, American forces in both World Wars used Indian personnel and their unique languages to insure secure communications. In World War I in France, the 142d Infantry Regiment had a company of Indians who spoke 26 different languages or dialects, only four or five of which had been reduced to writing. Two Indian officers were selected to supervise a communications system staffed by Choctaw Indians. They were used in the regiment's operations in October 1918, in the hufilly- Chardeny zone, transmitting in their native tongue a variety of open voice messages, relating to unit movements, which the enemy, who was completely surprised in the action, obviously could not break.














Other Native American code talkers were used by the United States Army during World War II, using Cherokee, Choctaw and Comanche soldiers. Soldiers of Basque ancestry were used for code talking by the US Marines during World War II in areas where other Basque speakers were not expected to be operating.

A group of 24 Navajos was assembled to handle telephone communications, using voice codes in their native tongue, between the Air Commander in the Solomon Islands and various airfields in the region.

The U.S. Marine Corps also used Navajo code talkers extensively in the Pacific Theater. And in Europe, the 4th Signal Company of the Army's 4th Infantry Division was assigned 16 Comanches for employment as voice radio operators to transmit and receive messages in their own unwritten language.


Use of Cherokee

The first known use of Native Americans in the American military to transmit messages under fire was a group of Cherokee troops utilized by the American 30th Infantry Division serving alongside the British during the Second Battle of the Somme. According to the Division Signal Officer, this took place in September 1918. Their outfit was under British command at the time.


Use of Choctaw

















Choctaws in training, in World War I, for coded military radio and telephone transmissions.




















In the days of World War I, company commander Captain Lawrence of the U. S. Army overheard Solomon Louis and Mitchell Bobb conversing in the Choctaw language. He found eight Choctaw men in the battalion. Eventually, fourteen Choctaw men in the Army's 36th Infantry Division trained to use their language in code.



















They helped the American Expeditionary Force win several key battles in the Meuse-Argonne Campaign in France, during the final big German push of the war. Within 24 hours after the Choctaw language was pressed into service, the tide of the battle had turned. In less than 72 hours the Germans were retreating and the Allies were in full attack.

These solders are now known as the Choctaw Code Talkers.


Use of Comanche

Adolf Hitler knew about the successful use of code talkers during World War I. He sent a team of some thirty anthropologists to learn Native American languages before the outbreak of World War II. However, it proved too difficult for them to learn the many languages and dialects that existed. Because of Nazi German anthropologists' attempts to learn the languages, the U.S. Army did not implement a large-scale code talker program in the European Theater. Fourteen Comanche code talkers took part in the Invasion of Normandy, and continued to serve in the 4th Infantry Division during further European operations.]  Comanches of the 4th Signal Company compiled a vocabulary of over 100 code terms using words or phrases in their own language. Using a substitution method similar to the Navajo, the Comanche code word for tank was "turtle", bomber was "pregnant airplane", machine gun was "sewing machine" and Adolf Hitler became "crazy white man."



















The Comanche Code Talkers were an elite group of young men who were fluent in the Comanche language and used that knowledge, along with the training they were given by the Army, to send critical messages that confused the enemy during World War II.  Seventeen young men were trained in communications, but only fourteen were deployed to the European theater.

Serving overseas were Roderick “Dick” Red Elk, Simmons Parker, Larry Saupitty, Melvin Permansu, Willie Yackeschi, Charles Chibitty, Willington Mihecoby, Morris Sunrise, Perry Noyebad, Haddon Codynah, Robert Holder, Clifford Otitivo, Forrest Kassanavoid and Elgin Red Elk.  They were recruited from Cache, Cement, Cyril, Fletcher, Indiahoma, Lawton and Walters.  Albert Nahquaddy, Anthony Tabbytite and Ralph Wahnee, who trained for the same role, did not serve overseas.

Two Comanche code-talkers were assigned to each regiment, the rest to 4th Infantry Division headquarters. Shortly after landing on Utah Beach on June 6, 1944, the Comanches began transmitting messages. Some were wounded but none were killed.






















In 1989, the French government awarded the Comanche code-talkers the Chevalier of the National Order of Merit. On 30 November 1999, the United States Department of Defense presented Charles Chibitty with the Knowlton Award.


Use of Meskwaki

Meskwaki men used their language against the Germans in North Africa. Twenty-seven Meskwaki, then 16% of Iowa's Meskwaki population, enlisted in the U.S. Army together in January 1941.
 



















Use of Basque

Captain Frank D. Carranza conceived the idea of using the Basque language for codes in May 1942 upon meeting about 60 US Marines of Basque ancestry in a San Francisco camp. His superiors were justifiably wary. There were 35 Basque Jesuits in Hiroshima, led by Pedro Arrupe. In China and the Philippines, there was a colony of Basque jai alai players and there were Basque supporters of Falange in Asia. The American Basque code talkers were kept from these theaters; they were initially used in tests and in transmitting logistic information for Hawaii and Australia.

On August 1, 1942, Lieutenants Nemesio Aguirre, Fernández Bakaicoa and Juanna received a Basque- coded message from San Diego for Admiral Chester Nimitz warning him of the upcoming Operation Apple to remove the Japanese from the Solomon Islands. They also translated the start date, August 7, for the attack on Guadalcanal. As the war extended over the Pacific, there was a shortage of Basque speakers and the parallel Navajo program came to be preferred.


Use of Navajo























During the early months of WWII, Japanese intelligence experts broke every code the US forces devised. They were able to anticipate American actions at an alarming rate. With plenty of fluent English speakers at their disposal, they sabotaged messages and issued false commands to ambush Allied troops. To combat this, increasingly complex codes were initiated. At Guadalcanal, military leaders finally complained that sending and receiving these codes required hours of encryption and decryption — up to two and a half hours for a single message. They rightly argued the military needed a better way to communicate.


The son of a Protestant missionary, Philip Johnston spent much of his childhood on the Navajo reservation. He grew up with Navajo children, learning their language and their customs. As an adult, Johnston became an engineer for the city of Los Angeles but also spent a considerable amount of his time lecturing about the Navajos.

Then one day, Philip Johnston was reading the newspaper when he noticed a story about an armored division in Louisiana that was attempting to come up with a way to code military communications using Native American personnel. He was a World War I veteran who knew of the military's search for a code that would withstand all attempts to decipher it. He also knew that Native American languages notably Choctaw had been used in World War I to encode messages. This story sparked an idea. The next day, Johnston headed to Camp Elliot (near San Diego) and presented his idea for a code to Lt. Col. James E. Jones, the Area Signal Officer.

Lt. Col. Jones was skeptical. Previous attempts at similar codes failed because Native Americans had no words in their language for military terms.

















Because Navajo has a complex grammar, is not nearly mutually intelligible enough with even its closest relatives within the Na-Dene family  to provide meaningful information, and was an unwritten language, Johnston saw Navajo as answering the military requirement for an undecipherable code. Navajo was spoken only on the Navajo lands of the American Southwest, and its syntax and tonal qualities, not to mention dialects, make it unintelligible to anyone without extensive exposure and training. One estimate indicates that at the outbreak of World War II fewer than 30 non-Navajos, none of them Japanese, could understand the language.

Early in 1942, Johnston met with Major General Clayton B. Vogel, the commanding general of Amphibious Corps, Pacific Fleet, and his staff. Johnston staged tests under simulated combat conditions which demonstrated that Navajos could encode, transmit, and decode a three-line English message in 20 seconds, versus the 30 minutes required by machines at that time. The idea was accepted, with Major General Vogel recommending that the Marines recruit 200 Navajos.

The first 29 Navajo recruits attended boot camp at Camp Pendleton, Oceanside, California in May 1942. This first group then created the Navajo code.

They developed a dictionary and numerous words for military terms. The dictionary and all code words had to be memorized

The Navajo code was formally developed and modeled on the Joint Army/Navy Phonetic Alphabet that uses agreed-upon English words to represent letters. As it was determined that phonetically spelling out all military terms letter by letter into words—while in combat—would be too time consuming, some terms, concepts, tactics and instruments of modern warfare were given uniquely formal descriptive nomenclatures in Navajo (the word for "potato" being used to refer to a hand grenade, or "tortoise" to a tank, for example). Several of these portmanteaus (such as gofasters referring to running shoes, ink sticks for pens) entered Marine corps vocabulary and are commonly used today to refer to the appropriate objects.




















A codebook was developed to teach the many relevant words and concepts to new initiates. The text was for classroom purposes only, and was never to be taken into the field. The code talkers memorized all these variations and practiced their rapid use under stressful conditions during training.

Uninitiated Navajo speakers would have no idea what the code talkers' messages meant; they would hear only truncated and disjointed strings of individual, unrelated nouns and verbs.


















Front Row, left to right: Roderick “Dick” Red Elk, Simmons Parker, Larry Saupitty, Melvin Permansu, Willie Yackeschi, Charles Chibitty and Willington Mihecoby.  Back Row, left to right: Morris Sunrise, Perry Noyebad, Ralph Wahnee, Haddon Codynah, Robert Holder, Albert Nahquaddy, Clifford Ototivo and Forrest Kassanavoid.  (not pictured: Elgin Red Elk and Anthony Tabbitite)

















Once a Navajo code talker completed his training, he was sent to a Marine unit deployed in the Pacific theater. The code talkers' primary job was to talk, transmitting information on tactics and troop movements, orders and other vital battlefield communications over telephones and radios. They also acted as messengers, and performed general Marine duties.




















Praise for their skill, speed and accuracy accrued throughout the war. At Iwo Jima, Major Howard Connor, 5th Marine Division signal officer, declared, "Were it not for the Navajos, the Marines would never have taken Iwo Jima." Major Connor had six Navajo code talkers working around the clock during the first two days of the battle. Those six sent and received over 800 messages, all without error.






































The Japanese, who were skilled code breakers, remained baffled by the Navajo language. The Japanese chief of intelligence, Lieutenant General Seizo Arisue, said that while they were able to decipher the codes used by the U.S. Army and Army Air Corps, they never cracked the code used by the Marines. The Navajo code talkers even stymied a Navajo soldier taken prisoner at Bataan. (About 20 Navajos served in the U.S. Army in the Philippines.) The Navajo soldier, forced to listen to the jumbled words of talker transmissions, said to a code talker after the war, "I never figured out what you guys who got me into all that trouble were saying."





















In 1942, there were about 50,000 Navajo tribe members. As of 1945, about 540 Navajos served as Marines. From 375 to 420 of those trained as code talkers; the rest served in other capacities.


The Navajo Code Talker's Dictionary

When a Navajo code talker received a message, what he heard was a string of seemingly unrelated Navajo words. The code talker first had to translate each Navajo word into its English equivalent. Then he used only the first letter of the English equivalent in spelling an English word. Thus, the Navajo words "wol-la-chee" (ant), "be-la-sana" (apple) and "tse-nill" (axe) all stood for the letter "a." One way to say the word "Navy" in Navajo code would be "tsah (needle) wol-la-chee (ant) ah-keh-di- glini (victor) tsah-ah-dzoh (yucca)."

















Most letters had more than one Navajo word representing them. Not all words had to be spelled out letter by letter. The developers of the original code assigned Navajo words to represent about 450 frequently used military terms that did not exist in the Navajo language. Several examples: "besh- lo" (iron fish) meant "submarine," "dah-he- tih-hi" (hummingbird) meant "fighter plane" and "debeh-li-zine" (black street) meant "squad."





















As the war progressed, additional code words were added on and incorporated program-wide. In other instances, informal short-cut code words were devised for a particular campaign and not disseminated beyond the area of operation. To ensure a consistent use of code terminologies throughout the Pacific Theater, representative code talkers of each of the U.S. Marine divisions met in Hawaii to discuss shortcomings in the code, incorporate new terms into the system, and update their codebooks. These representatives in turn trained other code talkers who could not attend the meeting.





















Guadalcanal, Tarawa, Peleliu, Iwo Jima: the Navajo code talkers took part in every assault the U.S. Marines conducted in the Pacific from 1942 to 1945. They served in all six Marine divisions, Marine Raider battalions and Marine parachute units, transmitting messages by telephone and radio in their native language a code that the Japanese never broke.






















The Navajo language was an excellent choice for the task, since there were no Navajo living outside of the United States and the language has never been studied by ethno-linguists. Prior to World War II, no known German or Japanese scientist studied the Navajo language. Moreover, the complex syntax of the language, paired with its elusive pronunciation provided a reliable protection against the Japanese decoders. In most cases, the decoders who were overhearing the transmissions were not even able to write down what they heard, not to speak of deciphering it.

The deployment of the Navajo code talkers continued through the Korean War and after, until it was ended early in the Vietnam War.


Department of Defense Honors Navajo Veterans
























Long unrecognized because of the continued value of their language as a security classified code, the Navajo code talkers of World War II were honored for their contributions to defense on Sept. 17, 1992, at the Pentagon, Washington, D.C.














Thirty-five code talkers, all veterans of the U.S. Marine Corps, attended the dedication of the Navajo code talker exhibit. The exhibit includes a display of photographs, equipment and the original code, along with an explanation of how the code worked.


















Dedication ceremonies included speeches by the then-Deputy Secretary of Defense Donald Atwood, U.S.
Senator John McCain of Arizona and Navajo President Peterson Zah. The Navajo veterans and their families traveled to the ceremony from their homes on the Navajo Reservation, which includes parts of Arizona, New Mexico and Utah.

























In November 24, 2001, the other approximately 400 Navajo Code Talkers were given the Silver Congressional Medal of Honor at Nakai Hall, Navajo Nation Fairgrounds, in Window Rock, AZ. Few Navajo Code Talkers were alive to attend. Instead many family members of deceased Navajo Code Talkers
accepted their medals.

























In 2003, Sylvia Laughter, while serving in the capacity as Arizona State Representative, and who is Navajo, successfully sponsored HB2104, "The Navajo Code Talker Monument" legislation. With the help of the Navajo Code Talker Memorial Foundation Inc., which Sylvia Laughter heads, and the Navajo Nation, one monument has been placed in Window Rock, Arizona, at the capitol of the Navajo Nation in 2004, and a second 16 foot Navajo Code Talker bronze monument was dedicated at the Arizona State Capitol in Phoenix, Arizona, on February 28, 2008.





















As mentioned there were other American Indians, such as the Hopi, Sioux, Choctaw, and Commanche, who
used their native languages as a code during World War I and World War II, for the U.S. Army.


















On October 15, 2008, the "Code Talkers Recognition Act of 2008, H.R. 4544" was signed by President Bush and became public law. 

This act required the issuance of medals to recognize the dedication and valor of Native American code talkers with the exception of the Navajo Code Talkers who received their Congressional Meals of Honor and recognition on July 26th and November 24th of 2001.

This is the third post in a row  of three heroes of the American Civil War. Two of them have the same name - "Andrew Jackson Smith".  One was a General and the other was a Corporal.  One was a white man and the other was a black man. Both of them are American Heroes.

Corpl, Andrew Jackson Smith


Corporal Andrew Jackson Smith (September 3, 1843 – March 4, 1932) was a Union Army soldier during the American Civil War and a recipient of America's highest military decoration the Medal of Honor for his actions at the Battle of Honey Hill.


Early Life

According to family history, Andrew Jackson Smith was born into slavery, the son of Susan, a slave, and Elijah Smith, a slave owner.

When A. J. Smith was ten years old, he was assigned by his owner to run a ferry transpor"ting people and supplies across the Cumberland River. Andy became known as a "Boatman and continued his craft for nearly eight years.

During this time A. J. Smith learned the river, its currents, and the people who crossed it. He also heard the talk about the War, and he saw the Yankee ships, the steamers, and the paddle wheelers. He was aware that the ships and the U.S. Troops were stationed up the river at "Smithland" where the Cumberland and the Ohio Rivers converged.


Civil War

Upon the outbreak of the Civil War, Andrew J. Smith's father and owner, Elijah Smith joined the Confederate military, with the intention of taking 19-year-old Andrew along with him. When Andrew J. Smith learned of this, he and another slave ran away, They walked the nearly 25 miles in freezing rain so cold that their soaked clothes froze to their bodies. They had to wait until daylight to present themselves to the 41st Illinois guards. They were admitted into the camp and given warm clothes and provided hot food. Andrew Smith later described joining the 41st as “falling in.”

Andrew Jackson Smith enlisted and was taken in by the 41st Illinois and became a servant to Major John Warner at the regiment's post in nearby Paducah, Kentucky.Major Warner and Andrew Smith had agreed that should the Major die in battle that Andrew would take the Major’s belongings to his home in Clinton, Illinois. The Major wrote home advising his family of this arrangement.

The 41st Illinois Volunteer Regiment moved on to Fort Henry for battle. The battle was short but successful. The fort fell and they captured Confederate General Lloyd Tillingham.

The 41st moved on to Fort Donelson where the unit encountered fierce resistance and lost over 200 men. On March 10, 1862, the 41st Regiment traveled to Pittsburg Landing (Shiloh). Prior to this battle, Major Warner had asked Andy Smith to observe him, and if he should fall, he wanted Andy to bring him water.

During the battle the Major had his mount shot from under him. When he got up, there was Andy with another mount. Shortly afterwards when the second mount was killed, Andy caught a Confederate horse and gave it to the Major. Andy asked if he could stay close to the battlefield. Before he could walk away he was struck by a spent minie ball that entered his left temple, rolled just under the skin, and stopped in the middle of his forehead. As Andy laid his head upon the regimental surgeon’s bloody apron, the surgeon removed the ball after which he pulled a sponge through the wound to cleanse it, leaving Andrew J. Smith with only a scar.

John Warner returned to Clinton, Illinois as a Colonel in November of 1862, along with Andrew who continued to serve him. Andrew J. Smith was in Clinton, Illinois when he heard the news that President Lincoln had  permitted black troops to fight for their freedom. Andy Smith left the safety of a free state to enroll in the 54th Massachusetts Colored Volunteers. Massachusetts’ Governor John Andrew had requested 1000 black men, and he got nearly 2,000 so quickly that he had to disband the 55th Massachusetts regulars to handle the overflow. The 55th was renamed to accommodate the colored recruits.

Andrew J. Smith and 55 other Illinois volunteers were mustered in the 55th Massachusetts Colored Volunteers. Andy mustered into Company ‘B’ on May 16, 1863. After the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Regiment’s engagement at Fort Wagner, South Carolina on July 18, 1863, the 54th and the 55th fought five military engagements together over the next three years. They fought both on and off the battlefield. They fought and won the battle for equal pay with white soldiers. But in order to receive his pay, a black soldier was required to nod his head (yes) when asked if he was free in 1861. Andy refused to nod and lie about his status prior to 1861 in order to receive his pay.

Andrew J. Smith was fortunate that he did not receive any other serious wounds during his 55th Massachusetts enlistment even though he served in the color bearer unit. He was always in the thick of battle and volunteered for many raids among the islands along the South Carolina and Georgia coasts.

By November 30, 1864, Andrew Jackson Smith was serving as a corporal in the 55th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry. On that day, both the 55th and its sister regiment, the 54th Massachusetts, participated in the Battle of Honey Hill in South Carolina. The two units came under heavy fire while crossing a swamp in front of an elevated Confederate position. Andy won his distinction at the Battle of Honey Hill, South Carolina when the flag bearer was blown to bits by an exploding shell. Andy caught the falling Color Sergeant Robert King with one hand and snatched the flag with the other. Lieutenant Ellsworth who was the commander at the time screamed at Smith, “For God’s sake, save the flag!” Smith carried the colors during the rest of the battle.


























As he was leaving the field at Honey Hill, the regimental color sergeant was wounded, and Andy left the field of battle bearing both flags. Had his actions been properly recorded that day, he certainly would have been rewarded with the Mdeal of Honor for his bravery under fire.

The regimental commander, Colonel Hartwell was severely wounded and carried from battle early in the fighting. He was forced to complete his battle report at his home while recuperating from his wounds. Had the colonel been present for the remainder of the battle, he may have reacted differently to Andy’s bravery.

Andy was promoted to Color Sergeant soon after the battle. The 55th Massachusetts Colored remained in the area and was later detailed as provost guard at Orangeburg, South Carolina. Andy received his final discharged at Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina on August 29, 1865 and was sent to Boston on the Steamer Karnac for his formal mustering out.

Dr Burt G. Wilder who was the regimental surgeon for the 55th Massachusetts began a lifelong correspondence with Andrew J. Smith in hopes of securing the cherished Medal of Honor for Andy’s bravery at Honey Hill. So many of the officers were wounded and taken from the battlefield that the battle was never fully documented and Andrew Jackson Smith’s heroics could not be certified.


























After the War, Andy went back to Clinton, Illinois for a short period. He later returned to Eddyville, Kentucky where he used his mustering out pay to buy land.






































Andrew Jackson Smith died on March 4, 1932, at the age 88.  Andrew Jackson Smith was buried in Mount Pleasant Cemetery, Grand Rivers, Kentucky.




















Corp. Andrew Jackson Smith was nominated for the Medal of Honor in 1916, but the Army denied the nomination, citing a lack of official records documenting his case. Corp. Smith's commander at Honey Hill had not included an account of Smith's actions in the official battle report.






































Andrew Jackson Smith, Color Sergeant, 55TH Massachusettts Volunteer Infantry, Medal of Honor recipient.

It was not until January 16, 2001, 137 years after the Battle of Honey Hill, that Smith was to be recognized. President Bill Clinton presented the Medal of Honor to several of Smith's descendants during a ceremony at the White House. Former President Theodore Roosevelt was also posthumously awarded the medal at the same ceremony, for his actions during the Spanish- American War.



Medal of Honor















Citation:

Corporal Andrew Jackson Smith, of Clinton, Illinois, a member of the 55th Massachusetts Voluntary Infantry, distinguished himself on 30 November 1864 by saving his regimental colors, after the color bearer was killed during a bloody charge called the Battle of Honey Hill, South Carolina. In the late afternoon, as the 55th Regiment pursued enemy skirmishers and conducted a running fight, they ran into a swampy area backed by a rise where the Confederate Army awaited. The surrounding woods and thick underbrush impeded infantry movement and artillery support. The 55th and 54th regiments formed columns to advance on the enemy position in a flanking movement. As the Confederates repelled other units, the 55th and 54th regiments continued to move into flanking positions. Forced into a narrow gorge crossing a swamp in the face of the enemy position, the 55th's Color-Sergeant was killed by an exploding shell, and Corporal Smith took the Regimental Colors from his hand and carried them through heavy grape and canister fire. Although half of the officers and a third of the enlisted men engaged in the fight were killed or wounded, Corporal Smith continued to expose himself to enemy fire by carrying the colors throughout the battle. Through his actions, the Regimental Colors of the 55th Infantry Regiment were not lost to the enemy.

Corporal Andrew Jackson Smith's extraordinary valor in the face of deadly enemy fire is in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon him, the 55th Regiment, and the United States Army.



















(Some of this information is from Andrew S. Bowman, the grandson of Andrew J. Smith. His information has come from original documents that have been preserved by his aunt, Caruth Smith - Washington, daughter of Andrew J. Smith . Other sources of information include the “Record of the Service of the Fifty-Fifth Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry.” Cambridge: Press of John Wilson and Son, July, 1868.)

Thomas Ward Custer


Thomas Ward Custer (March 15, 1845 – June 25, 1876) was a United States Army officer and two-time recipient of the Medal of Honor in the US Civil War. He was a younger brother of General George Custer, perishing with him at the Battle of the Little Big Horn on "Last Stand Hill", June 25, 1876.














Thomas Ward Custer was born on March 15, 1845, in New Rumley, Ohio, a small village near the  Virginia (now West Virginia) border. He was the fifth son of the second marriages of Emanuel Custer and Maria Ward Kirkpatrick.


















Their first two offspring having died in infancy, Tom arrived in a family which then consisted of older brothers George Armstrong (born in 1839) and Nevin Johnson (born 1842), plus several half brothers and sisters. Maria and Emanuel had two more children, Boston (1848) and Margaret Emma (1852). Margaret (Maggie) later married James Calhoun and was fated to lose three brothers and a husband on that tragic day in 1876.


























Tom Custer successfully enlisted in the Union Army in 1861, at age 16, after lying about his age in a previous attempt while he was still 15.  He enlisted  as a Private, Company H, 15th Ohio Infantry in Sepember 1861. He served three years as an enlisted man prior to being commissioned Second Lieutenant of Troop B, 6th Michigan Cavalry in 1864.

At the Battle of Stone's River (Murfreesboro) on December 31, Colonel John F. Miller's brigade, containing the 21st Ohio, was in the centre of the Federal line.






















As "the battle raged with uninterrupted fury" around them, the officers and men of the regiment "universally fought with desperation and bravery", according to their Colonel, James M. Neibling. At one point they repulsed a bayonet charge. But when the hard-pressed units on the Army's right flank gave way, the brigade was forced back too.

The next two freezing nights were spent on the field, both sides reforming and altering position, before action resumed on January 2. Once again the Northerners soon fell back in disarray, but then the enemy attack began to lose momentum. Seizing the opportunity, and without waiting for authorisation from his superiors, Miller ordered his brigade to charge across the river to support the beleaguered units. The 21st Ohio, Neibling reported, "although... much impeded by the disorganized flight of infantry, artillery, and riderless horses... reached the opposite bank of Stone's River and engaged the enemy.





















This was to be the only full-scale fight which Tom Custer saw with his regiment, for in April 1863 he managed to get himself assigned to escort duty on the staff of Major General James S. Negley, the 21st Ohio's division commander.

Many years later, General Negley told Libbie Custer (Autie's widow) that he remembered Tom as "a splendid soldier" and "bore testimony in unstinted words to the courage and fidelity of the lad". No doubt the high-spirited but hard-working Tom had exactly the right character to appeal to Negley who was "a huge, handsome man who radiated good will without losing firmness."


























For his part, Tom Cuter was delighted to be back in the saddle instead of slogging with the foot soldiers. He was in Negley's escort at the Battle of Chickamauga, but this was not, it would be fair to say, Negley's finest hour. On September 20, the General chose to retreat to Rossville at a time when he was needed to support the Federal left flank. Whether his judgment was impaired due to the physical illness which nearly kept him from the battlefield that day, or whether he was only doing the best he could in view of the fact that he had lost contact with most of his troops, the result was that he was immediately removed from duty until a Court of Enquiry could consider his case the following January. The Court exonerated him of all blame but his days of active service were over.





















Tom Custer was probably lucky not to have been fighting with the 21st Ohio at Chickamauga. They did not retreat with Negley but stayed until the last, and were one of the final Federal units to withdraw. Armed with Colt revolving rifles, they used up over 43,000 rounds of ammunition, but were eventually almost surrounded by the enemy and had to cut their way out with a bayonet charge. Their casualties numbered nearly half the regiment: 28 killed, 84 wounded and 131 captured or missing.

Among the wounded was Liberty Warner, who was captured and later paroled. His enthusiasm for a fight had quickly disappeared. A month after the battle, he wrote: "Oh, the scenes of blood that I have seen. I wish that they could cease, not that I fear it, but it so hardens a person, a dead man seems no more than a dead sheep or a log of wood."



























Tom Custer proceeded to serve in the escorts of a succession of generals over the ensuing months. At Missionary Ridge and Chattanooga, from November 20, he was on the staff of Major General U.S. Grant himself.

After a furlough, during which he attended the wedding of brother Armstrong to Elizabeth (Libbie) Bacon on February 9 in Monroe, Michigan, Tom spent only a short period back with his regiment before joining the staff of the Fourteenth Corps' Gen. John M. Palmer for the Atlanta Campaign. He was with General Palmer in time for the Battle of Kennesaw Mountain on June 27.

Following Palmer's resignation in early August over a ranking disagreement, Tom Custer stayed on at Fourteenth Corps Headquarters, under General Jefferson C. Davis, for the Battle of Jonesboro on September 1.

Tom Custer was with the Fourteenth Corps as it and the rest of William Tecumseh Sherman's forces pursued John Bell Hood's Confederate army into Alabama. By late October, Sherman was at Gaylesville, and it was here that Tom Custer, who had risen to the rank of corporal on his January re-enlistment, received news of a much more significant promotion.

George Armstrong Custer, was a Brigadier General of Volunteers commanding Third Cavalry Brigade, Army of the Potomac, and obviously pulled some strings, since Tom Custer was appointed an Aide-de-Camp on George's staff upon his arrival and served at that position for the remainder of the war.


























Thomas Custer was the first man to be awarded two Medals of Honor, both for capturing Confederate regimental flags. His first was for action near Namozine Church, Virginia on April 3, 1865. Tom’s unit ran into a Confederate stronghold in a church building. Tom led his men straight over the Rebel barricade, and single-handedly captured fourteen of the enemy. 





















Three days later  at Sayler's Creek, Virginia, he was to lead a similar charge. This time, however, a second line of Confederates were waiting. Undeterred by the heavy fire, Tom Custer spurred his horse forward, intent on taking the Confederate flag. Streaking toward the flag bearer, Tom Custer reached for his prize. Just then, the flag bearer raised his pistol and fired at point blank range. The bullet tore through Tom’s cheek.
Still, he managed to kill the Confegerate flag bearer and gallop back to his own lines with the flag. Racing back to safety he yelled to his brother, “Armstrong, the damned Rebels have shot me. But I’ve got my flag.” He was so intent on returning to the battle that his brother had to arrest him to get him to go to the wounded area. For his heroism on that day, Tom Custer was to receive his second Medal of Honor  - three days apart.


























Tom Custer was just 1 of 19 two-time winners in U.S. history. Ironically his older brother, George Armstrong Custer, was the first Union soldier to capture an enemy flag in the Civil War.

Thomas Ward Custer distinguished himself by winning successively the brevets of captain, major, and lieutenant colonel, although he was barely twenty years of age when the Civil War ended.

Tom was mustered out of Volunteer Service as a Brevet Major in November 1865. Tom then secured a commission as Second Lieutenant, First U. S. Infantry in February 1866. When the Seventh Cavalry was formed five months later, his brother George was appointed Lieutenant Colonel of the regiment and secured a transfer and promotion for Brother Tom. The two served together for the remainder of their lives.

Tom Custer was also wounded at Washita in 1868, and served in the Yellowstone Expedition of 1873, and the Black Hills Expedition of 1874.

Their first encounter with Indians came in mid 1867 as they chased hostiles through the unforgiving Kansas plains. The marching was long and draining. As men began to desert, George decided to implement a no holds barred policy on desertion. When thirteen men ran off on July 13, George sent out Tom and others to bring them back, telling them that none were to be brought back alive. For this George Custer was to be court martialled and suspended for a period of one year.

In 1868 George returned for the Washita Campaign. When the Seventh rode upon Black Kettle’s village Tom was first lieutenant of Company D – who were assigned to a squadron under command of Captain Louis Hamilton. Hamilton was subsequently killed in the Battle.



















Officers of the 7th Cavalry.


The Seventh was assigned to Fort Abraham Lincoln, near Bismarck, Dakota. Throughout this period some of Tom’s vices became apparent, His drinking had degenerated into alcoholism.


















George Armstrong Custer (blue dot) and Thomas Ward Custer (orange dot) at "Autie" Custer's quarters at Fort Abraham Lincoln, North Dakota in November 1873, with Seventh Cavalry officers and family, including the George's wife Elizabeth, and their brother in law Capt. James C. Calhoun and his wife Margaret (Custer) Calhoun.





















Tom Custer had never married. His fiance, Lulie Burgess, died before their wedding. Tom Custer spent most of  his time with his brother and sister in-law, Elizabeth Bacon Custer.







































In 1873,  the Yellowstone Campaign. The Sioux tried to trap Custer’s men. Just in time the calvary fell back, but not before four men, one of which was a doctor, were cut off from the rest and subsequently were killed.

About a year later, it was reported that a Sioux Warrior named Rain in the Face was at the Standing Rock Agency boasting of killing the four white men. Tom Custer was sent to arrest him. During the arrest Tom Custer humiliated Rain in the Face by slapping and hitting him. Later the warrior escaped and vowed that he would one day rip out Tom Custer’s heart.Thomas Ward Custer was promoted to Captain in 1875 and was given a command in the 7th Cavalry.























The Seventh Cavalry was a vital part of the 1876 Campaign to defeat the hostile Sioux. They were to be part of a pincer movement under the command of General Alfred Terry. On June 22, Gen. Terry ordered George Custer south from the Yellowstone River. Then the Seventh Cavalry rode off towards the Valley of the Little Big Horn. Soon the trail of a large village was found.

Ignoring the warnings of his Indian scouts George Custer decided to attack. He split his command into three, with Major Marcus Reno to attack the village from the front, while Captain Frederick Benteen scouted the hills to the south. George Custer would take Five Companies and attack from the west.

What happened from there is a matter of conjecture. Tom Custer was in charge of Company C, who accompanied George and four other Companies. It appears that Tom’s Company got caught in a deep ravine by the hords of Indians who swarmed upon them.
















There are some situations, however, where bravery, excellent judgment and fast reactions are not enough, as was the case on June 25, 1876, when five companies of the 7th Cavalry were wiped out to a man by the Sioux and Cheyenne, at the Battle of the Little Big Horn. Thomas Ward Custer died with his brothers. His body was found a few yards from George Armstrong Custer, while nearby were the remains of another young brother, Boston Custer (a civilian guide on the expedition). A brother inlaw First Lieutenant James Calhoun, commander of Company L, was lying elsewhere on the field.

Thomas Custer's body had been so heavily mutilated it was only possible to identify him by means of a tattoo he was known to have had  – a flag, the goddess of liberty and the initials T.W.C. 

Ironically, First Lieutenant Edward S. Godfrey, who identified Tom's mangled remains, had, like him, been a soldier in the 21st Ohio, back in 1861.

The gravediggers buried Tom Custer alongside his brother George on "Last Stand Hill" where they died during the "Battle of the Little Big Horn".


























It was widely rumored that Rain In The Face, who had escaped from captivity, after being arrested by Tom Custer, and was a participant at the Little Bighorn, had cut out Tom Custer's heart and eaten it as revenge. Years later Rain In The Face denied such an action stating "I wouldn’t eat a white man’s stinking heart.".





















Like the others on the battlefield, a marble marker rests at the approximate place where Tom Custer's body was found. Tom and General Custer’s markers are next to each on Last Stand Hill. The General died a little higher on the hill, near the Monument. Some say they were buried in the same battlefield grave.


















Access road to the Custer Battlefield  site.



















Battlefield Marker Stones which are located where each body was found.


























Thomas Custer was exhumed the next year and reburied in the Fort Leavenworth National Cemetery.






















Funeral and burial service for Thomas Ward Custer and his brother in law, James Calhoun, at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, on Aug. 4, 1877.This picture was originally published in Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper, on Sept. 8, 1877.






















The Civil War and the Indian fighting career of Thomas Ward Custer has been overshadowed by the exploits of his older brother George Armstrong Custer. Tom Custer's bravery in battle, possibly even exceeded that of  his older brother George.. General Custer would often state, that it was his brother Tom Custer who should have been the general, not himself.



























Thomas Ward Custer’s career stands on it’s own merits.