Personal Narrative Film, Video Manuscript/Mixed Material Photo, Print, Drawing Chester Nez Collection

Veterans History Project Service Summary:
- War or Conflict: World War, 1939-1945; Korean War, 1950-1953
- Branch of Service: Marine Corps
- Unit of Service: 1st Marine Division; 3rd Marine Division
- Location of Service: Camp Pendleton, California; Pearl Harbor, Hawaii; Guadalcanal (Solomon Islands); Bougainville Island (Solomon Islands); Guam (Mariana Islands); Peleliu Island (Palau); Pacific Theater; Korea
- Highest Rank: Corporal
During World War II, Marine recruiters came to a high school in Tuba City, Arizona, in search of Navajos to participate in a secret program. Chester Nez was one of the young men who volunteered, and he passed through rigorous training and testing to become one of the Code Talkers, who used their native language to confound Japanese who were intercepting American communications. Nez outlines in detail how 29 young recruits assembled a complex code that helped win the war. He recalls being mistaken for the enemy and having a gun held to his head by an overeager soldier.
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PlayMarine Corps recruiters came to his high school campus; he and his roommate decided to join; wanted to leave the reservation “to see something different,” to defend his country and his people. 00:01:03.1 - 00:03:51.3
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PlayA lot of Navajo recruits didn't have a good education and didn’t speak English well; when he started training at Camp Elliott, the number had been winnowed down to 29 Navajos; near the end of training, major told them about the nature of their mission and how they would develop a code in their own language; he left them on their own and they spent the rest of the day working out how the code would operate; would use animal, bird, and sea creature names; for example, a whale could stand for a torpedo or a battleship; did not know at the beginning what a big secret this project was. 00:07:47.4 - 00:17:21.7
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PlayOn August 16, 1968, he saw an article in a newspaper about the code; when they were discharged, they were told not to talk about the code, and this was the first time it had gone public, because the information had been declassified. 00:18:00.0 - 00:19:49.3
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PlayLanding on Guadalcanal with the First Marine Division; had left San Diego with no announced destination; he began wondering why he had joined the Corps and whether he would make it back; buddy he trained with was killed on first day they landed; camaraderie with other Navajos helped ease his fears. 00:24:18.4 - 00:33:52.9
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PlayMistaken for Japanese; he and a buddy stopped by a couple of Marines; one held a .45 to his head and the other was holding a rifle on his buddy; his C.O. cleared it up; Nez thought they were going to be killed. 00:34:52.0 - 00:36:32.6
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PlayCarried a TBX radio for a time, then walkie-talkies; on Bougainville, creating Navajo fry bread, batter mixed in a steel helmet. 00:45:30.2 - 00:49:35.9
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PlayWants younger generation to know about Code Talkers. 01:02:48.5 - 01:03:32.7
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PlayWas mistreated by the Bureau of Indian Affairs at the boarding school he attended; small rations; told not to speak their own language; that was what was satisfying about his service and the Code Talker program; unhappy about past mistreatment of Indians; still, if he were younger, he would volunteer to serve in Iraq because somebody has to defend this country. 01:09:40.6 - 01:14:53.9
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About this Item
Title
- Chester Nez Collection
Names
- Navajo Code Talker's Project
- Chalmers Ford, Don
- Nez, Chester
- Fleming, Carol
- Warren C. Salomon
State of Birth
- NM
Home State
- NM
Headings
- - Nez, Chester
- - World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal Narratives
- - United States. Marine Corps.
- - Korean War, 1950-1953 -- Personal Narratives
- - United States. Marine Corps.
Notes
- - Veteran states that he was born "on his cousin's brother's trading post."
Repository
- Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress
Gender
- Male
Status
- Veteran
Service History
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World War, 1939-1945
- Branch of Service: Marine Corps
- Unit of Service: 1st Marine Division; 3rd Marine Division
- Location of Service: Camp Pendleton, California; Pearl Harbor, Hawaii; Guadalcanal (Solomon Islands); Bougainville Island (Solomon Islands); Guam (Mariana Islands); Peleliu Island (Palau); Pacific Theater
- Highest Rank: Corporal
- Dates of Service: 1942-1945
- Entrance into Service: Enlisted
- Military Status: Veteran
- Service History Note: The veteran was a Navajo Code Talker and he received the Congressional Gold Medal.
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Korean War, 1950-1953
- Branch of Service: Marine Corps
- Location of Service: Korea
- Dates of Service: 1950-1951
- Military Status: Veteran
Materials
- Video: DVD [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 10/01/2003)
- Video: DVD [1 item] -- Reference copy (collected 10/01/2003)
- Video: DVD [1 item] -- Reference copy (collected 10/01/2003)
Collection Number
- AFC/2001/001/54891
Cite as
- Chester Nez Collection (AFC/2001/001/54891), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress
Online Format
- image
- online text
- video
Additional Metadata Formats
Part of
Wars & Conflicts
Service Branch
Location of Service
- Bougainville Island (Solomon Islands)
- Camp Pendleton, California
- Guadalcanal (Solomon Islands)
- Guam (Mariana Islands)
- Korea
- Pacific Theater
- Pearl Harbor, Hawaii
- Peleliu Island (Palau)