Letter of Philip Johnston to the Commander of the U.S. Marine Corps
Philip Johnston was the man who recommended the use of the Navajos in World War II. This is the letter he wrote
2335 Norwalk Avenue
Los Angeles, Calif.
Sept. 12, 1942
The Commander
United States Marine Corps
Washington, DC
Dear Sir,
I desire the enlistment in the Marine Corps Reserve, Class
5-B Specialist, to serve in the capacity of training and direction of Navajo
Indian personnel for communication, and to perform duty with them both inside
and outside the limits of the continental United Stated; with non-commissioned
rank commensurate with duties assigned.
Your authority for my induction into the service is
requested. The basis for this request is as follows:
Twenty -Two years of residence among the Navajo Indians,
starting when I was four years of age, enabled me to become fluent in the
language of this tribe. At the age of nine, I acted as interpreter for President
Theodore Roosevelt at the White House; and subsequently, on many occasions, as a
court interpreter in Arizona. Since establishing my residence here, I have
continued my use of the language through frequent visits to the reservation, and
lecture work................
Last February, it occurred to me that the Navajo language
might be ideally suited to use by the Marine Corps for code in oral
communication. I presented this idea to Lieutenant Colonel (then Major) J.E.
Jones, Force Communication Officer at Camp Elliott, who agreed the plan was
worth considering. I offered to make a search in Los Angeles for enough Navajos
to permit a practical demonstration, and Colonel Jones accepted my offer. Two
days after my return to the city, I received a letter from him stating that
General Vogel was interested and requested further information..................
On February 27th, I arrived at Camp Elliott with four
Navajos; a fifth had been located in the Naval service at San Diego and brought
to camp Elliott. The following morning at 8:15, Colonel Jones gave me six
typical messages used in military operations, and asked me to report at
Divisional Headquarters at nine o' clock for the demonstration. These messages
contained many terms for which no equivalents exist in the Navajo Language, and
we had only a short time to devise such terms. The demonstration was held as
scheduled.............
Actual letter written by Philip Johnston which recommended the use of Navajos for communication.