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Charles Chibitty
Charles Chibitty
Charles Chibitty
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Charles Joyce Chibitty (November 20, 1921 – July 20, 2005) was a Native American and United States Army code talker in World War II, who helped transmit coded messages in the Comanche (Nʉmʉnʉʉ) language on the battlefield as a radio operator in the European Theater of the war.

Key Information

In 2013, Native American Code Talkers of World War I and II, represented by 33 Native American tribes, received the Congressional Gold Medal from the President of the United States at the U.S. Capitol. The Comanche code talkers were credited with saving the lives of thousands of American and Allied personnel.[1]

Biography

[edit]
Chibitty (front row, second from right) with fellow U.S. Army code talkers

Chibitty was born in a small tent outside of Medicine Park, Oklahoma, a city located 14 miles north-west of Lawton.[2][3][4] He attended Fort Sill Indian School as a child. While a high school student at the Haskell Indian School in Lawrence, Kansas, [2][3][4] he constantly heard reports concerning the rise of Nazi Germany throughout Europe, and while he was home during Christmas break in 1940, his mother granted him permission to enlist in the United States Army.[2][4] The U.S. Army was searching for American Indians including Comanche Indians for the Signal Corps in late 1940, and in 1941, to serve as code talkers in the European Theatre.

He entered military service on January 2, 1941, and was assigned to the 4th Infantry Division at Fort Benning, Georgia. After basic training, he was assigned to the 4th Signal Company at Fort Benning where 17 Comanche Nation code talkers were to develop a secret code to prevent German forces from deciphering U.S. military messages.[2][4] In late December, he was next sent with the division to then-Camp Gordon (Fort Gordon), Georgia. Chibitty served at Camp Gordon with the other hand-picked Comanche Indians who began training at Fort Benning as army radio operators and line repairmen.[1] In April 1943, he and 13 of the other code talkers were next sent with the 4th Infantry Division to Fort Dix, New Jersey, Camp Gordon Johnston, Florida, Fort Jackson, South Carolina, and Camp Kilmer, New Jersey, to stage for the European Theater.[5] On January 18, 1944, the 4th Infantry Division shipped out of New York for England for more training and arrived January 26. In England, the division trained as the spearhead amphibious division for the invasion of Normandy.

Chibitty and 12 other Comanche code talkers from the 4th Signal Company were reassigned to be with the landing infantry regiments, division artillery, and division headquarters. The other code talker (Sgt. Morris Sunrise), was transferred to another division. The 13 Comanche code talkers in the 4th Division, including Cpl. (T/5) Chibitty, landed at Utah Beach in Normandy, France, on June 6, 1944 ("D-Day").[1][6] Assigned to the 22nd Infantry Regiment,[5] the first words sent from Chibitty on the beach to his command unit in Comanche talk that day were interpreted in English as:[7][5]

"Five miles to the right of the designated area and five miles inland, the fighting is fierce, and we need help."

The 14 Comanche code talkers participated in the Battle of Normandy, Battle of the Bulge, and other battles.[2] Although none of the code talkers were killed in action, several were wounded in action, including Chibitty and his first cousin,[8] Pfc. Larry Saupitty.

In 1989, Chibitty and Comanche code talkers Roderick Red Elk and Forrest Kassanavoid were presented with the Chevalier of the Ordre National du Mérite, and named Knights of the National Order of Merit by the French government;[3] the 14 deceased Comanche Code Talkers were also included in the recognition-award ceremony. The role of Comanche code talkers in World War II was not recognized by the United States until 1999, in which Chibbity received the Knowlton Award from The Pentagon as the last surviving Comanche code talker.[2][3][4]

Wikinews has related news:

Chibitty, who was the last living Comanche code talker,[9] died due to diabetes complications on July 20, 2005, at a hospital in Tulsa.[2][4] He is buried at Floral Haven Memorial Gardens in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma.

Military awards

[edit]

Chibitty's decorations and awards include the following:[10]

  Combat Infantryman Badge
Bronze Star Medal w/ bronze oak leaf cluster
Purple Heart
Bronze oak leaf cluster
 Army Presidential Unit Citation w/ bronze oak leaf cluster
Army Good Conduct Medal
American Defense Service Medal
American Campaign Medal
Arrowhead
Silver star
 European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal w/ Arrowhead device and 3⁄16" silver campaign star
World War II Victory Medal
Army of Occupation Medal
French National Order of Merit
French Croix de Guerre w/ bronze palm
French Liberation Medal
Belgian Fourragère

Other awards and honors

[edit]
  • The Thomas Knowlton Award – Established in 1995, by the Military Intelligence Corps Association in support of the Military Intelligence Corps. Chibitty was officially awarded the "Knowlton 1776" silver medal with blue neck ribbon on November 22, 1999.[11]
  • Congressional Silver Medal – Native American Code Talkers. Native American Code Talkers from 25 (33 tribes are eligible) tribes who served in World War I and II were awarded the Congressional Gold Medal on November 20, 2013, at the U.S. Capitol. Each tribe received a gold medal representing their tribe ("Comanche Nation Code Talker" medal) and each code talker of the tribe or their next of kin received a Congressional silver duplicate medal. Seven more tribes/code talkers were to receive medals at a future date.[12][13][14]
  • Oklahoma Military Hall of Fame – Charles Chibitty, 2001, and 14 "Comanche Code Talkers" who served in the European Theater during World War II including Chibitty, 2011.[15][16]
  • Code Talker Hall, Comanche Code Talkers mural – Fort Sill, Oklahoma, 2015[17]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
Revisions and contributorsEdit on WikipediaRead on Wikipedia

Charles Chibitty

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from Grokipedia

Charles Joyce Chibitty (November 20, 1921 – July 20, 2005) was a Comanche Nation member and the last surviving from the Army's Comanche contingent during , employing the to encode and transmit unbreakable military messages in the European Theater.
Enlisting in the Army in January 1941, Chibitty underwent training at Fort Benning, Georgia, before assignment to the 4th Signal Company of the 4th Division, where he contributed to developing a Comanche military vocabulary of over 100 terms for secure communications that enemy forces never deciphered. His service included participation in the D-Day landings at on June 6, 1944, relaying urgent messages such as requests for reinforcements amid intense fighting, as well as subsequent engagements like the Battle of , the Hürtgen Forest campaign, the , and the rescue of a surrounded battalion. Among his decorations were for wounds sustained in combat, the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with five battle stars, and later French commendations including the ; post-war, he received tribal honors and taught the while performing traditional dances to preserve .

Early Life and Background

Birth and Family Origins

Charles Joyce Chibitty was born on November 20, 1921, in Medicine Park, . Some accounts specify his birth occurred in a small outside the town, near the Mount Scott and Porter Hill areas. Chibitty was the son of John Chibitty, born September 16, 1890, in , and Dana Pekiyou Chibitty, born in 1896. His family belonged to the , with roots tied to land allotments granted after the disestablishment of the Kiowa-Comanche-Apache Reservation, including areas east of Mount Scott in Paradise Valley where they raised cattle and horses. On his mother's side, Chibitty descended from the Comanche leader Chief Ten Bears. He grew up speaking the fluently within this tribal context.

Education and Cultural Upbringing

Charles Chibitty was born on November 20, 1921, in a near , to parents of the Nation, a Plains Indian tribe historically known for their nomadic warrior culture and equestrian skills. Raised in the Mount Scott and Porter Hill areas, Chibitty grew up immersed in Comanche traditions, including fluency in the Numunu language spoken at home and participation in cultural practices such as war dancing, where he achieved recognition as a champion dancer. This upbringing reflected the tribe's oral traditions and communal values, though it occurred amid broader U.S. government assimilation policies aimed at eroding Native American cultural autonomy during the early 20th century. Chibitty's formal education began at the Indian School in , a boarding institution where Native children were subjected to strict disciplinary measures, including for speaking indigenous languages. He later attended high school at (then Haskell Institute) in , another federal off-reservation boarding school enforcing English-only policies to promote , which prohibited the use of and resulted in suppression of his native tongue during school hours. These experiences highlighted the tension between his heritage—fostered in the home environment—and the institutional efforts to replace it with Anglo-American norms, a common practice in Indian boarding schools from the late 19th to mid-20th centuries.

Military Career

Enlistment and Initial Training

Charles Chibitty enlisted in the United States Army on January 2, 1941, at the age of 19, following permission obtained from his mother during the break of 1940 and encouragement from his father. He was one of approximately 17 men recruited between December 1940 and February 1941 to serve as code talkers, with the group selected for their native language proficiency to develop secure communications. Upon enlistment, Chibitty was assigned as a private to the 4th Infantry Division's 4th Signal Company at Fort Benning, Georgia, where he joined 16 other recruits. The recruits underwent basic training at Fort Benning from to August 1941, focusing on standard infantry skills and signal operations, during which time the Comanche code talkers began developing their encrypted language system based on the Comanche . Chibitty adapted readily to , leveraging his prior experience in ranch work and familiarity with physical demands. Following basic training, the code talkers, including Chibitty, awaited further assignment while refining their code at Fort Benning, ensuring it remained unbreakable by enemy forces through animal names, phonetic substitutions, and cultural references unintelligible to outsiders. This initial phase laid the groundwork for their specialized role, distinct from standard signal training, as the recognized the strategic value of indigenous languages for battlefield communications.

World War II Combat Service

Chibitty, as a Technician Fifth Grade in the 4th Signal Company of the 4th Infantry Division, landed at Utah Beach on June 6, 1944, during the D-Day invasion with the 22nd Infantry Regiment. Amidst fierce combat, he and fellow Comanche Code Talkers transmitted secure messages in their native language via radio and field telephone to relay frontline conditions and request support. His initial transmission stated: "Five miles to the right of the designated area and five miles inland, the fighting is fierce, and we need help." In subsequent operations, Chibitty maintained wire communications under fire, directed artillery and naval gunfire, and coordinated tactical movements across the European Theater. He participated in key battles such as the St. Lô breakthrough, , the offensive, and the , contributing to the rescue of isolated units like the "lost battalion." These efforts supported the division's advances in , Northern France, the , Ardennes-Alsace, and campaigns. For his combat service, Chibitty received five campaign battle stars and the Purple Heart after being wounded in action. The Comanche code's undecipherable nature ensured reliable, secure signaling that evaded enemy interception throughout these engagements.

Role in Comanche Code Talker Program

Charles Chibitty was recruited in December 1940 as one of seventeen Comanche fluent in their native language to serve as code talkers for the U.S. Army, enlisting on January 2, 1941, after obtaining his mother's permission. Assigned to the 4th Signal Company of the 4th Infantry Division, he underwent basic training at Fort Benning, Georgia, followed by specialized instruction at Signal School in Fort Gordon, Georgia, where he learned radio operation alongside other Comanche recruits. Under the direction of 2nd Lt. Hugh F. Foster starting in April 1941, the group developed a Type One code system using the , which featured approximately 100 to 250 terms for military concepts—such as "wakareée" (turtle) for tank and "crazy white man" for —while spelling out proper names and places with arbitrary words to obscure meaning further. This system, transmitted via radio or , proved unbreakable by Axis forces due to the language's complexity and rarity outside Native speakers, enabling secure frontline communications that bypassed vulnerable English codes. Chibitty's duties included relaying encoded messages from combat positions to command posts, laying communication wires under fire, and occasionally engaging in direct combat with his weapon when signal operations permitted. Deployed to the European Theater, he participated in key operations, landing at Utah Beach on D-Day, June 6, 1944, where he transmitted one of the first messages: "Five miles to the right of the designated area and five miles inland, the fighting is fierce, and we need help," alerting commanders to intense enemy resistance and artillery positions. His service extended through battles at St. Lo, Huertgen Forest, the Battle of the Bulge, and the rescue of a "lost battalion," contributing to unbroken secure lines that supported Allied advances across France, Belgium, Luxembourg, and Germany until his discharge on July 3, 1945. The program's secrecy persisted postwar, with formal U.S. recognition delayed until 1999.

Post-War Life and Achievements

Civilian Career and Community Involvement

Following his honorable discharge from the U.S. Army on July 3, 1945, at the rank of , Chibitty returned to and pursued further education before establishing a civilian career as a , specializing in the installation of glass windows in homes and buildings. He resided primarily in Tulsa, where he worked in this trade for many years. In addition to his professional work, Chibitty remained deeply engaged in cultural and community activities, earning recognition as a long-time champion fancy dancer in nationwide competitions, particularly in the fancy war dance category. He participated in Dances, traditional events honoring veterans, reflecting his ongoing commitment to tribal traditions despite earlier suppression of Native languages in boarding schools. Chibitty also dedicated efforts to preserving the , actively teaching it to interested individuals within the community, countering historical assimilation pressures.

Family and Personal Life

Chibitty married Elaine Fredelia Walker, with whom he raised a that included at least two sons, Willard Joyce Chibitty and Charles Joyce Chibitty Jr., and one daughter, Pamela Kay Chibitty. The couple resided in , following his military service. Chibitty was preceded in death by his wife Elaine, a son identified as , and daughter Pam. He outlived two of his children. Beyond family, Chibitty pursued interests as a champion war dancer and held membership as a 32nd-degree Mason and Shriner. He died on July 20, 2005, from complications at a hospital in , at age 83, and was buried at Floral Haven Memorial Gardens in Broken Arrow.

Recognition and Honors

Military Awards

Charles Chibitty received for wounds sustained during combat in . He was also awarded the Army Good Conduct Medal, recognizing exemplary behavior and efficiency in service. For his participation in campaigns across multiple theaters, Chibitty earned the for service in the United States defense during the war, and the European–African–Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with five bronze service stars, denoting involvement in five major operations including the invasion. These were complemented by the , issued to all personnel serving between December 7, 1941, and December 31, 1946. Additionally, as a member of the 4th Infantry Division's signal company engaging enemy forces with infantry weapons, he qualified for the . In 1989, the French government honored Chibitty and other surviving Code Talkers with the Chevalier of the for their role in transmitting secure communications that aided Allied operations in liberating .

Posthumous and Civilian Honors

In 1989, the bestowed upon Chibitty the rank of Chevalier (Knight) in the , recognizing his wartime service in the liberation of . On November 30, 1999, the U.S. Department of the Interior's presented Chibitty with its Citizen's Award for Exceptional Service, honoring his contributions as the last surviving . In 2004, Chibitty was inducted into the Tulsa City-County Library System's Circle of Honor, acknowledging his lifelong dedication to preserving and culture alongside his military legacy. Chibitty died on July 20, 2005, in . Following his death, the code talkers, including Chibitty, received formal congressional recognition through the Code Talkers Congressional Act ( 107-152), enacted in 2002, which authorized a to the tribe and silver duplicates for individual code talkers or their to commemorate their undecipherable communications that aided Allied victories. On June 30, 2025, Chibitty was posthumously inducted as a Distinguished Member of the by the U.S. Cyber Center of Excellence's Signal School, celebrating his foundational in secure communications.

Legacy

Contributions to Military History

Charles Chibitty's primary contribution to military history stemmed from his as one of 17 Comanche code talkers recruited by the U.S. in 1941 to utilize the for secure battlefield communications during . The code, developed without formal encryption devices, substituted military terms with Comanche words—such as "" for and "pregnant woman" for airplane—and spelled out proper nouns using descriptive native terms, rendering it indecipherable to Axis forces despite their cryptographic expertise. This system enabled rapid, error-free transmission of orders, intelligence, and coordinates, operating at speeds unattainable by English-based codes vulnerable to and delay. Assigned to the 4th Infantry Division in the European Theater, Chibitty relayed critical frontline reports, including incoming artillery types and enemy dispositions, directly to command posts, supporting operations from the invasion through the liberation of . On , 1944, during the D-Day landings at , he transmitted the inaugural coded message—"Tanima Iko," meaning "We made it"—verifying successful amphibious assaults and facilitating immediate tactical adjustments amid chaos. Over five campaigns, including , Northern France, , Ardennes-Alsace, and , the code talkers processed thousands of messages, ensuring command cohesion that prevented incidents and expedited advances. The code talkers' effectiveness, with zero successful breaks by enemy codebreakers, underscored the untapped potential of indigenous languages in asymmetric , influencing post-war U.S. military by highlighting linguistic rarity as a defense against . Chibitty's service, as the last survivor until his death in 2005, preserved operational details through declassified accounts, affirming how native expertise shortened the in by enhancing operational tempo and saving an estimated thousands of lives via precise coordination.

Cultural and National Impact

Chibitty's participation in the Comanche Code Talker program underscored the tactical superiority of indigenous languages for secure transmissions, enabling the 4th Division to relay thousands of combat messages undeciphered by Axis forces during campaigns from the Anzio landings on January 22, 1944, to the and the crossing. This application of the , spoken by fewer than 1,000 fluent individuals by the mid-20th century, directly supported operational successes in the European Theater, where code talkers like Chibitty transmitted coordinates and orders amid intense artillery fire, contributing to the Allied advance that ended Nazi occupation of by May 1945. On a cultural level, Chibitty's wartime reliance on reversed decades of institutional suppression, where Native children faced for speaking tribal tongues in boarding schools aimed at assimilation; his fluent usage in high-stakes combat validated the language's resilience and utility, fostering renewed tribal pride among . , as the sole surviving after 2001, he actively preserved linguistic heritage by demonstrating coded phrases, reciting the Comanche Code Talker Song at public events, and collaborating with preservation committees to document vocabulary, countering the language's endangerment status documented in assessments. Nationally, Chibitty embodied Native American loyalty to the despite historical grievances like land dispossession, with his service highlighting how 25,000 indigenous volunteers bolstered U.S. forces in ; his 2002 Pentagon ceremony as the last Comanche survivor elevated code talker narratives, paving the way for the 2008 congressional resolution and subsequent Comanche-specific recognitions that integrated their story into military curricula. This legacy reinforced causal links between cultural assets and national defense efficacy, influencing modern doctrines that value linguistic diversity.

References

  1. https://news.va.gov/110479/veteranoftheday-army-charles-chibitty/
  2. https://www.army.mil/article/90294/charles_chibitty_comanche_code_talker
  3. https://americanindian.si.edu/nk360/code-talkers/introduction/
  4. https://ancestors.familysearch.org/en/LC1Y-W6G/charles-joyce-chibitty-sr-1921-2005
  5. https://www.armyheritage.org/soldier-stories/how-comanche-heritage-helped-win-the-war-charles-j-chibitty-and-the-code-talkers/
  6. https://militaryhallofhonor.com/honoree-record.php?id=227340
  7. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/11401871/charles-joyce-chibitty
  8. https://www.ancestry.com/genealogy/records/john-chibitty-24-2mpqg35
  9. https://www.facebook.com/ComancheMuseum/posts/the-tough-and-smart-mustang-horses-were-an-amazing-fit-for-the-southern-great-pl/726249489549859/
  10. https://www.facebook.com/ComancheMuseum/photos/with-the-disestablishment-of-the-kiowa-comanche-and-apache-reservation-by-an-act/1040219851486153/
  11. https://www.bia.gov/as-ia/opa/online-press-release/last-surviving-comanche-code-talker-receive-honor-departments
  12. https://americanindian.si.edu/nk360/code-talkers/boarding-schools/
  13. https://americanindian.si.edu/nk360/code-talkers/assets/resources/code-talkers-boarding-schools-student-text-dependent-2.pdf
  14. https://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry?entry=CO013
  15. https://americanindian.si.edu/nk360/code-talkers/code-talking/
  16. https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/2005/07/26/comanche-code-talker-charles-chibitty-dies/1b5b70f5-fe1c-4a45-9219-fabecc3aa93a/
  17. https://americanindian.si.edu/nk360/code-talkers/survival/
  18. https://www.geni.com/people/Charles-Chibitty-Comanche-Code-Talker/6000000014233022404
  19. https://marine73110.tripod.com/id20.html
  20. https://bymyart.wordpress.com/2008/07/04/last-world-war-ii-comanche-code-talker-charles-charlie-j-chibitty/
  21. https://www.tulsalibrary.org/2004-circle-honor-charles-chibitty
  22. https://www.congress.gov/bill/107th-congress/house-bill/3512
  23. https://www.usmint.gov/learn/coins-and-medals/medals/Congressional-Gold-Medals/native-american-code-talkers
  24. https://www.dvidshub.net/news/501919/dmr-recognizes-signals-best-best
  25. https://warfarehistorynetwork.com/article/the-comanche-code-talkers-of-world-war-ii/
  26. https://www.dvidshub.net/news/528350/dod-honors-last-comanche-world-war-ii-code-talker
  27. https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DOC-228074A1.pdf
  28. https://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/american-indian-code-talkers
  29. https://redearth.org/pages/comanche-code-talkers
  30. https://americanindian.si.edu/nk360/code-talkers/recognition/
  31. http://nebula.wsimg.com/ce6aa0ae67491c4c7bf22808a90c4a6c?AccessKeyId=123DB9A7A1E77C0C9F16&disposition=0&alloworigin=1
  32. https://www.americanindianmagazine.org/story/code-talkers-legacy-native-languages-helped-turn-tides-both-world-wars
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