Tobias W. Frazier
Encyclopedia
Tobias William Frazier, Sr. (1892-1975) was a full-blood Choctaw
Indian who was a member of the famous fourteen Choctaw Code Talkers
. The Code Talkers pioneered the use of American Indian languages as military code during war. Their initial exploits took place during World War I
, and were repeated by Native American tribes during World War II
. They are referred to collectively as Code Talkers.
Frazier, in addition to his contribution to American history as a Choctaw Code Talker, also personifies the Choctaws’ success in accommodating the changes brought about by Oklahoma’s statehood, following the dissolution of their self-governing republic.
via the Trail of Tears
, the Frazier family became leaders in Choctaw
government and society. Tobias Frazier’s grandfather, Robert, was elected a county judge of Cedar County, Choctaw Nation
. Choctaw jurisprudence would be familiar to today's court officials, except for the role played by the judge: in the Choctaw Nation
he was always a visible and influential leader of society.
Tobias Frazier's father, Reason J. Frazier, was a county ranger, or member of the "Lighthorse
" serving Cedar County. Lighthorsemen were lawmen, and charged with keeping the peace.
Starting in 1832 Choctaw authorities, in mapping and laying out their new nation, created an orderly system of regional districts and counties, drawing their borders to conform to generally recognizable geographic landmarks. A prominent waterway known as Frazier Creek formed the boundary between Towson County and Cedar County. The creek took its name from the Frazier family. Frazier Creek is in northeastern Choctaw County
and southeastern Pushmataha County
in Oklahoma.
Fraziers have always been keen observer of Choctaw politics and government. Thirty years after the dissolution of Choctaw government one was still able to describe its political and legal system in intimate detail. “I think that we had the best laws in the country, and it would be better if we had the same laws now in the state,” he proclaimed with pride in 1937.
, the county seat of what was then known as Cedar County, Choctaw Nation, in the Indian Territory. The territory later joined Oklahoma Territory
in forming the state of Oklahoma
in 1907.
Frazier attended Armstrong Academy, a school for Choctaw boys operated by the Choctaw Nation
. While a student there he participated in the football team. Near the end of his life, when asked by a newspaper reporter what position he played on the team, he laughed and said "Anything but quarterback".
Upon the outbreak of World War I
, Frazier enlisted in the U.S. Army and was later assigned to the 36th Division in France
, where he served as a sergeant in the division’s headquarters intelligence unit.
While serving in France the 36th Division found that German
troops were able to intercept its communications. In addition, they were able to decrypt the military codes used by American forces. This enabled the Germans to successfully stymie and thwart American movements.
Several Choctaw Indians served in the 142nd Regiment of the 36th Division, and with the support of a commanding officer proposed using the Choctaw language as a military code.
. Runners were also employed to extend the system as necessary. Six additional Choctaws from other units were also brought to bear, for a total of fourteen code talkers.
The Germans heard the Choctaw language for the first time on October 26, 1918 during a “delicate” American withdrawal of two companies of the 2nd Battalion from Chufilly to Chardeny
. The movement was successful.
“The enemy’s complete surprise is evidence that he could not decipher the messages,” the Americans’ commanding officer observed. A captured German officer later confirmed they were “completely confused by the Indian language and gained no benefit whatsoever” from their wiretaps.
No Choctaw word or phrase existed to describe “machine gun”. Frazier and his Choctaw colleagues improvised successfully, using Choctaw words for “big gun” to describe “artillery
” and “little gun shoot fast” for “machine gun
”. “The results were very gratifying,” their commanding officer observed.
One of Frazier’s colleagues was Joseph Oklahombi–whose surname means “man killer” in the Choctaw language–Oklahoma’s most decorated war veteran. His medals are on display in the Oklahoma Historical Society
.
Frazier, Oklahombi, and their fellow Choctaw Code Talkers were honored posthumously by the Choctaw Nation, which in 1986 presented each the Choctaw Medal of Honor. France followed suit in 1989, awarding them the Fifth Republic’s “Chevalier de l’Ordre National du Merite”
(Knight of the National Order of Merit). The award is the highest that France may bestow. Frazier was also awarded the Purple Heart
.
.
Frazier was proud of the Choctaw language
, his native tongue. He spoke it at home as a first language and was proud of its role in breaking the Germans’ Hindenberg Line during the war.
Nonetheless, the Choctaw language did not have a future, he noted with sadness. The language will be “dead” in the not-too-distant future, after which it will exist only in books, he told a newspaper reporter in 1966.
“My niece, for instance, who attends Rattan school, will have no need for the old tribal language,” he told the reporter with surprising prescience. “Why should she learn it?”
Frazier, who died in 1975, is buried in the cemetery at Rattan, Oklahoma
. Bill Frazier Road in Rattan is named for Frazier’s son, who also served in the U.S. military.
Ms. Lawless’s students investigated the crashes during World War II of Royal Air Force pilots in the Kiamichi Mountains, erecting the AT6 Monument
in their honor. Over 1,000 attended the dedication ceremony, many from Great Britain. The ceremony was covered live by the BBC, American television networks, and newspapers. It was attended by military officials of the United Kingdom and New Zealand, both of whom came from their countries’ embassies in Washington, D.C., and by Britain’s vice consul to the United States.
Choctaw
The Choctaw are a Native American people originally from the Southeastern United States...
Indian who was a member of the famous fourteen Choctaw Code Talkers
Choctaw Code Talkers
Choctaw code talkers were a group of Choctaw Indians from Oklahoma who pioneered the use of Native American languages as military code. Their exploits took place during the waning days of . The government of the Choctaw Nation maintains these men comprised the first code talkers ever to serve in...
. The Code Talkers pioneered the use of American Indian languages as military code during war. Their initial exploits took place during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, and were repeated by Native American tribes during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. They are referred to collectively as Code Talkers.
Frazier, in addition to his contribution to American history as a Choctaw Code Talker, also personifies the Choctaws’ success in accommodating the changes brought about by Oklahoma’s statehood, following the dissolution of their self-governing republic.
The Frazier Family
After their arrival in the Indian TerritoryIndian Territory
The Indian Territory, also known as the Indian Territories and the Indian Country, was land set aside within the United States for the settlement of American Indians...
via the Trail of Tears
Trail of Tears
The Trail of Tears is a name given to the forced relocation and movement of Native American nations from southeastern parts of the United States following the Indian Removal Act of 1830...
, the Frazier family became leaders in Choctaw
Choctaw
The Choctaw are a Native American people originally from the Southeastern United States...
government and society. Tobias Frazier’s grandfather, Robert, was elected a county judge of Cedar County, Choctaw Nation
Cedar County, Choctaw Nation
Cedar County was a political subdivision of the Choctaw Nation in the Indian Territory. The county formed part of the nation’s Apukshunnubbee District, or Second District, one of three administrative super-regions....
. Choctaw jurisprudence would be familiar to today's court officials, except for the role played by the judge: in the Choctaw Nation
Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma
The Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma is a semi-autonomous Native American homeland comprising twelve tribal districts. The Choctaw Nation maintains a special relationship with both the United States and Oklahoma governments...
he was always a visible and influential leader of society.
Tobias Frazier's father, Reason J. Frazier, was a county ranger, or member of the "Lighthorse
Lighthorse (American Indian police)
Lighthorse was the name given by the Five Civilized Tribes of the United States to their mounted police force. The Lighthorse were generally organized into companies and assigned to different districts. Perhaps the most famous were the Cherokee Lighthorsemen which had their origins in Georgia...
" serving Cedar County. Lighthorsemen were lawmen, and charged with keeping the peace.
Starting in 1832 Choctaw authorities, in mapping and laying out their new nation, created an orderly system of regional districts and counties, drawing their borders to conform to generally recognizable geographic landmarks. A prominent waterway known as Frazier Creek formed the boundary between Towson County and Cedar County. The creek took its name from the Frazier family. Frazier Creek is in northeastern Choctaw County
Choctaw County, Oklahoma
Choctaw County is a county located in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. As of 2000, the population was 15,342. Its county seat is Hugo.-Geography:According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and is water....
and southeastern Pushmataha County
Pushmataha County, Oklahoma
-Administrative History:* Ca. 1000-1500: Caddoan Mississippian civilization at Spiro Mounds* 1492-1718: Spain* 1718-1763: France* 1763-1800: Spain* 1800-1803: France* 1803–present: United States...
in Oklahoma.
Fraziers have always been keen observer of Choctaw politics and government. Thirty years after the dissolution of Choctaw government one was still able to describe its political and legal system in intimate detail. “I think that we had the best laws in the country, and it would be better if we had the same laws now in the state,” he proclaimed with pride in 1937.
The life of Tobias Frazier
Tobias Frazier was born in 1892 in Sulphur Springs, Indian TerritorySulphur Springs, Indian Territory
Sulphur Springs was a Choctaw Indian community formerly existing in the Choctaw Nation of Indian Territory. It was located at the approximate location of present-day Rattan, in Pushmataha County, Oklahoma....
, the county seat of what was then known as Cedar County, Choctaw Nation, in the Indian Territory. The territory later joined Oklahoma Territory
Oklahoma Territory
The Territory of Oklahoma was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 2, 1890, until November 16, 1907, when it was joined with the Indian Territory under a new constitution and admitted to the Union as the State of Oklahoma.-Organization:Oklahoma Territory's...
in forming the state of Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
in 1907.
Frazier attended Armstrong Academy, a school for Choctaw boys operated by the Choctaw Nation
Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma
The Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma is a semi-autonomous Native American homeland comprising twelve tribal districts. The Choctaw Nation maintains a special relationship with both the United States and Oklahoma governments...
. While a student there he participated in the football team. Near the end of his life, when asked by a newspaper reporter what position he played on the team, he laughed and said "Anything but quarterback".
Upon the outbreak of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, Frazier enlisted in the U.S. Army and was later assigned to the 36th Division in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, where he served as a sergeant in the division’s headquarters intelligence unit.
While serving in France the 36th Division found that German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
troops were able to intercept its communications. In addition, they were able to decrypt the military codes used by American forces. This enabled the Germans to successfully stymie and thwart American movements.
Several Choctaw Indians served in the 142nd Regiment of the 36th Division, and with the support of a commanding officer proposed using the Choctaw language as a military code.
The Choctaw Code Talkers
Frazier and seven other Choctaw soldiers in the 142nd Regiment, noting the American army’s communications predicament, devised, tested and deployed an innovative experiment, which entailed speaking in Choctaw while using a field telephone. Choctaws were placed in each company of soldiers to send or transmit information using their language as codeCode
A code is a rule for converting a piece of information into another form or representation , not necessarily of the same type....
. Runners were also employed to extend the system as necessary. Six additional Choctaws from other units were also brought to bear, for a total of fourteen code talkers.
The Germans heard the Choctaw language for the first time on October 26, 1918 during a “delicate” American withdrawal of two companies of the 2nd Battalion from Chufilly to Chardeny
Chardeny
Chardeny is a commune in the Ardennes department in northern France....
. The movement was successful.
“The enemy’s complete surprise is evidence that he could not decipher the messages,” the Americans’ commanding officer observed. A captured German officer later confirmed they were “completely confused by the Indian language and gained no benefit whatsoever” from their wiretaps.
No Choctaw word or phrase existed to describe “machine gun”. Frazier and his Choctaw colleagues improvised successfully, using Choctaw words for “big gun” to describe “artillery
Artillery
Originally applied to any group of infantry primarily armed with projectile weapons, artillery has over time become limited in meaning to refer only to those engines of war that operate by projection of munitions far beyond the range of effect of personal weapons...
” and “little gun shoot fast” for “machine gun
Machine gun
A machine gun is a fully automatic mounted or portable firearm, usually designed to fire rounds in quick succession from an ammunition belt or large-capacity magazine, typically at a rate of several hundred rounds per minute....
”. “The results were very gratifying,” their commanding officer observed.
One of Frazier’s colleagues was Joseph Oklahombi–whose surname means “man killer” in the Choctaw language–Oklahoma’s most decorated war veteran. His medals are on display in the Oklahoma Historical Society
Oklahoma Historical Society
The Oklahoma Historical Society is an agency of the government of Oklahoma dedicated to promotion and preservation of Oklahoma's history and its people by collecting, interpreting, and disseminating knowledge and artifacts of Oklahoma....
.
Frazier, Oklahombi, and their fellow Choctaw Code Talkers were honored posthumously by the Choctaw Nation, which in 1986 presented each the Choctaw Medal of Honor. France followed suit in 1989, awarding them the Fifth Republic’s “Chevalier de l’Ordre National du Merite”
Ordre National du Mérite
The Ordre national du Mérite is an Order of State awarded by the President of the French Republic. It was founded on 3 December 1963 by President Charles de Gaulle...
(Knight of the National Order of Merit). The award is the highest that France may bestow. Frazier was also awarded the Purple Heart
Purple Heart
The Purple Heart is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those who have been wounded or killed while serving on or after April 5, 1917 with the U.S. military. The National Purple Heart Hall of Honor is located in New Windsor, New York...
.
Post-war Observations
"Code Talker" is a phrase coined during or after World War II. It did not exist during World War I, and Tobias Frazier was never known to refer to himself as one. In later years he described his wartime activities to family members as "talking on the radio", or field telephoneField telephone
Field telephones are mobile telephones intended for military use, designed to withstand wartime conditions. They can draw power from their own battery, from a telephone exchange , or from an external power source. Some need no battery, being sound-powered telephones.Field telephones were first used...
.
Frazier was proud of the Choctaw language
Choctaw language
The Choctaw language, traditionally spoken by the Native American Choctaw people of the southeastern United States, is a member of the Muskogean family...
, his native tongue. He spoke it at home as a first language and was proud of its role in breaking the Germans’ Hindenberg Line during the war.
Nonetheless, the Choctaw language did not have a future, he noted with sadness. The language will be “dead” in the not-too-distant future, after which it will exist only in books, he told a newspaper reporter in 1966.
“My niece, for instance, who attends Rattan school, will have no need for the old tribal language,” he told the reporter with surprising prescience. “Why should she learn it?”
Frazier, who died in 1975, is buried in the cemetery at Rattan, Oklahoma
Rattan, Oklahoma
Rattan is a town in Pushmataha County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 241 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Rattan is located at...
. Bill Frazier Road in Rattan is named for Frazier’s son, who also served in the U.S. military.
The Frazier Legacy
The unique contributions made by the Frazier family continues through the present generation. Tobias Frazier’s granddaughter, Beth Frazier Lawless, a school teacher in Rattan, Oklahoma, initiated a student research project in 1999 with international ramifications.Ms. Lawless’s students investigated the crashes during World War II of Royal Air Force pilots in the Kiamichi Mountains, erecting the AT6 Monument
AT6 Monument
The AT6 Monument is a granite memorial to Royal Air Force cadets who were killed while on a training flight during World War II. It stands on Big Mountain, north of Moyers, Oklahoma, and was dedicated on February 20, 2000—the 58th anniversary of the deadly crashes.- Background :The United Kingdom...
in their honor. Over 1,000 attended the dedication ceremony, many from Great Britain. The ceremony was covered live by the BBC, American television networks, and newspapers. It was attended by military officials of the United Kingdom and New Zealand, both of whom came from their countries’ embassies in Washington, D.C., and by Britain’s vice consul to the United States.