During World War II, at a critical time in the Pacific Theater when cryptographers were in need, Navajo Code Talkers molded their language to transmit secret communications in every Pacific land battle from 1942 to 1945. Using their proud warrior traditions, the Code Talkers braved the dense jungles and exposed beaches, and their unbreakable code played a major role in saving Allied Force lives and shortening the war. On 26 July 2001, President George W. Bush presented Gold Medals to four of the five surviving Navajo Code Talkers at a ceremony in Washington, D.C. To this day, the surviving Code Talkers freely share their tale of bravery at military and social functions.

More on Navajo Code Talkers, click here Navajo Code Talkers: World War II Fact Sheet

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Photo #: USMC 127-MN 89670 Private First Class Cecil G. Trosip, USMC Private First Class Trosip, from Oraibi, Arizona, at a communication system on the island of Saipan, July 1944. Photographed by Sergeant Williams, USMC. U.S. Marine Corps Photograph. Online Image: 130KB; 900 x 685
Photo #: USMC 127-MN 94236 Private First Class George H. Kirk, USMC and Private First Class John V. Goodluck, USMC These two Marines take camp life with ease and are shown here before their little shelter on a hillside on Guam many miles from their Arizona homes. They are both attached to a communications unit and are veterans of many brushes with the Japanese, 27 March 1943. U.S. Marine Corps Photograph. Online Image: 75KB; 735 x 925
Photo #: NH 107263 Private First Class Alec E. Nez, USMC and Private First Class William D. Yazzie, USMC These Privates First Class participated in the Marine Corps Pacific Division Rifle and Pistol matches at Puuloa Point, then Territory of Hawaii. Both were full-blooded Native American Marines. Both Marines fired a total score of 545 out of a possible six hundred, but Yazzie fired a higher score on the second day and placed third while Nez placed fourth. Yazzie received a gold medal, Nez the first silver medal. Presentations were made by Brigadier General H.D. Linscott, Commanding General Marine Garrison Forces, Pacific. Both Marines represented the First Marine Division in these matches. Photographed in January 1943. Courtesy of the U.S. Marine Corps U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command Photograph. Online Image: 57KB; 725 x 925
Photo #: USMC 127-MN-69889-B Corporal Henry Bake, Jr., USMC and Private First Class George H. Kirk, USMC Bake and Kirk were Navajo Indians serving with a Marine Signal Unit. They are operating a portable radio set in a clearing they've hacked in the dense jungle close behind the front lines. Photographed in December 1943 at Bougainville. U.S. Marine Corps Photograph. Online Image: 123KB; 900 x 715
Photo #: USMC 127-MN-69896 Native American Marine Fighters These Native American fighters, all from the Navajo tribe, were skilled in the native lore of their ancestors while serving with a Marine Signal Unit. They are: Front Row: (left to right): Private Earl Johnny, USMC; Private Kee Etsictty, USMC; Private John V. Goodluck, USMC; and Private First Class David Jordan, USMC Back Row: (left to right): Private Jack C. Morgan, USMC; Private George H. Kirk, USMC; Private Tom H. Jones, USMC; and Corporal Henry Bake, Jr., USMC Photographed at Bougainville, December 1943. U.S. Marine Corps Photograph. Online Image: 96KB; 900 x 705
Photo #: USMC 127-MN-57875 Private First Class Preston Toledo, USMC and Private First Class Frank Toldeo, USMC These Navajo Native American Code Talkers were cousins and attached to a Marine Artillery Regiment in the South Pacific. They relayed orders over a field radio using their native tongue. Photographed on 7 July 1943. U.S. Marine Corps Photograph. Online Image: 92KB; 900 x 735
Photo #: USMC 129851 Private First Class Hosteen Kelwood, USMC Private First Floyd Saupitty, USMC and Private First Class Alex Williams, USMC These Native American Marines were photographed in March 1945 while on their way to the Japanese war front. Privates First Class Williams and Kellwood were from the Navajo tribe while Private Saupitty was from the Comanche tribe. All were veterans from the Battle of Peleliu, September-October 1944. U.S. Marine Corps Photograph. Online Image: 79KB; 900 x 725
Photo #: NH 107229-KN (Color) President George W. Bush Presents Congressional Gold Medals to four of the five remaining former Navajo Code Talkers who served during World War II in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda, 26 July 2001. Courtesy of the Smithsonian Institution. U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command Photograph. Online Image: 137KB; 900 x 690
Photo #: NH 107218-KN (Color) Navajo Code Talkers Airman Jose Porcayo, assigned to USS Constitution shares a laugh with veterans who served in the U.S. Marine Corps as Navajo Code Talkers during World War II at a book signing during Albuquerque Navy Week. Navy Weeks are designed to show Americans the investment they have made in their Navy and increase awareness in cities that do not have a significant Navy presence, 4 October 2009. Photographed by MC1 Eric Brown, USN U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command Photograph. Online Image: 140KB; 900 x 665

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To the best of our knowledge, the pictures referenced here are all in the Public Domain, and can therefore be freely downloaded and used for any purpose.