“It's strange, but growing up as a child I was forbidden to speak my Native language at school. Later my country asked me to. My language helped win the war and that makes me very proud. Very proud.” — Charles Chibitty (Comanche), U.S. Army When the United States issued the call to arms in World Wars I and II, American Indians answered as warriors. Some men discovered that words—in their Native languages—would be their most valued weapons. Crackling over the airwaves and telephone lines, the code talkers’ messages proved indecipherable to the enemy and helped the United States achieve victory in combat. Decades later, the U.S. government declassified the code talker programs, paving the way for the participants’ long-overdue recognition. Native Words, Native Warriors tells the remarkable story of Indian soldiers from more than a dozen tribes who used their Native languages in the service of the U.S. military. Developed with the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian, this inspiring exhibition was made possible in part thanks to the generous support of Elizabeth Hunter Solomon. Additional support has been provided by the Smithsonian Women’s Committee and the AMB Foundation. >> Native Words website

Contents	15 freestanding banners with text and graphics
Supplemental	11-min. DVD (venue provides equipment), educational website, educational and promotional resources, speakers list, bibliography, film guide
Participation Fee	$1,700 for 10-week booking period
Size	150 running feet (45 running meters)
Crates	4
Weight	455 lbs.
Category	History & Culture
Security	Limited
Shipping	Outgoing; host museum arranges shipping and pays carrier directly
SITES Contacts	Minnie Russell, 202.633.3160 (Scheduling) Katherine Krile, 202.633.3108 (Content)
Tour Through	October 2014

Dates		Host Institution	Status
10/28/2006	1/07/2007	Cherokee Strip Land Rush Museum, Arkansas City, KS	Booked
1/27/2007	4/08/2007	The Air Zoo, Portage, MI	Booked
4/28/2007	7/08/2007	Kansas City Public Library, Kansas City, MO	Booked
7/28/2007	10/7/2007	The Barrington Area Historical Society, Barrington, IL	Booked
10/27/2007	1/6/2008	Pueblo Grande Museum & Archaeological Park, Phoenix, AZ	Booked
1/26/2008	4/6/2008	Museum of Western Art, Kerrville, TX	Booked
4/26/2008	7/6/2008	The Air Museum Planes of Fame, Chino, CA	Booked
7/26/2008	10/5/2008	Salmon Ruins Museum and Research Library, Bloomfield, NM	Booked
10/25/2008	1/4/2009	Frontiers of Flight Museum, Dallas, TX	Booked
4/25/2009	7/5/2009	Ah-Tah-Thi-Ki Museum, Clewiston, FL	Booked
7/25/2009	10/4/2009	Southern Museum of Civil War and Locomotive History, Kennesaw, GA	Booked
10/24/2009	1/3/2010	Spartanburg County Public Library, Spartanburg, SC	Booked
2/19/2010	4/4/2010	Roland Park Country School, Baltimore, MD	Booked
4/24/2010	7/4/2010	In Their Own Words...A Veterans Museum, Perham, MN	Booked
7/24/2010	10/3/2010	Kingsport Public Library, Kingsport, TN	Booked
10/23/2010	01/02/2011	Mashantucket Pequot Museum and Research Center, Mashantucket, CT	Booked
1/22/2011	7/4/2011	National Museum of the Marine Corps, Triangle, VA	Booked
Extension Tour Dates
7/23/2011	10/2/2011	Wisconsin Maritime Museum, Manitowoc, WI	Booked
10/22/2011	1/1/2012	Charlotte Museum of History, Charlotte, NC	Booked
1/21/2012	4/1/2012	California University of Pennsylvania, California, PA	Booked
4/21/2012	7/1/2012	Petaluma Historical Museum, Petaluma, CA	Booked
7/21/2012	9/30/2012	Grout Museum of History and Science, Waterloo, IA	Booked
10/20/2012	3/31/2013	Heard Museum, Phoenix, AZ	Booked
4/20/2013	6/30/2013	Wyandotte County Historical Museum, Bonner Springs, KS	Booked
7/20/2013	9/29/2013	Idaho Museum of Natural History, Pocatello, ID	Booked
10/19/2013	12/29/2013	Institute of Texan Cultures, San Antonio, TX	Booked
01/25/2014-	04/06/2014		Call for Availability
04/26/2014-	07/06/2014		Call for Availability
07/26/2014-	10/05/2014		Call for Availability

Exhibition guide, Spanish language Read the full-length exhibition script >>Download

6.20.06 Media only: Christin Chism (202) 633-3159 Public only: (202) 633-1000 Stories of American Indian Code Talkers Revealed in New Smithsonian Traveling Exhibition “My language was my weapon.” —David Patterson (Navajo), 4th Div., U.S. Marine Corps. When the United States issued the call to arms in World Wars I and II, American Indians answered as warriors. Some men discovered that words—in their Native languages—would be their most valued weapons. These American heroes will share their stories of strength and courage in a new Smithsonian traveling exhibition. Native Words, Native Warriors, developed by the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian and the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES), will tell the remarkable story of soldiers from more than a dozen tribes who used their Native languages while in service in the U.S. military. This inspiring exhibition is made possible thanks to the generous support of donor Elizabeth Hunter Solomon. Additional support has been provided by the Smithsonian Women’s Committee and the AMB Foundation. Native Words, will premiere at the Cherokee Strip Land Rush Museum in Arkansas City, Kan., on Oct. 28 and will continue on a national tour through 2011. A second copy of the exhibition, organized for travel by the National Museum of the American Indian, will open at the Oklahoma Historical Society in Oklahoma City on Nov. 6 and will remain on tour through 2008. The launch of the exhibition in Oklahoma and Kansas will coincide with the November celebrations of American Indian Heritage Month and Veterans Day. The U.S. military first enlisted American Indians to relay messages in their Native languages during World War I, even though the United States did not consider American Indians citizens until 1924. These encoded messages proved undecipherable by the enemy and helped the United States achieve victory. The involvement of the code talkers expanded during World War II. Soldiers from the Comanche, Meskwaki, Sioux, Crow, Hopi and Cree nations, among others, took part in the effort. The best known of these projects is the formerly classified Navajo Code Talker Program, established by the U.S. Marine Corps in September 1942. The encoded messages proved to be a fast, accurate and indecipherable-to-the-enemy alternative, which suited the demands of the battlefield better than the painfully slow military devices that had been standard. Twenty-three years after the end of World War II, the U.S. government declassified the Navajo and Comanche code talker programs and revealed America’s unsung heroes. In 1999 the U.S. Army presented the last surviving Comanche code talker with a the Knowlton award for outstanding intelligence work, and in 2001 President George W. Bush presented the Congressional Gold Medal to four of the five living veterans of the original 29 Navajo code talkers. Through oral histories taken from the veterans themselves, “ Native Words” celebrates and honors this important but little-reported aspect of American history. In addition to 15 large-scale banners, the exhibition will include videos examining the development of the code, battlefield experiences and the sharp turnaround many of them experienced as they transitioned from Indian boarding schools where they were punished for speaking their Native language to using it as their call to duty for their country. The Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian is an institution of living cultures dedicated to advancing knowledge and understanding of the life, languages, literature, history and arts of the Native peoples of the Western Hemisphere. SITES has been sharing the wealth of Smithsonian collections and research programs with millions of people outside Washington, D.C. for more than 50 years. SITES connects Americans to their shared cultural heritage through a wide range of exhibitions about art, science and history, which are shown wherever people live, work and play. Exhibition descriptions and tour schedules are available at www.sites.si.edu.