WWII Pacific Island Campaign 

Combat operational plans require encrypted communication for success. The U.S. Marine Corps would know where to find the ultimate unbreakable communication code, the Diné (Navajo) nation. The Diné created a code based on a complex, unwritten language. The code primarily used word association by assigning a Navajo word to key phrases and military tactics. This system enabled the Code Talkers to translate three lines of English in 20 seconds, not 30 minutes as was common with existing code-breaking machines. The Code Talkers participated in every major Marine Corps operation in the Pacific theater, giving the Marines a critical advantage throughout the war. During the nearly month-long battle for Iwo Jima, for example, six Navajo Code Talker Marines successfully transmitted more than 800 messages without error. Marine leadership noted after the battle that the Navajo Code Talkers were critical to the victory at Iwo Jima.

Navajo Code Talker, Johnson Housewood, (Edgewater clan, born for Bitterwater clan) from Chinle, Az., volunteered to enlist in the U.S. Marine Corps at Fort Wingate, NM., on October 5th, 1942 as part of the second wave of code talkers. The original first 29 code talkers were enlisted in May, months prior. He went to Boot Camp in San Diego, then onto radio and code talker school (MOS-642). He was then assigned to the 21st Regiment in the summer-fall of 1943.

He participated in the Pacific Island Campaign. His first combat experience happened in the month of November 1943 on a two-day clearing mission. The 21st Regiment was ordered to clear the Numa Numa trail during the Battle of Coconut Grove on Bougainville Island under the orders of the 3rd Marine Division. His unit attached to the 3rd Marine Division, they returned to Guadalcanal in January 1944 to rest, refit, and retrain. The next operation in which the division took part was the Battle of Guam.

Despite the obstacles, on July 21st the American forces landed on both sides of the Orote Peninsula on the western side of Guam, planning to secure Apra Harbor. The 3rd Marine Division along with the 21st Regiment landed at Asan near Agana to the north of Orote at 08:29, and the 1st Provisional Marine Brigade landed near Agat to the south. 44  Japanese artillery sank 30 U.S. LVTs and inflicted heavy casualties on the landing troops, especially of the 1st Provisional Marine Brigade, but by 09:00 Marines and tanks were ashore at both beaches. Between the hours of 08:29 & 09:00 PFC Housewood was killed in action.

In 2001 the Navajo Code Talkers were awarded the Congressional Silver Medal which was accepted by his surviving wife Inez Housewood and granddaughter in Window Rock, AZ. He is notably buried at Santa Fe National Cemetery with his wife Inez Housewood.

Johnson Housewood, a Navajo and native of Arizona, is a Notable burial at https://www.cem.va.gov/cems/nchp/santafe.asp.  He enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps in September 1942. PFC Housewood was a Navajo Code Talker in the Pacific Theater during World War II. In 2001, the Navajo Code Talkers were presented with the Congressional Silver Medal. Housewood's honor was posthumous. He was killed in action in Guam July 21, 1944.  https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/151597287.pdf.
*The preceding content is not intended as a comprehensive biography, but it highlights their significance as a result of military or civilian distinction, lasting achievements, or association with impactful national events. 

A map of the island of Guam during the Pacific Island Campaign during WWII.

Santa Fe National Cemetery

The document shows the awards that PFC Housewood had received for his service.

JOHNSON HOUSEWOOD

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