Montanans represented a small number of the soldiers sent to World War II, but a few played a vital role in its outcome. One such group was Company B from Poplar, Brockton, Fort Kipp, Wolf Point, Frazer, and all the outlying areas. The 163rd Infantry Regiment, 41st Infantry Division Company B from the Fort Peck Reservation consisted of Assiniboine and Sioux soldiers in World War II.
Company B was critical to the Allied victories and military success at the Papua New Guinea front in 1943and Pacific front as a whole. The majority were Assiniboine and Sioux National Guardsmen from Fort Peck Indian Reservation. They “played a key role in carving out a stronghold pivotal to the Allied and American forces winning in the Pacific Theater.”
108 departed from Poplar on September 16, 1940 to Camp Murray, Washington for formal active duty. Company B was one of the few almost all-Indian National Guard units deployed for service in preparation for involvement in WWII.
The Company B servicemen from the Fort Peck Reservation ranged from 16 years old and on up. The National Guard’s requirement that enlistees be eighteen years old was easily circumvented. Shirley Red Boy looked older than his 16 years and was able to slip through and if the young men’s folks signed up the soldier or lied, one could easily join.
Many joined the National Guard during these years because it was an avenue to a better lifestyle. Those early years were a hardship for the Fort Peck young men and many lived in poverty or in difficult home environments. The money the soldiers earned from the Guard was a lot of money at that time and it allowed them a chance for employment and a sense of purpose.
The 108 men of Company B came from Poplar, Brockton and Wolf Point. Many could hardly march while others were familiar with the drill routine because they had attended boarding school. No strangers to hard work, their experiences on the reservation tightened the bonds between the men under the difficult training experience and “prepared them to be disciplined and resourceful soldiers”. In spite of a shortage of weaponry and substandard uniforms “Company B was considered one of the best dressed and neatest outfits of the 41st Division”. The soldiers took special pride in their appearance and maintained extra care with their uniforms; making sure their dress uniforms were spotless and pressed.
They wanted to blend in with the rest of the 163rd Regiment, yet they also were proud of themselves as American Indians from their Fort Peck tribes. They created a “patch from buckskin, beads on buckskin [for] our shoulder patch and received special permission from the War Department to wear it.”
Many of the soldiers became scouts because they were familiar with hunting wild animals, camps and tracking, and were more aware of their surroundings so were the first to see the enemy. “Ranking officers attributed their exceptional scouting skills to the fact that Company B men were Sioux or Assiniboine. This assumption perpetuated the perception of American Indian soldiers as ‘natural warriors’ and later led to Sioux and Assiniboine soldiers being singled out for more dangerous assignments during the war as it was assumed they possessed innate bravery, stealth, and cunning.”
The American Indian soldiers were considered the best fighters in the Pacific; the Australians were considered good, but the Indians were capable of getting around better. Company B’s outdoor experience, ability to scrounge for food and persevere under adverse conditions (the tough variable Montana weather) were valuable assets in the rigorous Pacific Theatre battlefields.
Stationed in Papua New Guinea, the Sioux and Assiniboine soldiers were able to form a strong bond with the Native New Guineans. This bond did not exist between the white soldiers and Native New Guinean people. The cultural identities between the New Guineas and American Indian soldiers provided a positive relationship which expanded the soldiers’ ability to be resourceful and contributed to their exceptional success during the Sanananda campaign. The native New Guineas showed Company B’s American Indians how to harvest their native food and provided more insight on their terrain.
Company B were strong and resourceful soldiers, expert marksmen who employed creative tactics in warfare. “Because of their bravery and resourcefulness, Company B’s Sioux and Assiniboine soldiers, were sent beyond the front lines on dangerous reconnaissance missions.” Often times these missions meant the soldiers were forced to eliminate the enemy. As ranking officers did not often believe the soldiers, they would often bring back proof, such as a string of ears. It was not uncommon for Sergeant Arthur Belgarde and Staff Sergeant James Eder to bring back twenty or more ears on a string.
Corporal Bernard Marley of Company C recalls Eder’s exceptional courage during an offensive on January 18, 1943 “S. Sgt. James J. Eder came in to the area of Huggins when I was there with this massive weapon on his back. Jim was as strong as an ox. He seemed very happy to show it off. It (the weapon) was out of enemy hands. Jim said he pulled the gun from its position with a rope.”
Staff Sergeant Joseph Reddoor led reconnaissance and combat patrols into enemy territory. His work helped the soldiers immensely. During Reddoor’s last patrol in the Sanananda battle he was wounded twice destroying a Japanese pillbox and machine gun with grenades. Disregarding his own safety, Sergeant Belgarde rescued Reddoor, and was consequently injured. Not all were fortunate in Company B. Some were even killed by their allies because they were mistaken for the enemy due to their darker complexion.
Living conditions were hell because of the swamp, persistent rain, hordes of insects, and lack of sanitary conditions. Sickness during the campaign was heavy. “At least 90% who fought in the Papuan Campaign were afflicted by one or more of the following: malaria, Dengue fever, diarrhea, dysentery, scrub typhus, anemias, hookworm or Black Water Fever.”
Despite these casualties, the “Montana regiment played an integral role in winning the first land victory against the Japanese” with the Fort Peck Sioux and Assiniboine of Company B leading the way. Victory came at a high price. 28 of the company’s Assiniboine and Sioux men were killed while serving in Papua New Guinea. Others had to be discharged due to illness and infection. Only 38 of the original 108 were left. They lost more men than any other company in the 163rd Infantry Regiment. However Company B was considered pivotal in the capture of the island.
On New Year’s Eve, 1945 the 41st Division was deactivated and the men’s service was officially complete. The soldiers of Company B were highly decorated for their role in the Pacific theater, but there was no ticker-tape parade awaiting them when they returned home. Life once more became hard. There were no steady, well-paying jobs.
Each took a different path after they came home. Some found the adjustment to civilian life difficult. The lack of economic opportunities forced them to leave the reservation find employment. Dana Mcgowan started the Poplar Shopper. Eder became tribal council secretary and interim tribal chairman, worked for the U.S. Postal Service, and worked for the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
Robert Murray was sent to Europe for a year when most others had been sent home. After the service he worked on the Grand Coulee Dam, but later returned to the Fort Peck Indian Reservation and served in tribal law enforcement. Sergeant Shirley Red Boy became actively involved in veteran’s affairs and writing for local tribal newspapers in “hope that other young people would know the sacrifices the men made to protect their people and homeland.”
Red boy was also instrumental in the efforts to formally recognize the men of Company B as code talkers. Although not formally trained like the Navajo code talkers, the soldiers from Fort Peck were valuable on the Pacific front for their role as unofficial code talkers.
The distinctive achievements of Company B are attributed to their loyalty to one another on and off the battlefield. “Recognizing and remembering these men is essential to understanding the broader historical narrative of American military service during Work War II as well as the rich history of Montanans and the Assiniboine and Sioux of Fort Peck.”
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