MILITARY

Oklahoma WWI hero draws international interest

Matt Patterson
Former Mannsville students are interviewed by French documentary filmmaker Dominique Hennequin for an upcoming project about American World War I heroes including Oklahoma native Joseph Oklahombi. [Photo Provided]

Joseph Oklahombi may never be awarded the nation's highest military honor, but a group of Mannsville students have made sure the World War I hero's story has stayed alive nearly 60 years after he was killed walking along a rural highway in southeastern Oklahoma.

Three years ago, elementary and middle school students at Mannsville School near Ardmore embarked on a project to study Oklahombi hoping the renewed interest might help him be awarded the Medal of Honor.

The medal part has been elusive, but they have fostered interest that goes well beyond Oklahoma's borders. Filmmakers from Nomades, a French TV production company, visited Mannsville last month to interview students about their project. They also visited Wright City, Oklahombi's hometown.

Trevor Carroll has been part of the Oklahombi project from the beginning. Sitting in a classroom at his old school, the high school junior said talking to people from France wasn't something he ever expected to happen.

“It really blew my mind that someone would want to come here to interview us about a project that has been going on this long,” Carroll said.

Born in 1895 in McCurtain County, Oklahombi found himself on the battlefields of Europe where he served with distinction.

Oklahoma's Sgt. York

During the October 1918 Meuse-Argonne campaign in France, the Germans began successfully intercepting military dispatches. To help eliminate those problems, the 141st, 142nd and 143rd Infantry Regiments used Choctaw soldiers to encrypt messages in their language to foil the Germans.

But Oklahombi's contributions weren't limited to communications. Oklahombi assisted in attacking an enemy position that resulted in the capture of 171 prisoners.

Those same soldiers also seized artillery at another site, killing nearly 80 Germans in the process. They then held their position for four days under a heavy German counterattack.

For his efforts, Oklahombi and other members of his unit earned the Silver Star and Victory Ribbon. Marshal Henri-Philippe also awarded him the Croix de Guerre, one of France's highest military honors.

The French film centers mostly on WWI legend Sgt. Alvin York, who was awarded the Medal of Honor for attacking and defeating a German machine gun nest on October 8, 1918. Dominique Hennequin, the film's director, learned of Oklahombi's story while researching York's life.

“His story is really similar to Sergeant York,” he said via email. “The same modest and rural origins. The same courage in front of the enemy. An incredible military exploit and by the most incredible of the fates, the same day.”

They came to save France

Hennequin's hope was to tell stories of those who helped France get through the war.

“I wanted to make a film about WWI American heroes,” he wrote. “These guys came from the states. Left their family for the first time, crossed an ocean and finally discovered the hell on earth in Lorraine.”

Mannsville teacher Nellie Garonne got the kids started on the project, and was struck by the interest from so far away.

“He said, ‘You don't understand, Americans came to France to save France,'” Garone said of Hennequin. “He was so serious about it. Almost emotional. I never realized how important World War I was to people in France. And it's still important. I think that was very humbling for myself and for the students.”

Hennequin and his production crew enjoyed their time in Oklahoma.

"We French people know very well New York or Las Vegas but Oklahoma is not yet a tourist destination," he said. "I am favored to have discovered this part of America. The welcome was fantastic."

As for the project, the students made a lot of progress. They were able to find one written account of an eyewitness to Oklahombi's deeds in France, but the Medal of Honor requires two. With all World War I veterans deceased and much of the accounts of Oklahombi's service already mined over the course of their research, things have reached a standstill.

“It's been a great experience,” Carroll said. “But at the same time, I hope all the work researching him and putting information together won't go to waste. We need one more eyewitness and that has been really hard to get.”

But Garone sees value in simply raising awareness of Oklahombi who died April 13, 1960, when struck by a car while walking along a road near his family's Wright City home.

“It's made his family members feel good that his story is valued,” Garone said. “The boys learned a lot about him, and their work has been recognized by people in France. There's nothing disappointing about any of that. It's been a success.”