Code Talker: The First and Only Memoir By One of the Original Navajo Code Talkers of WWII

Nez recounts helping his father and uncle build a traditional Navajo dwelling called a hogan for his grandmother in the early 1930s. Before this project, his grandparents lived in a basic shelter made from branches and logs, enduring harsh weather conditions. The family chose a building site on elevated ground near a box canyon.

The construction process involved gathering piñon logs and assembling an eight-sided structure. The men notched and fitted logs to create walls, incorporating only two openings: a smoke hole in the domed roof and an east-facing doorway. They insulated the building by filling spaces between logs with dirt and adding a layer beneath the roof. The final touches included mounting traditional hunting bows on both sides of the doorway and hanging a handwoven blanket as a door covering.

A medicine man performed blessing ceremonies for the new home, moving clockwise to honor the four cardinal directions. Nez’s grandmother continued these spiritual practices through her morning blessings, typically using corn pollen, a sacred substance collected during harvest time and blessed by medicine men. In times when corn pollen became scarce, she used ash for blessings and to combat nightmares.

The new hogan provided significantly better living conditions.