After their arrival in the Indian Territory via the Trail of Tears, the Frazier family became leaders in Choctaw government and society.
Starting in 1832 Choctaw authorities, in mapping and laying out their new nation, created an orderly system of regional districts and counties, drawing their borders to conform to generally recognizable geographic landmarks.
Thirty years after the dissolution of Choctaw government one was still able to describe its political and legal system in intimate detail.
Near the end of his life, when asked by a newspaper reporter what position he played on the team, he laughed and said "Anything but quarterback".
The Germans heard the Choctaw language for the first time on October 26, 1918 during a "delicate" American withdrawal of two companies of the 2nd Battalion from Chufilly to Chardeny.
"The enemy's complete surprise is evidence that he could not decipher the messages," the Americans' commanding officer observed.
A captured German officer later confirmed they were "completely confused by the Indian language and gained no benefit whatsoever" from their wiretaps.
One of Frazier's colleagues was Joseph Oklahombi–whose surname means "man killer" in the Choctaw language–Oklahoma's most decorated war veteran.
In later years he described his wartime activities to family members as "talking on the radio", or field telephone.
He spoke it at home as a first language and was proud of its role in breaking the Germans' Hindenberg Line during the war.
"My niece, for instance, who attends Rattan school, will have no need for the old tribal language," he told the reporter with surprising prescience.
Ms. Lawless's students investigated the crashes during World War II of Royal Air Force pilots in the Kiamichi Mountains, erecting the AT6 Monument in their honor.