Glacier - Stickeen Valley - Alaska Days with John Muir

Samuel Hall Young (September 12, 1847–1927), more commonly known as S. Hall Young, was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

clergyman Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

Early life and education

Born in

Butler, Pennsylvania Butler is a city and the county seat of Butler County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located north of Pittsburgh and is part of the Greater Pittsburgh region. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 13,502. History Butler was na ...

, Young's father was Reverend Loyal Young,

D.D. A Doctor of Divinity (D.D. or DDiv; la, Doctor Divinitatis) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity. In the United Kingdom, it is considered an advanced doctoral degree. At the University of Oxford, doctors of divinity are ra ...

, and his mother was Margaret Porter Young. He had 6 brothers and one sister. Young graduated from the

University of Wooster The College of Wooster is a private liberal arts college in Wooster, Ohio. Founded in 1866 by the Presbyterian Church as the University of Wooster, it has been officially non-sectarian since 1969 when ownership ties with the Presbyterian Church ...

in Ohio and the

Western Theological Seminary Western Theological Seminary (WTS) is a private seminary located in Holland, Michigan. Established in 1866, it is affiliated with the Reformed Church in America, a mainline Reformed Protestant denomination in Canada and the United States. ...

Allegheny, Pennsylvania Allegheny City was a municipality that existed in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania from 1788 until it was annexed by Pittsburgh in 1907. It was located north across the Allegheny River from downtown Pittsburgh, with its southwest border formed by ...

. He was ordained by the

Presbyterian Church Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

Career

He went to Fort Wrangel, Alaska as a missionary and explorer, organized the first Protestant Church in Alaska, held pastorates in

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

, and

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

and was later sent to the Klondike. In 1879 and again in 1880 he accompanied

John Muir John Muir ( ; April 21, 1838December 24, 1914), also known as "John of the Mountains" and "Father of the National Parks", was an influential Scottish-American naturalist, author, environmental philosopher, botanist, zoologist, glaciologist, a ...

when he discovered

Glacier Bay Glacier Bay Basin in southeastern Alaska, in the United States, encompasses the Glacier Bay and surrounding mountains and glaciers, which was first proclaimed a U.S. National Monument on February 25, 1925, and which was later, on December 2, 1980 ...

, Alaska. During a mountain climb on Mount Glenora( near

Glenora, British Columbia Glenora, also known historically as the Hudson's Bay Company's Fort Glenora and during the Cassiar Gold Rush as Glenora Landing, was an unincorporated settlement in the Stikine Country of northwestern British Columbia, Canada. It was located on ...

) near the

Stikine River The Stikine River is a major river in northern British Columbia (BC), Canada and southeastern Alaska in the United States. It drains a large, remote upland area known as the Stikine Country east of the Coast Mountains. Flowing west and south f ...

, he almost fell to his death after dislocating both arms and was only saved from a narrow ledge when John Muir pulled him to safety with his teeth. This story is detailed by John Muir and Young in multiple subsequent publications. In 1904, he established the First Presbyterian Church in the new town of

Fairbanks Fairbanks is a home rule city and the borough seat of the Fairbanks North Star Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. Fairbanks is the largest city in the Interior region of Alaska and the second largest in the state. The 2020 Census put the po ...

. He was appointed superintendent of Presbyterian missions in Alaska. He was the Special Representative of the Presbyterian National Board of Missions. While exploring Alaska with John Muir, Young undertook a census of the native people living there.

Author

In 1915 Young published ''Alaska Days with John Muir''.

Adventurer

Young was known to some as the "

Mushing Mushing is a sport or transport method powered by dogs. It includes carting, pulka, dog scootering, sled dog racing, skijoring, freighting, and weight pulling. More specifically, it implies the use of one or more dogs to pull a sled, most commonly ...

Parson." His dog was the hero of John Muir's classic children's book '' Stickeen: The Story of a Dog'' (1909), which relates the true adventures of Young, Muir and Young's dog Stickeen.

Personal life

Young was married to Frances Eddy Young and had three children with her.

Death

Young died at the age of 79 in Clarksburg, West Virginia and is buried in Syracuse, New York.

References

External links

* * * 1847 births 1927 deaths People from Butler, Pennsylvania College of Wooster alumni Pittsburgh Theological Seminary alumni American Presbyterian ministers People from Fairbanks, Alaska Christians from Alaska Religious leaders from Alaska People of pre-statehood Alaska People of the Klondike Gold Rush Presbyterianism in Alaska {{Alaska-bio-stub