Charles Denton Young (1864 - 1922)

Born 12 Mar 1864 in Mays Lick, Mason, Kentucky, United States

Husband of Ada (Mills) Young — married 18 Feb 1903 in Alameda, California, United States

Died 8 Jan 1922 at age 57 in Lagos, Nigeria

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Biography

Charles Young was awarded the Spingarn Medal for outstanding achievement by an African American.

Charles Young is Notable.

He was born during the Civil War on March 12, 1864 in Mays Lick, Kentucky to enslaved parents Gabriel Young and Armintia Bruen. ^[2] His father escaped to serve in the Union Army during the Civil War.^[1] His family moved to Ohio after the war,^[3][4][5] where he attended school. At twenty years old, Charles Young was appointed to the United States Military Academy at West Point. After graduation he served five years in the western U.S. with the 9th and 10th Cavalry Regiments, then became a professor at Wilberforce University in Ohio, teaching military science and the classical languages. He returned to active military service as a major in the 10th Cavalry of Buffalo Soldiers during the Spanish-American War, and was in command of the 10th Cavalry when they charged up San Juan Hill. In 1903, he was appointed superintendent of the Sequoia and General Grant National Parks in California, and was the first African American to hold the post of National Park Superintendent.^[6]

In California, Charles met and married Ada Mills on 18 February 1903 in Alameda County, California.^[7] They had two children, Charles Noel “Ton Ton” Young (1906-1967) and Marie Aurelia “Kik Kik” Young Ware (1909-1970).^[8][9]

In 1916 he and his 10th Cavalry Regiment were assigned to the Pancho Villa Expedition in New Mexico. After later being sidelined with a medical condition, he was returned to active duty during WWI in 1918 and promoted to colonel. He was later appointed United States military attaché to Liberia, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic.^[10]

He died in Lagos, Nigeria on January 8, 1922, and is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.^[11]

The home he bought in Wilberforce, Ohio in 1907, which he called "Youngsholm," was built in 1832 and had been a station of the Underground Railroad. It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1974 to commemorate his life, and is administered by the National Park Service. It is located in Wilberforce, Ohio.^[12] In 2011 the Ohio Historical Society sponsored the Charles Young Historic Marker there, and in 2013 President Obama designated the house a national monument, the Charles Young Buffalo Soldiers National Monument, to commemorate his life and the lives and service of the Buffalo Soldiers.^[10]

Commands held

• 9th Ohio Volunteer Infantry Regiment
• 2nd Squadron, 10th Cavalry Regiment
• Fort Huachuca
• Battles/wars
• Indian Wars
• Spanish–American War
• Philippine–American War
• Pancho Villa Expedition
• World War I

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1} Wikipedia contributors, "Charles Young (United States Army officer)," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Charles_Young_(United_States_Army_officer)&oldid=1090758548 (accessed June 16, 2022).
2. ↑ 1919 Passport Application: "U.S., Passport Applications, 1795-1925"
   National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); Washington D.C.; NARA Series: Special Diplomatic Passport Applications, 1916-1925; Volume #: Volume 07
   Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 1174 #1902204 (accessed 13 October 2023)
   Name: Chas Young; Gender: Male; Age: 54; Birth Date: 12 Mar 1865; Birth Place: Helasia Kentucky; Residence Place: Wilberforce Ohio; Passport Issue Date: 6 Dec 1919; Father: Gobriel Young; Has Photo: Yes.
3. ↑ "United States Census, 1870", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M6KC-S6H : 29 May 2021), Charles Young in entry for Gabriel Young, 1870, Huntington Township, Brown, Ohio, United States.
4. ↑ "United States Census, 1880," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MZ16-K9N : 14 January 2022), Charles Young in household of Gabriel Young, Ripley, Union Township, Brown, Ohio, United States; citing enumeration district, sheet, NARA microfilm publication T9 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), FHL microfilm.
5. ↑ "United States Census, 1900", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MM83-JC7 : 13 January 2022), Charles Young, 1900.
6. ↑ Gerry Butler, "Charles Young (1864-1922," BlackPast.org website, 12 Feb 2007.
7. ↑ Marriage: "California, U.S., Marriage Records from Select Counties, 1850-1941"
   Original data: Marriage records, select counties and years. California State Archives, Sacramento, California
   Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 8797 #25218 (accessed 13 October 2023)
   Charles Young marriage to Ada Mills on 18 Feb 1903 in Alameda, California, USA.
8. ↑ 1910 Census: "1910 United States Federal Census"
   Year: 1910; Census Place: Fort D A Russell, Laramie, Wyoming; Roll: T624_1746; Page: 6a; Enumeration District: 0145; FHL microfilm: 1375759
   Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 7884 #31304730 (accessed 13 October 2023)
   Charles Young (46), married, Officer, head of household in Fort D A Russell, Laramie, Wyoming, USA. Born in Kentucky.
9. ↑ "United States Census, 1910," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MPJK-Y9M : accessed 1 February 2022), Charles Young, Fort D A Russell, Laramie, Wyoming, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) ED 145, sheet 6A, family 80, NARA microfilm publication T624 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1982), roll 1746; FHL microfilm 1,375,759.
10. ↑ ^{10.0 10.1} National Park Service, Charles Young Buffalo Soldiers National Monument
11. ↑ Memorial: Find a Grave (has image)
    Find A Grave: Memorial #19550
    Memorial page for BG Charles Young Famous memorial (12 Mar 1864-8 Jan 1922), citing Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Arlington County, Virginia, USA (plot: Section 3, Lot 1730); Maintained by Find a Grave.
12. ↑ National Park Service, A Triumph of Tragedy: The Life of Charles Young. (2014) The official introductory film of Charles Young Buffalo Soldiers National Monument. https://www.nps.gov/thingstodo/chyoparkfilm.htm : accessed 22 April 2024

See also:

• Buffalo Soldiers Free Space Page
• African American Heroes of the Great Outdoors
• https://valoroustv.com/video/a-triumph-of-tragedy-the-life-of-charles-young/
• Historical Register and Dictionary of the United States Army, 1789-1903. Francis B. Heitman. Vol. 1. pg. 1066
• Official Register of Commissioned Officers of the United States Army. December 1, 1918. pg. 1009.
• More details from National Parks Service https://www.nps.gov/chyo/learn/historyculture/charles-young.htm including photos
• "Charles Young". The Crisis. The Crisis Publishing Company, Inc.: 104 1 July 1923.
• Wikidata: Item Q5523083, en:Wikipedia