P. C. Young, the enterprising manager of the Barnes-Rochdale Cooperative Telephone Company, is one of the substantial and progressive business men of Washington county. He is a native of Hesse-Darmstadt, Germany, and was born June 21, 1844. His parents were E. Jacob and Christina Young. The father was a farmer in his native country, and in 1852 immigrated to America with his family, and settled in Genessee county, New York, where the father engaged in farming. Here P. C. attended the public schools until he was about fifteen years of age, after which he remained at home and assisted his father about the farm. He was thus engaged when the great Civil war came on, and like thousands of other young men throughout the loyal North, he responded to the call of his adopted country, and in September, 1862, enlisted in Company B, One Hundredth New York infantry, and for nearly three years carried his musket in defense of the Stars and Stripes in the Southland. He saw much hard service and participated in many of the hardest fought battles of the Civil war, and at the close of the war he was honorably discharged at Richmond, Va., in June, 1865. He then returned to his New York home, where he engaged in farming and stock raising until March, 1870, when he took Horace Greeley's advice and went west to grow up with the country. He came to Kansas and settled in Little Blue township, Washington county, where he took a homestead. Here he engaged in farming, which he followed until 1886, when he removed to Barnes, Kan., which by no means meant that he abandoned his farming operations, which he has continued to the present time, and from time to time added to his original holdings until he is quite an extensive land holder. At one time he undertook to raise fruit and planted about forty acres of orchard, but he found that climatic conditions were unfavorable and abandoned his efforts in that direction. In 1905 he became manager of the Barnes-Rochdale Coöperative Telephone Association, and at the present time is conducting the affairs of that company, in which he is an extensive stockholder. He is also interested in the Greenleaf State Bank of Greenleaf, Kan., of which he is vice-president.

Mr. Young was united in marriage December 27, 1869, to Miss Ella Ann Doane, daughter of Daniel and Phoebe Ann (Waldo) Doane, both natives of New York, where the father was a farmer and where Mrs. Young was reared and educated. Mr. Young has always been a stanch supporter of the Republican party, and has taken an active part in politics. He served one term as clerk of the district sourt,[sic] from 1896 to 1897, and has served as trustee of Barnes township, and is at present serving his fourth term as mayor of Barnes. He is a member of the Lutheran church, in which he was baptized at the age of fourteen years. He is a member of the Grand Army of the Republic, and Mrs. Young is a member of the Ladies' Auxiliary of that organization.