C. Clifton Young

Clarence Clifton (Cliff) Young was born on Nov. 7, 1922 in Lovelock Nevada. His parents were Florence Eliza Anker Young and Clarence L. Young. Cliff graduated from Pershing County High School in 1939 and the University of Nevada in 1943. He served three and one-half years in the Infantry in World War II, including action in France, Germany, and Austria. He was discharged as a major in 1946 and graduated from Harvard Law School in 1949. He was a member of the Reno law firm of Breen, Young, Whitehead, Belding & Hardesty.

Young was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from Nevada in 1953 and served until 1956. He served in the Nevada State Senate from 1966-1980. Young was elected to the Nevada Supreme Court in November, 1984 and served as Chief Justice of the Court from 1989-1990. As of 1996 he is still a justice in the Supreme Court.

Cliff married Loretta Jane Hempfling Gibson on Dec. 25, 1952. She was born in Kansas City, Missouri on Oct. 13, 1926. She is an artist and active in many Reno club and church activities. She has a son, Mark Craig Gibson, born July 13, 1948 in Altadena, California.

Cliff and Loretta have four children:

• Diana Jane Young Monfalcone (Mrs. Clint), born Nov. 11, 1954.
• Florence LaVonne Young Duhon (Mrs. Gary), born Feb. 13, 1956.
• Clifton James Young, born Jan. 8, 1958.
• Robert Alfred Young, born June 24, 1961.

Clarence L. Young

Clarence L. Young, father of Cliff Young, was born in Lovelock, Nevada, on Aug. 17, 1886 to Stephen R. and Mary E. Wilson Young. He attended public schools in Lovelock and was an engineering student at the University of Nevada. He supervised construction of the Lovelock and Woolsey Light and Power Company plant situated on the Young Ranch. For nine years he was Superintendent of the Lovelock and Woolsey Light and Power Company until the transmission lines and distribution system were sold to the Nevada Valley Power Company, later part of Sierra Pacific Power Company.

He was a County Auditor of Pershing County and the first man elected to that office when Pershing County was created from Humboldt County in 1919. He was admitted to the Nevada State Bar in July, 1922 and in addition to practicing law, operated a general hardware store in Lovelock. He was active in the Masonic Order at both the local and state level.

C.L. Young was married to Florence Eliza Anker on Dec. 31, 1914. They had three children:

• Llewellyn Anker Young, born May 11, 1917. He was married to the former Florence Gulling. He died in [1994].
• Merle Florence Young Nesbitt (Mrs. Gary), born Nov. 24, 1920.
• Clarence Clifton Young, born Nov. 7, 1922.

C. L. Young died in Lovelock on Sept. 2, 1978.

Florence Eliza Anker Young

Florence Eliza Anker Young was born in Lovelock, Nevada, on November 3, 1890 to Peter and Julia Ann Faas Anker. She was educated in Lovelock schools and pursued musical studies in California. Clarence L. Young and Florence were married on December 31, 1914 in San Francisco and honeymooned in Hawaii (see photograph collection for their souvenir album).

Florence worked as a reporter for the Lovelock Review-Miner and the Reno newspapers. She was a member of the Lovelock United Methodist Church and was the organist for many years. Florence was active in the Ruth Chapter No. 11 of the Order of Eastern Star and was a matron and life member. She was a member of the Locelock Study Club and an avid gardener. She also managed ranching interests of both the Anker and Young families and real estate investments.

Florence Anker Young died on October 17, 1976.

Peter Anker

Peter Anker, father of Florence Anker Young, was born in bornholm, Denmark, on January 7, 1852. He immigrated to America in 1870 at age eighteen and quickly traveled to northern California where he supported himself through carpentry and farm work. He moved to Nevada on September 1, 1871 where he initially worked in Old Washoe City in the lumber industry, then as a bridge carpenter for the Virginia and Truckee Railroad.

Anker relocated to the Lovelock area when he was contracted to build a barn in Big Meadows for P.N. Marker. Peter homesteaded 160 acres and began building what was to become a large ranch.

Anker married Julia Ann Faas (born 1860) of Iowa. They had five children:

• Rose Hannah Anker Wiley (Mrs. Edgar Byron [Barney] Wiley), born December 21, 1880.
• James Phillip Anker, born October 2, 1882.
• Minnie Jacobena Anker Kennedy, born October 1, 1884.
• Chester Henry Anker, born November 19, 1887.
• Florence Eliza Anker Young, born November 3, 1890.

From 1890-1894 Anker was a Humboldt County Commissioner and also later served as Assemblyman in the 22nd Session of the Nevada Legislature. Active in the Methodist Church in Lovelock, he was one of the original trustees and helped secure a minister and church building.

For many years, until his death in 1922, Peter Anker held the position of Vice-Counsul in Nevada for Denmark.

Scope and Content

The papers of C. Clifton Young were donated to the Special Collections Deparment in 1996 by Justice Young. The collection consists of 2.25 cubic feet of material, dating from 1878-1995. There are no restrictions on access or use of the collection.

The collection consists of materials related to Justice Young's family, and in particular, his mother and father, Florence and Clarence L. Young; his maternal grandfather, Peter Anker; and Justice Young.

The papers of Clarence L. Young provide valuable insights into the history of the Lovelock area during the early years of the twentieth century. In particular, Clarence's acquisition of land and developement of the Young Ditch are documented through correspondence, deeds, and other legal documents. A series of newspaper clippings from the Lovelock Review-Miner provide information about the ditch and subsequent water development projects, as well as accounts of rancher John G. Taylor's empire building and subsequent bankruptcy.

Another valuable topic, that of the creation of Pershing County out of Humboldt County in 1919 is illuminated in court documents in which newly elected Pershing County officials (including Clarence) were sued by Humboldt County to prevent them from carrying out their duties. There is also information about the Grace Methodist Church in Lovelock - both Clarence and his wife Florence were active in that church.

The Florence Anker Young series (Series II) contains materials related to Florence and the Anker Family. Her father's land acquisitions in the 1870s are documented through legal documents such as deeds and purchase agreements. Correspondence from the oldest son of Florence (Llewellyn Anker Young) documents his family's life after World War II, prior to their move back to Lovelock. There are also letters from other relatives, including Florence's sister.

Other materials in Series II provide tantalizing glimpses into Florence's active community life - the Methodist Church and Eastern Star to name two organizations to which she belonged.

 

Series I Clarence L. Young. 1884-1948. .5 cu. ft.

This series contains materials collected or created by Clarence L. Young and his family, excluding his wife Florence and son C. Clifton Young. Included are a small amount of correspondence; financial documents related to the Young Ditch; various legal papers, including indentures for Young property, state apportionment of water rights, purchase agreements for Central Pacific Railroad land, and stock certificates; a complaint, summons, and order to show cause in the case of the County of Humboldt vs. various elected county officers of Pershing County, 1919; clippings, articles and decree related to John G. Taylor; information about the Grace Methodist Church of Lovelock; clippings, a copy of Pay Dirt - Values in the Rough by Brewster Adams; Pershing County High School yearbooks; and a scrapbook of legal notices for Pershing County.

Box 1

I/1	Correspondence. 1892-1955.
I/2	Financial documents. 1881-1895.
I/3	Legal documents. 1884-1914.
I/4	Complaint, summons, order to show cause, County of Humboldt vs W.C. Pitt, J.T. Goodin, H.J. Murrish, John A. Jurgenson, C.L. Young, and J.H. Causten. 1919. The complaint enjoins Pershing County officials from performing their duties in the new county of Pershing.
I/5	Decree to distribute estate of John G. Taylor, Mar. 1, 1943. Clippings regarding John G. Taylor, Inc.
I/6	Golden Fleece in Nevada by Clel Georgetta. Chapter on "Sheep Empires - Small and Large," "John G. Taylor." n.d.
I/7	Grace Methodist Church, Lovelock, history, 1939. Program for corner stone laying, 1st Methodist Episcopal Church, Reno, 1926.
I/8	Young-Goodin Company Store.
I/9	Clippings. [Original newspapers are filed in box 3]
I/10	Clarence L. Young politics. 1924-1938.
I/11	Brochure "Nevada: The Home of the Sane and Liberal Corporation Laws." 1935.
I/12	Brochures: "President Wilson's War Message," April 2, 1917; "Premium List, Pershing County Fair," Sept. 29-30, 1922; "Trap Shooting Guide," 1928; "Annual Report of the County Auditor of Pershing County," for the year ending 1919.
I/13	Pay Dirt - Values in the Rough by Brewster Adams. 1948.
I/14	The Prospector. Pershing County High School Yearbook. Vol. 1, 1931.
I/15	El Ranchero. Pershing County High School Yearbook. Vol. 1, 1935.
I/16	Scrapbook of clippings, mostly Pershing County legal notices. 1921-1945.

 

Series II. Florence Anker Young. 1878-1976. .75 cu. ft.

This series contains materials created or collected by Florence Anker Young. Included are correspondence, primarily from family members; a few financial documents; legal documents consisting of deeds and agreements for land acquired or leased by Peter Anker; wedding certificate and book for Florence and C.L. Young; autograph books from the childhood of Florence and Hannah Anker; clippings; cookbook of the Methodist Church women; and a scrapbook of decorative decals.

Box 1

II/1	Correspondence. 1914; 1937-1947.
II/2	Correspondence. 1948-1949.
II/3	Correspondence. 1950-1954.
II/4	Correspondence. 1955-1964.
II/5	Correspondence. 1965-1976; n.d.
II/6	Medical correspondence. 1967.
II/7	Anker legal. 1878-1926.
II/8	Cancelled checks, financial materials. 1920-1940.
II/9	"Our Wedding Book," marriage certificate, marriage announcements of Florence Anker and C.L. Young. 1914.
II/10	Eastern Star membership certificates. 1927; 1935.
II/11	Report of President of Women's Society of Christian Service (WSCS) by Florence Young. 1962.
II/12	Autograph albums: Florence Anker, 1895-1909, 1903-1911; Hannah Anker, 1891-1903.
II/13	Florence Anker's school report cards, certificate of completion, and list of pupils in the Marker School District no. 12. 1902-1908.
II/14	Anker clippings.
II/15	Lovelock Cook Book compiled by the Ladies Aid Society of the Methodist Church. n.d.
II/16	Mark Nesbitt family clippings [daughter of Clarence and Florence Young].
II/17	Misc. clippings.

Box 2

II/18	Loose materials from front of scrapbook.
II/19	Scrapbook of decorative decals. n.d.

 

Series III. C. Clifton Young. 1940-1995. .75 cu. ft.

Series III contains materials collected or created by Cliff Young, the bulk of which relates to his career in the Nevada bench and bar. There are articles and handbooks about the Nevada court system, a Washoe County Bar directory, and State Bar of Nevada convention binder. Several folders contain articles and brochures about the Sagebrush Rebellion.

Justice Young has done significant work on the family genealogy of both the Young and Anker families and the results are part of this collection. Other family materials include correspondence to and from Young and speeches he wrote as a student. Related to his speaking engagements are several books and pamphlets on speaking humor and anecdotes.

Box 2

III/1	Correspondence. 1945-1995.
III/2	Speeches written by Cliff Young for English 63 and 16A, University of Nevada. ca early 1940s.
III/3	Speech by Young to an unidentified law class. 1970s.
III/4	Waterman's autograph album. [1932] Original placed in Special Collections vault.
III/5	"Descendants of Peter Hanson Anker and Julia Ann Faas. Compiled by Cliff Young. 1978; revised 1990.
III/6	"Descendants of George Young and Emily J. Richards." Researched and prepared by Cliff Young. 1992.
III/7	"Descendants of Stephen R. Young and Mary E. Wilson." Compiled by Cliff Young. 1978; revised 1982.
III/8	Genealogical information about the Young and Anker families.
III/9	"Wise Use of Nevada Land" by Clifton Young. In Nevada Government Today, Fall 1978; "County Supremacy: Just Another Wise-Use Ruse" by Ted Williams. In Fly Rod & Keel, Mar. 1995.
III/10	Sagebrush Rebellion. Compiled by or for Senator Cliff Young.
III/11	"The Sagebrush Rebels" by William Boly. In New West, Nov. 3, 1980.
III/12	Clippings.
III/13	Simplifying the Maze: A Long Range Strategic Plan for Nevada's Court Plan. Report of the Judicial Assessment Commission. Dec. 1994.
III/14	"Governing the Courts in Nevada." Compiled by Mike Norris. n.d.
III/15	"The Nevada State Supreme Court." no author. ca 1986-1987.
III/16	Washoe County Bar Pictorial Directory. 1994.
III/17	State Bar of Nevada 1995 Annual Convention, Monterey, Calif.
III/18	Canons of Professional Ethics, also Canons of Judicial Ethics. American Bar Association, n.d.; The Chaperral Poet. April 1977.
III/19	Republican Campaign Manual. 1951.
III/20	The Encyclopedia of Patter by Robert Orben. 1946.
III/21	Anecdotes: How to Make Them in Public. Edited by Maxwell Droke. 1934; The Toastmaster's and Speaker's Handbook. Herbert V. Prochnow. 1955.
III/22	Speaking Humor for 1959. National Reference Library.
III/23	Speaking Humor for 1975. National Reference Library.
III/24	The Wild West Joke Book by Oren Arnold. 1956; Rhymes of a Lost Battalion Doughboy by Buck Private McCollum. 1921.
III/25	This Damn Tree Leaks: A Collection of War Cartoons by Sgt. Bill Mauldin. Reprinted from The Stars and Stripes Mediterranean. Italy, 1945.
III/26	Dancing Without Teacher. 1946.
III/27	Lovelock Frontier Days badges. 1972, 1973, 1975, 1976.

Manuscripts | Special Collections

Please direct questions to Jacquelyn Sundstrand
Updated October 25, 2008