August 17, 1900: Born in West Medford, Massachusetts
June 1917: Graduated from Howard High School
Autumn 1917: Enrolled at the University of Pennsylvania
1918: Co-chartered the Gamma chapter of Delta Sigma Theta
- The Gamma chapter was the sorority's third chapter, and the first to be established at a predominantly white institution.
June 1921: Graduated from the University of Pennsylvania
1924: Began teaching at Howard High School
Summer 1935: Completed the requirements for a degree in library science at Columbia University
Summer 1936: Met Jesse Owens at the Berlin Olympics
July 29, 1944: Co-wrote a newspaper article on the Port Chicago explosion
- Port Chicago was a naval facility in California which operated with segregated personnel. On July 17, 1944, there was a succession of explosions that destroyed the facility and the ships docked there. Close to two-thirds of the death toll consisted of Black sailors. Young was in California at the time, and co-wrote a newspaper article for the Baltimore Afro-American with eyewitness accounts from some of the survivors.
1947: “The Negro in Delaware: Past and Present” published in Delaware: A History of the First State
1952: Moved to Ardencroft
1955: Retired from Howard High School
1957: Appeared on television quiz show Tic Tac Dough
1962-1964: Volunteered with the Peace Corps in Jamaica
September 1963: Spoke at a Kingston march organized in solidarity with the August 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom
March 1965: Participated in Selma to Montgomery march
1971: Toured the Soviet Union
1976: Donated manuscripts, ephemera, and other items relating to Black history to Howard High School, which subsequently established the Pauline A. Young Memorabilia Room
1982: Declared a Delaware Woman of the Year by the National Association of University Women
- The NAUW is a service and educational organization with a particular focus on African American women.
1982: Inducted into the Hall of Fame of Delaware Women
- Established in 1981, the Hall of Fame of Delaware Women recognizes women in the state who have contributed greatly to their communities.
June 26, 1991: Died in Wilmington, Delaware
1996: University of Delaware Library Residency Program renamed in honor of Pauline Young
- Established in 1984, the University of Delaware Library Residency Program was the first of its kind to focus on recruiting early career librarians from underrepresented groups in order to increase their professional development and diversify the library profession.
2002: Wilmington mural depicting Pauline Young and other prominent Black Wilmington residents painted to overlook the Burton-Phelan Community Garden
