Alaska Rep. Don Young, who was the longest-serving Republican in the history of the U.S. House, has died. He was 88.
His office announced Young's death in a statement Friday night.
"It's with heavy hearts and deep sadness that we announce Congressman Don Young (R-AK), the Dean of the House and revered champion for Alaska, passed away today while traveling home to Alaska to be with the state and people that he loved. His beloved wife Anne was by his side," said the statement from Young's congressional office. 
U.S. Rep. Don Young.
A cause of death was not provided. Young's office said details about plans for a celebration of Young's life were expected in the coming days.
Born on June 9, 1933, in Meridian, Calif., Young grew up on a family farm. In 1958, he earned a bachelor's degree in teaching at Chico State College, now known as California State University, Chico. He also served in the U.S. Army, according to his official biography.
Young came to Alaska in 1959, the same year Alaska became a state, and credited Jack London's "Call of the Wild," which his father used to read to him, for drawing him north.
He settled in Fort Yukon, Alaska, a small community accessible primarily by air at the confluence of the Yukon and Porcupine rivers in the state's rugged, harsh interior. He held jobs in areas like construction, trapping and commercial fishing. He was a tug and barge operator who delivered supplies to villages along the Yukon River, and he taught fifth grade at a Bureau of Indian Affairs school, according to his biography. With Lu, he had two daughters, Joni and Dawn.
