Merced County Biographies

JOSEPH S. PANCOAST

Transcribed by Kathy Sedler

This file is part of the California Genealogy & History Archives
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~cagha/index.htm

 
        In Merced are located some of the most energetic and enterprising young 
business men of Merced County, men who have been successful in their 
undertakings, and whose efforts through life thus far, by their own perseverance 
and activity, have brought ample returns. Among this number is Joseph S. 
Pancoast, proprietor of the Pancoast Battery Works. A native of California, he 
was born on February 19, 1897, in San Francisco. His father, Mulford Pancoast, 
was born in Virginia and came to California about thirty years ago and was 
married to Miss Rose Ingham, a native of San Francisco, Cal. The father is now 
deceased, but the mother is still living, residing in San Francisco.
        Joseph S. Pancoast completed the grammar school course and was in his 
second year in high school when his father passed away. He was then obliged to 
leave school and go to work and chose the automobile game. His first job was 
with the Howard Auto Company; then he worked as an instructor for the Studebaker 
Company for one year. He then took up the battery business. This was before 
there were battery stations, and he advanced until he was put in charge of the 
battery department of several large shops. Then he spent two years selling life 
insurance, which further equipped him for operating his own business. In 
December, 1921, he came to Merced to deliver a policy, and he was so favorably 
impressed with the possibilities of the town that he rented a small space and 
opened a battery works. In September, 1923, having bought a site, he built his 
present modern shop, where he manufactures his own batteries, and in addition, 
carries a full line of accessories for all makes of automobiles.
        The marriage of Mr. Pancoast united him with Miss Peggy Kimball, a 
native of Maine. Mr. Pancoast is a Republican in politics. For recreation, he 
enjoys motoring through the mountains.
 
History of Merced County, California � Los Angeles, Historic Record Co., 1925
page 896-897