ROSS BIOGRAPHIES, Henry County, Missouri ==================================================================== ROSS, Edgar A. - b: 1862 WI source: 1919 History of Henry Co MO, Uel W. Lamkin, Historical Publishing Co - page: 873 residence: Fairview Twp Edgar A. Ross - One of the neatest and best-kept farmsteads in Fairview township is that of Edgar A. Ross, which consists of 120 acres, just enough to keep one energetic farmer busily employed the year round. This farm is well improved with a good residence, and a silo to supplement the feeding of live stock in winter. Edgar A. Ross was born November 11, 1862, in Wisconsin, the son of George H. and Carolina (Wilson) Ross, the former of whom was a native of Vermont and the latter a native of Michigan. George H. Ross was the son of Arad and Hannah (Batchelor) Ross, both of whom were natives of Vermont and descended from old New England families. Mrs. Caroline (Wilson) Ross was the daughter of Solomon and Harriet (Robinson) Wilson, who lived to great ages. It is an actuality that Edgar A. Ross recalls seeing both of his grandfathers and grandmothers and his great-grandfather and his great-grandmother in one room of his father's home in Wisconsin. Few men are given to see so many generations of one family, and that family his own people. Edgar A. Ross is the oldest of nine children born to his parents as follow: Edgar A.; Albert, and Frank, deceased; David lives in Iowa; Jesse lives in Iowa; Mrs. Annie Lanning resides in Canada; Clare lives in Washington; Ernest lives in North Dakota; Mrs. Grace Brooks lives in Iowa. George H. Ross left Wisconsin in 1867 and settled in Hardin County, Iowa, where he became well to do. During the Civil War he served as volunteer in the 48th Wisconsin Infantry, for one year. He is now living comfortably in Hardin County, Iowa, after a successful career. Mrs. Caroline Ross was born in 1838 and departed this life in 1895. Longevity is one of the characteristics of the members of the Ross family, the grandfather of Edgar A. Ross having lived to attain the great age of 97 years. Edgar A. Ross was reared and educated in Wisconsin and Hardin County, Iowa. His parents were in poor circumstances and his life has been made up largely of hard work and grinding toil until of late years. When the family located in Iowa, George H. Ross had but three horses and $50 in money. He earned money enough to provide sustenance for his family by quarrying rock at 75 cents per cord and for a long time the family subsisted on corn which cost them $1.25 per bushel. In time, Mr. Ross prospered as Hardin County was developed and he became owner of 320 acres of rich Hardin County corn land valued at $250 an acre. Being the oldest of the family, Edgar A. Ross bore a great part of the burden of supporting the family during the lean years when times were hard. All of the other children of the family received a good education. When Edgar A. Ross had attained the age of twenty-one years (1883) he went to Wisconsin, there married and resided in that State until 1890. He was engaged in railroad work and held the position of section foreman and had charge of a gravel train. In 1890 he returned to Iowa and purchased a farm. On account of poor health engendered by the severe winter weather of his home county in Iowa, he sold out his Iowa farm in 1903 and came to Missouri and purchased his farm in Fairview township. Mr. Ross has never regretted the change and states that Henry County is a far healthier section in which to live and a much easier place in which to make a living and accumulate a sufficiency of this world's goods than in Iowa, where land is much higher in price and consequently harder to obtain. He is well content with his location and would not swap farms with one of his relatives in Iowa if compelled to reside there. Mr. Ross was married in 1888 to Miss Phoebe Ann Smith, who was born in Vermont, the daughter of Aaron and Amarillas (Reck) Smith. No children have been born of this marriage, but Mr. and Mrs. Ross have reared five adopted children, all of whom were orphans whom they took when young and raised to upright manhood and womanhood, namely: Grace, wife of John Robbins, Fairview township; Benjamin, operating a creamery at Lincoln, Nebraska; Miss Myrtle Speck, now in Oklahoma; and Mytle, at home. Mr. Ross is a Republican. He is affiliated with the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons and is one of the leading and substantial citizens of the Deepwater neighborhood, who is intelligent, well read and popular with all who know him. ==================================================================== ROSS, Joe A. - b: 1875 Big Creek Twp, Henry Co, MO source: 1919 History of Henry Co MO, Uel W. Lamkin, Historical Publishing Co - page: 711 residence: Big Creek Twp Joe A. Ross, a progressive farmer and leading citizen of Big Creek township, is a native son of Henry County. He was born in the township where he now resides April 28, 1875, and is a son of William H. and Eliza Jane (Norris) Ross. William H. Ross was born in Illinois in 1843, a son of Samuel and Margaret (Gray) Ross. Samuel Ross came to Henry County, Missouri, with his family and settled in Shawnee township in 1844, when William H. was about one year old. They spent the remainder of their lives in this county. They were the parents of eleven children, of whom William H. is the only one living. The others were: Freeman, Alfred, Lee, James C., Alvin, Robert, Catharine, Almeda, Sarah and Sophronia. To William H. and Eliza Jane (Norris) Ross were born the following children: Mrs. Julia Ann Rochester, Big Creek township; Joseph Adam, the subject of this sketch, and Ida Belle. The mother died in July, 1904, and the father now resides on his farm in Big Creek township. Joe A. Ross was educated in the public schools of Henry County and the Iowa Business College at Des Moines, Iowa. He then engaged in farming and for ten years followed that vocation, when he entered the employ of the Frisco Railroad Company as station agent and telegraph operator. In 1915 he returned to the home farm in Big Creek township and since that time has been engaged in general farming and stock raising. Mr. Ross was married January 14, 1904, to Miss Anna Davis, a daughter of Benjamin and Mollie Davis of Saline County, Missouri. Mrs. Ross's father died in 1913 and her mother now lives near Miami, Missouri. Mrs. Ross has one brother, John Davis, who resides in Saline County, and a sister, Cora, who resides at home. Mr. Ross is a Democrat and is a member of the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons Lodge No.343, Agricola, Missouri, and is the present master of that lodge. ==================================================================== USGENWEB NOTICE: In keeping with our policy of providing free information on the Internet, data may be used by non-commercial entities, as long as this message remains on all copied material. These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or for presentation by other persons or organizations. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material for purposes other than stated above must obtain the written consent of the file contributor. This file was contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives by the Henry County MOGenWeb http://www.rootsweb.com/~mohenry/henryco.html Contact the Henry County Coordinator for comments or corrections. ====================================================================