Sacramento County
Biographies
HENRY C.
ROSS
HENRY C. ROSS, supervisor of Sacramento. No State in the Union, indeed no country in the world, can equal California in the history of her sons, who from small beginnings have, by enterprise and good judgment, advanced to positions of eminence and affluence. A good illustration of this remark is the life of the subject of this sketch, who was born in the little village of Camden, Preble County, Ohio, December 28, 1834. When he was a child his father, Charles Ross, a native of Pennsylvania, died. His mother, Lois (Ladd) Ross, also a Pennsylvanian, afterward was again married. His opportunities for a school education were greatly limited, as he had but the winter seasons for a few years in which to attend school. With the noble pluck characteristic of the Scotch ancestry, from which he sprang, he determined to learn some useful trade with which to fight the battle of life. Accordingly, he entered as an apprentice with Wysold & Pierce, a firm of masons, served his time and became an expert bricklayer. Early in 1850 his half-brother, C. W. Pierce, had come to California, and, in connection with B. F. Alexander, contractors and builders, in the city of Sacramento. In 1852 Mr. Pierce returned to Ohio on a visit, and his account of the “golden” opportunities to be had in this locality induced Mr. Ross to accompany him back to this State. Coming by way of the Nicaragua route, they arrived here in April, 1853. Mr. Ross, being a skilled workman, readily found employment at $12 a day. But as money could be made much more rapidly in the cattle trade, Mr. Ross, in company with his half-brother, engaged in that business, buying their stock in the lower counties of the State and driving them across the country to Sacramento, to supply the demand occasioned by the mining operations upon the Sacramento River and other mining districts, whose base of supply was at this point. In this business he continued until 1859, when, having accumulated a handsome sum and become weary of the arduous duties connected with the cattle trade, he went to the Cosumnes River, in what is now Lee Township, and purchased a ranch of 600 acres; and it was during this time, October 3, 1859, that he was married to Miss Rachel A. Bailey, daughter of Joshua T. Bailey, a pioneer who crossed the plains from Wisconsin in 1849, and settled in Brighton Township, where he died. Mr. Ross has continued to live upon this ranch for nearly thirty years, peaceful, happy and prosperous. Trials come, it is true, for none escape them. His first son, Augustus, after gladdening their hearts for six brief years, died and was buried there. Four other sons and four daughters have been born in this family. On the 16th of November, 1887, their mother passed to her eternal rest, leaving a record of a well-spent life in the hearts of those who knew her. Mr. Ross has been, and is, an outspoken Democrat in his political sympathies; and the fact that his supporters in public office are also derived largely from the Republican ranks speaks volumes in his favor. His district is strongly Republican; but when in 1885 he received the nomination of his party for the responsible position of supervisor of Sacramento County, in the election that followed he was complimented with the handsome majority of 150 votes. During his term of service he was the only Democratic member of the Board. He is a member of the order of Patrons of Husbandry, and of Galt Encampment, No. 239, I. O. O. F.; and is also a member of the Caledonian Club.
Transcribed by: Jeanne Sturgis Taylor.
Davis, Hon. Win. J., An Illustrated History of
Sacramento County, California. Pages 722-723. Lewis
Publishing Company. 1890.
© 2007 Jeanne Sturgis Taylor.