Harry S. Ross

Harry Spencer Ross (born November 14, 1876 in Crown Point , Indiana , † May 20, 1955 in Altadena , California ) was an American civil servant and politician ( Democratic Party ).

Career

Harry Spencer Ross, son of William Wesley Ross and Marie Louisa Miller, was born in 1876 in Crown Point, the county seat of Lake County . Nothing is known about his youth. Ross studied shorthand at Chicago Business College. He then found a job with the EJ Decker Company and worked his way up to office manager. Ross moved to the Arizona Territory . He came in 1902 with the train in Tombstone ( Cochise County on). On May 30, 1902, he became a deputy in the Cochise County's recorder bureau - a post he held for the next two years. Ross founded the Cochise Abstract Company of Tombstone in 1904 and ran the company for a year. From 1907 to 1914 Ross was employed as Chief Deputy Assessor under the assessors Charles R. Howe and EA Hughes . During this time he also served on Tombstone City Council for two years .

Ross served two two-year terms as Treasurer of Cochise County from 1915 to 1918. He then served a two-year term as State Treasurer of Arizona from 1919 to late 1920 . In 1920 he won the Democratic primary for the post of Secretary of State of Arizona. In the following years, however, the election was unsuccessfully challenged by his challenger Charles de Sales Wheeler because of an alleged error in soliciting voters in court. In this regard, Ross said the following:

“I made as clean a campaign as was ever waged in this state and would not have the nomination unless it was mine by right of votes. While I do not understand how Mr. Wheeler can hope to overcome my majority, his complaint leaves the state open to recount. "

“I ran a clean campaign, as always in this state . I wouldn't be nominated if the people didn't want me to. What I don't understand is how Mr. Wheeler can hope to overcome my lead. In his lawsuit he leaves this open. "

In the subsequent election for the post of Secretary of State of Arizona, Ross suffered a defeat to Republican Ernest R. Hall .

He then moved to California and settled in Altadena, Los Angeles County . There he worked for the Title Insurance and Trust Company of Los Angeles until his death in 1955 . He was buried in Inglewood Memorial Park Cemetery in Inglewood, Los Angeles County.

family

Ross was married twice. On June 20, 1900, he married his first wife Gertrude Mabelle Abbs. The couple had a son named Claude Spencer Ross. He was in on June 15, 1902 Chicago ( Illinois born). His first wife died on January 16, 1904 in Tombstone at the age of 25. According to the 1930 census records, Claude lived in Los Angeles with his paternal grandparents. On June 6, 1906, Ross married his second wife Maud Mary Horton, daughter of William G. and Lucy P. Horton. She is from Michigan . The couple had four children: Marie Louise Ross Marlow (* 1907), Raymond William Ross (* November 4, 1909), Mabel Lucy Ross Schildt (* April 7, 1913) and Elizabeth May Ross (* May 5, 1916).

Trivia

Maud Ross made the following statement about her husband's character to Arizona State University :

“When Mr. Ross first started collecting taxes for the county he rode horse back, carrying the money in a canvas sack tied to his saddle. Later he had a Ford car, a novelty to the country people. One day passing a little school house the teacher dismissed the pupils so they could go outside and see it. He drove back and took teacher and all for ride. Together with Mr. Howe, the assessor, they made a map of the county, making it easier to find the districts. But it was never easy collecting taxes in those early days. People didn't want to pay them any more than they do now and made a big fuss about it. He had many an argument. But he was fair and just and soon won their respect. "

“When Mr. Ross started collecting county taxes, he rode his horse back with the money in a burlap sack tied to his saddle. He later had a Ford car , a novelty for the county people. One day he drove past a small school building. The teacher just said goodbye to the students so they could go outside and see. He drove back and took the teacher for a spin. Together with assessor Mr. Howe, he made a map of the county to make it easier to find the counties. But in those early days, collecting taxes was never easy. People didn't want to pay her any more than they do today and made a big fuss about it. There has been a lot of argument. But he was decent and fair, so that he soon won their respect. "

literature

• Cochise County Legacy Project - Treasurer's Office History (1881–2016) - Harry Spencer Ross (PDF), p. 11

Web links

• Office of the Arizona State Treasurer - Arizona's 32 State Treasurers (PDF)