Edmund G. Ross was born near Ashland, Ohio, on December 7, 1826, the third of fourteen children. At the age of eleven he was apprenticed to Henry C. Grey, owner of the Huron (Ohio) Commercial Advertiser, and began a lifelong involvement in newspaper publishing. In 1841 he moved to Sandusky, Ohio, to work with his brother, Sylvester, who owned the Sandusky Mirror. In 1848 Ross married Fannie Lathrop.

Ross moved to Milwaukee in 1852 where he worked on the Milwaukee Free Democrat and the Milwaukee Daily Sentinel. Incited by events in Kansas Territory, he came to Kansas with his family in 1856 under the Free State (antislavery) banner. He joined the Free State army, and changed his political party affiliation from the Democrats to Republicans, where his sympathies lay. He became involved in politics, being a delegate to the Wyandotte Constitutional Convention. He also continued to pursue interests in various Kansas newspapers, owning part of the Kansas Tribune (Topeka) from 1856 to 1858, and establishing the Kansas State Record in 1859.

During the Civil War Ross served in Company E of the 11th Kansas Cavalry. In 1866 he was appointed by the governor to fill the unexpired United States Senate term of James Lane, who had committed suicide. Ross served in the Senate until 1871. He is best remembered as the man who cast the deciding vote against the impeachment of President Andrew Johnson. Reviled by Republicans and Kansas citizens for this vote, Ross became disillusioned with Republican policies, and left the party in 1872. From 1871 to 1882 he pursued his newspaper interests in Kansas.

A sojourn to New Mexico in 1882 revitalized Ross’s health, convincing him to move to the territory permanently. In 1885 he was appointed territorial governor. He served in this position for four years. In 1889 Ross passed the New Mexico bar and spent the remainder of his life practicing law and writing. Years after the Johnson impeachment trial people began to change their minds about the significance of Ross’s actions, and tributes to his courage in the face of intense political pressure were offered. General Hugh Cameron of Lawrence visited Ross in New Mexico carrying testimonials of good will from Kansas citizens in 1907. Ross died May 9, 1907.

Edmund G Ross