Transcribed from A Standard History of Kansas and Kansans, written and compiled by William E. Connelley, Chicago : Lewis, 1918. 5 v. (lvi, 2731 p., [228] leaves of plates) : ill., maps (some fold.), ports. ; 27 cm.

Granville S. Hoss, Jr.

GRANVILLE S. HOSS, JR. Since his appointment to the office of postmaster of Cherryvale, in 1915, Granville S. Hoss, Jr., has been discharging the duties of his responsible position in a capable and conscientious manner that has given the people of the city no reason to complain of their mail service. Prior to assuming the duties of this office, Mr. Hoss had been connected with several business houses and had displayed ability that brought him favorably forward as made of official timber.

Mr. Hoss was born at Nevada, Missouri, December 28, 1885, and is a son of Granville S. and Julia (McBride) Hoss. The Hoss family has been in America since 1756, in which year Johannes Hoss emigrated from Germany and settled in Pennsylvania, from whence the family drifted to the West and South. Samuel B. Hoss, grandfather of Granville S., was born in 1819, in Greenville, Tennessee, and was there reared, educated and married. When still a young man he migrated to Missouri, where he taught school for some years, but finally turned his attention to farming and developed a good farm, on which he carried on operations until his retirement from active affairs. He died at Southwest City, Missouri, in 1904. Samuel B. Hoss married Almeda Snell, of the well-known family of that name in Tennessee, in which state she was born, and they became the parents of the following children: A. B., who is a banker of Southwest City, Missouri; Granville S.; Emma, who is the wife of L. O. Ellis, D. D. S., a retired dental practitioner of Kansas City, Missouri; O. H., an attorney of Nevada, Missouri; and Fannie A., the wife of Willam[sic] Arnold, a teacher of the State of Washington.

Granville S. Hoss, Sr., was born October 29, 1850, in Pettis County, Missouri, and was there reared and educated and admitted to the bar. Prior to his marriage he removed to Vernon County, in the same state, and for a number of years carried on a successful practice at Nevada, from whence, in 1897, he went to Saint Louis, and formed a law partnership with Senator Stone. This combination became one of the strong ones of the city and continued until 1905, when Mr. Hoss gave up his legal work and came to Cherryvale, where he bought the Cherryvale Telephone Company, of which he has since been owner and manager. He is a democrat in politics, and while in Vernon County, Missouri, served in the capacity of prosecuting attorney for several years. He belongs to the Masonic fraternity and to the Presbyterian Church. His home is at 426 East Main Street. Mr. Hoss married Julia McBride, who was born August 6, 1856, at Paris, Missouri, and they are the parents of four children: Granville S., Jr.; LeRoy K., who is wire chief for the Cherryvale Telephone Company; and Margaret and Julia, who reside with their parents.

Granville S. Hoss, Jr., enjoyed good educational advantages in his youth, attending the public schools of Nevada and Saint Louis, Missouri, and Smith Academy, now a part of Washington University. This latter institution he left in 1904 to become a clerk in the office of the Colonial Security Company, of Saint Louis, but in 1905 accompanied his father to Cherryvale and was made secretary of the Cherryvale Telephone Company. This office he retained until 1915, when he was appointed by President Wilson as postmaster of Cherryvale, and took charge of the duties of the office March 1st of that year. Mr. Hoss is a democrat in politics and stanchly supports the candidates of his party.

In January, 1916, Mr. Hoss was married at Columbus, Kansas, to Miss Pearl E. Bornhouser, daughter of William and Hattie Bornhouser, the latter of whom is deceased, while the former resides in Oklahoma and is a contractor and builder. Mr. and Mrs. Hoss reside in their modern home at No. 206 South Neosho Street.

Transcribed from volume 4, pages 2060-2061 of A Standard History of Kansas and Kansans, written and compiled by William E. Connelley, Secretary of the Kansas State Historical Society, Topeka. Chicago: Lewis Publishing Company, copyright 1918; originally transcribed 1998, modified 2003 by Carolyn Ward.