Born in New York state in 1853, Noble Ross’s family moved to Beloit the following year, where his father joined the Merrill & Houston Iron Works as a pattern maker. Noble became an avid student of mathematics and joined Merrill & Houston after graduation, where he eventually became the boss erector and superintendent of the Merrill & Houston Iron Works.

In 1885 he became one of the founders of the newly organized Beloit Iron Works. As an erector he installed a number of paper machines throughout the country for the new firm and in the process became a recog-nized authority in the industry. He served as secretary-treasurer of Beloit Iron Works (1903-1916) and treasurer & vice-president (1916-1927).

He also served as president of the local YMCA uninterrupted for 29 years and was a trustee of Beloit College for many years. Noble was active at the Beloit Iron Works until his retirement in 1925 after 40 years of association with the paper industry. He continued his interest in community affairs until his death in 1940.