Hosford was born on September 6, 1842, in Mount Vernon, Georgia, which is located in Montgomery County.

In the late 1850s, Isaac Russell Hosford moved his family, including Robert Flournoy, from Georgia to Liberty County, Florida.

He was a state politician, a Judge, a soldier, a Sheriff, a tax assessor, a surveyor, a farmer, a saw mill operator, and a mail carrier.

[5] That same year the State of Florida reimbursed him for surveying and establishing the border between Liberty and Franklin Counties.

Then in the early 2000s, the Florida historic preservation society awarded a $400,000 grant that was used to restore the church.

The Wesleyan Methodist Church of Hosford is the oldest standing structure in Liberty County, Florida.

While he served in the Florida Senate, Hosford was instrumental to bringing the railroad to Liberty County.

In recognition of his work, Apalachicola Northern Railroad renamed the town of Coe's Mill to Hosford.

In 1909, Hosford served as the Chairman of the Committee on Agriculture and Forestry in the Florida Senate.