The National Governors Association states that he is the only person "to have occupied the highest seat in the legislative, judicial, and executive branches of government" in Colorado.

[1] Born on February 2, 1889, in Ouray, Colorado, he was the son of John F. Knous of Pennsylvania Dutch descent.

[3] In the early 1870s, John Knous moved from Iowa to Colorado, where he worked as a wagon boss and freighter that hauled supplies for the mining industry in Leadville.

He played semi-pro baseball and entered local boxing matches, from which he earned money for college.

[2] Knous entered private practice first in Ouray from 1911 to 1916, when he had fewer clients due to an economic downturn in the mining industry.

He was a deputy district attorney for Ouray County, Colorado from 1913 to 1918, except a portion of one year from 1916 to 1917 when he wrote for legal publications in Rochester, New York.

[1][4] Under his administration, a bill was enacted to combat specific diseases and public health units were established.