Born to a Scottish father and a mixed-blood Cherokee mother (the sister of future chief John Ross), he was raised in a bilingual home.

The father was swept overboard during a violent storm, and his mother died before the ship reached land.

The sister died shortly, but young John grew up in Baltimore, where he attended school and became a cabinetmaker.

[1] In the fall and winter of 1842–43, Will taught school held in a Methodist church near the present town of Hulbert, Oklahoma.

During the session, the Council established the weekly newspaper Cherokee Advocate and named Will as editor.

Immediately after war broke out between the Union and the Confederacy, many leading Cherokees wanted their tribe to remain neutral.

One faction, led by Chief John Ross, believed that the tribe would fare best by remaining loyal to the Union.

This group, known as the "Loyal Party," was composed largely of full-blood Cherokees who were not slave owners.

But when the Union abandoned its forts in Indian Territory and Confederate troops moved in, neutrality was no longer an option.

Will Ross enlisted in the Confederate Army as lieutenant colonel in the 1st Cherokee Regiment of Mounted Rifles.

The council elected Will as Principal Chief because they believed he had more experience and knowledge in the ways of government than did Downing.

There was almost no opposition to these amendments because the "Southern Cherokees", who had followed Stand Watie and Elias C. Boudinot had previously fled the nation's boundaries and had boycotted the Council meetings.

The new Secretary of the Interior, Orville H. Browning, accepted the members as legitimate delegates and held official meetings with them.

[5] Despite his capabilities as principal chief, Ross could not bridge the gap between the Loyals and the Southerners to heal the wound.

He refused to allow the southerners any political influence, and even some of his friends felt he lacked the traditional spirit of tribal harmony.

After losing the election, Ross retired to private life at Fort Gibson, where he became a merchant and practiced law.

His wife, Mary Jane lived until July 29, 1908, when she also died and was buried in Fort Gibson.