A. Ross Eckler spent most of his professional career at the Census Bureau, working his way up through the ranks to eventually become director. Born in Van Hornesville, NY, in 1901, he lived on a farm with his parents until moving away for college. He graduated from Hamilton College with an A.B. in 1922, playing on the school’s football and track teams while also achieving academically.

After his time at Hamilton, Eckler taught at the Tom School, a private boarding school in Port Deposit, MD. He then held a succession of jobs at Harvard University while earning his master’s degree and Ph.D. there in 1934. He then took a position as chief of the special inquiries division and director of research at the Works Progress Administration.

In 1939, Eckler came to the Census Bureau, taking a job as chief of the economic statistics in the Population Division. He became assistant chief of that division before becoming chief of the Special Surveys Division and chief social scientist. In 1949, he became assistant director of the Census Bureau, a position he held until 1965. That year, President Johnson appointed him director, where he remained until he retired at the end of Johnson's presidency in 1969. Eckler died in 1991 in Maryland. After he retired, Eckler participated in the Census Bureau's oral history program.