William C. “Bill” Hogue, 94, a longtime Topeka builder and rancher, died March 7, 2025, at his home near Dover.

Hogue was a builder by trade, and a cattleman by heart. He built nearly 4,000 homes in Shawnee County, beginning in 1950. During that time, he also raised a herd of registered Angus cattle at Mission Valley Ranch, near Dover, and at the Flint Hills Division, near Alma.

Hogue was known for his practical wisdom and common sense. He was a man of few words, but when he spoke, people listened. That’s because he built up a great deal of trust over the years.

Bill Hogue was known in Topeka for his integrity

His integrity was solid, his knowledge extensive, his accomplishments many. He listened to people and worked hard to accommodate their desires in their home. He specialized in serving the first- and second-home buyer market. He often built the classic ranch-style home.

“I’ve known Bill for many years. The thing I most admired about him was his integrity,” said Ivan Weichert, former CEO of the Topeka Home Builders Association. “You could count on him. He was a good mentor and a good competitor. There was never a more efficient builder. He did not waste a thing.”

Hogue built homes in the morning and worked at the ranch in the afternoon and evening, sometimes working far into the night, a lifestyle that required old fashioned grit, toughness and patience for dealing with all kinds of challenges, including Kansas’s ever-changing weather.

Hogue was instrumental in the origination of the present day 4-H livestock sale and held an annual Angus bull sale at the Mission Valley Ranch. These events attracted hundreds of ranchers, farmers and people who shared a passion for land and animals.

Leroy Russell, retired Shawnee County Extension agent, said Hogue worked hard to clear invasive species like cedar trees, honeysuckle and locusts from his pastures.

Russell raises cattle near Hogue’s land.

“If I had a cow get through the fence, he helped get it,” Russell said. “He didn’t get mad, he was always, ‘What can I do to help.’”

Builder and rancher grew up on the land in rural Eskridge

Bill Hogue was born Feb. 5, 1931, in Eskridge, the son of Howard and Hazel Hogue. His parents divorced, and he was raised by his Eskridge grandparents, Harry and Eva Hogue, who farmed and raised cattle, hogs and chickens. Their home had no running water or electricity. They lived off the land, and young Bill rode a horse to a one-room school and was active in 4-H.

Bill Hogue’s father was a builder. After World War II, he worked two summers for his father building houses in New England. In 1950, 19-year-old Bill began working for Ralph John, his high school coach, who built homes in the summer. Hogue learned the basics of construction on the job.

He also worked with his uncle Boyd Hogue until Bill had hepatitis, which zapped his strength, forcing him to stay in bed for four or five months. That was when he got to dreaming about owning a ranch. After his health improved, he went back to work, saved his money and bought the Mission Valley Ranch and its then 325 acres in 1958 with 25 Angus cattle.

Mission Valley Ranch grew much larger in 2004 with the acquisition of another ranch near Alma. In the spring of 2004, the opportunity to purchase a 1,265-acre ranch in the heart of Wabaunsee County was a dream come true for Hogue.

Ample bluestem pasture, crop ground, springs and creeks, generally good fence and fantastic windbreak areas provided perfect conditions for the cattle. In 2005, another 200 acres of pasture was added at that location, which is all now designated as the Flint Hills Division of Mission Valley Ranch.

Hogue and his wife, Kathy, spent two years preserving the original homestead now known as Stonebridge along, with a late 1800s house they call Mission Manor.

The Flint Hills ranch has been host to many events, including painting expeditions by local artists and tours of the stone house.

Hogue's company once built 137 houses in Topeka in one year

For his first house, Hogue borrowed $1,500 from his mother-in-law and built a house near S.W. 17th and Gage in Topeka. He sold it himself, then built another one from money from that sale. Other homes quickly followed. He would meet with prospects and insist that they walk through a home he built.

Business picked up, they hired more employees and went from building 10 to 15 houses per year to 80 houses per year. His best year, they built 137 homes. He stayed active building houses into his 80s, partnering with Kathy.

The slogan for the Wm. C. Hogue Construction Inc., was, “The best thing we’ve built is trust.”

Weichert said Hogue employed skilled tradesmen who built quality but not extravagant homes.

“I’m going to miss him a lot,” Weichert said. “He loved what he did. He worked all the time. If you love it, there’s no too much.”

Some of the subdivisions that Hogue planned, developed and built over the years were Skyline Parkway, Southwest Estates, Southwest Meadows, Jefferson Square, Prairie Trace, Willowbrook and Sherwood Park. His homes often had a better than average resale value.

Hogue’s love of ranching could be seen in the way he cared for the land and pastures that were so vital to his operations.

In 2020, the Hogues won the Shawnee County Conservation District Grassland Award.

He spent his final days at the ranch overlooking his favorite hill, and died in Kathy’s arms.

Hogue leaves a lasting legacy in Kansas — with the homes he built, and the ranches he owned, and with the people he loved and helped over his long, well-lived life.