William E. Russell (politician)
William Eustis Russell | |
|---|---|
 Photo published in the 1890s | |
| 37th Governor of Massachusetts | |
| In office January 8, 1891 – January 4, 1894 | |
| Lieutenant | William H. Haile Roger Wolcott |
| Preceded by | John Q. A. Brackett |
| Succeeded by | Frederic T. Greenhalge |
| Mayor of Cambridge, Massachusetts | |
| In office 1884–1887 | |
| Preceded by | James Augustus Fox |
| Succeeded by | Henry Gilmore |
| Member of the Board of Aldermen of Cambridge, Massachusetts | |
| In office 1883–1884 | |
| Member of the Common Council of Cambridge, Massachusetts | |
| In office 1882–1882 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | January 6, 1857 Cambridge, Massachusetts |
| Died | July 16, 1896 (aged 39) Sainte-Adelaide-de-Pabos, Quebec, Canada |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Margaret Manning Swan |
| Signature |  |
William Eustis Russell (January 6, 1857 – July 16, 1896) was a lawyer and
37th governor of Massachusetts, serving from 1891 to 1894. He was the state's second youngest-ever chief executive, and was the first Democrat since the American Civil War
to serve more than one term in that office.
Educated at
Boston University Law School, Russell practiced law in the family firm. He was politically a conservative Democrat, supporting the presidential campaigns of Grover Cleveland and the gold standard for the national currency. He gave a speech in favor of the latter at the 1896 Democratic National Convention immediately prior to William Jennings Bryan's Cross of Gold speech, and refused efforts to draft him as an opponent to Bryan for the presidential nomination. About a week later, he died quite suddenly at a fishing camp in Quebec; he was 39. He was viewed by eastern Democrats as a future party leader and presidential contender.[1]
Family
William Eustis Russell was born in
small government advocate Carla A. Howell and writer Thomas E. Ricks.[6] In 1885, Russell married Margaret Manning Swan; they had three children.[7]
Education and early career
Russell attended
rifle shooting squad, where he was considered an excellent marksman.[8] He was also politically active, campaigning for Samuel J. Tilden in the 1876 presidential election.[2]
In 1879, he received his
summa cum laude from that school.[9] While studying at BU he won the Lawrence prize for the best legal essay. He was admitted to the Massachusetts bar in 1880 and began the practice of law with his father's Boston firm, Russell & Russell, which also included his brother and uncle.[10]
He entered politics in 1881, winning election to the Cambridge common council by a single vote, on a write-in "sticker campaign" started by friends without his knowledge.[7] He was elected to the board of aldermen in 1883 and 1884.[11]
Mayor of Cambridge
Russell served as
Mayor of Cambridge for four 1-year terms from 1885 to 1888,[12] being reelected with no opposition at least twice, running on non-party tickets.[13] When he took office, the city treasury was virtually empty, and it was saddled with a high tax rate. In his first year in office, Russell balanced the budget, funded the city's debt, and paid off its outstanding bills. He adopted the slogan "pay as you go" to exemplify his approach to city finances. During his tenure, he oversaw improvements in wide array of city services, include streets, sewers, fire, police, and health. Charles Eliot Norton opined that Cambridge was then the best-run city in the state.[14]
Although Russell was personally opposed to the prohibition of alcohol, the city voted in 1886 to
become dry, and he won favorable notice for enforcing the ban despite his opposition to it.[7] He received mixed reviews for labor-related actions. In 1886, he successfully settled a meatpackers' strike, but in a February 1887 strike by the local horse railway, he called out the police to support strikebreakers, and (after two instances of violence) called out the militia to maintain order until the strike was broken.[15]
While in office, Russell solicited sizable donations from philanthropist
Cambridge City Hall, a Manual Training School (now Cambridge Rindge and Latin School), and Cambridge's public library. These were the first large-scale philanthropic gifts the city had received.[17] Russell's efficient administration as mayor, particularly in the enforcement of the liquor ban, and his effective campaign speeches during the Presidential campaign of 1884 made him a prominent figure in state politics.[13]
Governor of Massachusetts
In 1886, Russell declined a party effort to recruit him has a candidate for the
Trustees of Reservations (a private charity) to preserve open spaces.[21] He decided not to run for reelection in 1893, and resumed the practice of law.[7]
Later political activity
During the
Patrick A. Collins, a former Democratic Massachusetts Congressman, agreed to make Palmer the Democratic presidential candidate and Russell, Collins' personal and political friend, the vice presidential candidate.[22] Palmer ended up rejecting the bid, and argued against it at the 1892 Democratic National Convention.[23][24] Russell received one vote for President on the first ballot.[25]
Russell was one of the most active opponents of
George Fred Williams, who had bolted to the silver side after becoming a delegate, and was a prominent state intraparty opponent of Russell.[29] Russell received two votes for President on the first ballot.[30]
Death and legacy
After the 1896 convention, Russell traveled to the
Gaspé peninsula of eastern Quebec to escape the summer heat and political pressures. He died quite unexpectedly on the night of his arrival, July 16, 1896, in his sleep, at a camp on the Little Pabos River just north of Sainte-Adelaide-de-Pabos.[31] The cause of death was ruled to be heart failure. Russell was buried at Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge; his funeral was attended by President Cleveland.[13]
In 1903, the William E. Russell School in Boston's
elementary school in the Boston Public Schools.[34]
Notes
- ^ Haynes, p. 227.
- ^ a b c Mitchell, p. 250.
- ^ Wheelwright, p. 334.
- ^ "Notable Kin". Thomas Hastings Memorial. Retrieved June 10, 2016.
- ^ Hurd, p. lxviii.
- New York Times. February 13, 1983. Retrieved December 1, 2009.
Miss Ricks, a senior at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, attended the American International School in Kabul, Afghanistan, and graduated from the University of Michigan. ... The bride-to-be is a granddaughter of the late Richard Manning Russell, Mayor of Cambridge, Mass., and a great-granddaughter of William Eustis Russell, Mayor of Cambridge and Governor of Massachusetts
- ^ a b c d e Mitchell, p. 251.
- ^ Blodgett, p. 87.
- ^ Reno, p. 34.
- ^ Mitchell, pp. 250–251.
- ^ a b c Rines, George Edwin, ed. (1920). . Encyclopedia Americana.
- ^ Gilman, p. 63.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Wilson, p. 116.
- ^ Blodgett, p. 88.
- ^ Blodgett, pp. 72–73, 90.
- ^ Blodgett, p. 89.
- ^ Gilman, pp. 82–86.
- ^ Reno, p. 35.
- ^ Blodgett, pp. 97–98.
- New International Encyclopedia(1st ed.). New York: Dodd, Mead.
- ^ "Special Places". Trustees of Reservations. Spring 2016: 4–5.
{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires|journal=(help) - New York Times. February 22, 1892. p. 1. Retrieved June 25, 2009.
- ^ "Senator Palmer goes to Chicago; he is to work for Cleveland and discourage "favorite-son" ideas" (PDF). New York Times. June 20, 1892. p. 1. Retrieved June 23, 2009.
- ^ "Guided by Principle; Gen. John M. Palmer has been a true independent" (PDF). New York Times. September 4, 1896. p. 1. Retrieved June 25, 2009.
- ^ Hensel, p. 332.
- ^ Blodgett, pp. 208–209.
- ^ Blodgett, p. 209.
- ^ Blodgett, pp. 210–212.
- ^ Blodgett, p. 213.
- ^ Bensel, p. 290.
- ^ Wheelwright, p. 337.
- ^ Sammarco, page number unknown.
- ^ "William E. Russell School (elementary)". Dorchester Atheneum. Retrieved August 12, 2016.
- ^ "Russell Elementary School". Boston Public Schools. Retrieved August 12, 2016.
References
- Bensel, Richard Franklin (2008). Passion and preferences : William Jennings Bryan and the 1896 Democratic National Convention. New York: Cambridge University Press. OCLC 173299290.
- Blodgett, Geoffrey (1966). The Gentle Reformers: Massachusetts Democrats in the Cleveland Era. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. OCLC 491058608.
- Gilman, Arthur (1896). The Cambridge of eighteen hundred and ninety-six. Cambridge, MA: Riverside Press. p. 63. OCLC 1301885.
- Haynes, Stan M (2016). President-making in the Gilded Age : the nominating conventions of 1876-1900. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Co. OCLC 927192411.
- Hensel, William Uhler (1892). Life and Public Service of Grover Cleveland. Philadelphia: Edgewood Publishing. OCLC 11196370.
- Hurd, Duane (1890). History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men. Philadelphia: J.W. Lewis & Co. OCLC 2155461.
- Mitchell, Stewart (1928). "Russell, William Eustis". Dictionary of American Biography. Vol. 16. New York: Scribners. pp. 250–251. OCLC 37255176.
- Reno, Conrad (1901). Memoirs of the Judiciary and the Bar, Volume 2. Boston: Century Memorial Publishing. OCLC 426554681.
- Sammarco, Anthony (1990s). "Russell School on Columbia Rd. named after 33-year-old governor". Dorchester Community News.
- Wheelwright, John (1908). "William Eustis Russell". Memorial Biographies of the New England Historic Genealogical Society. Boston: New England Historic Genealogical Society. OCLC 13918119.
- Wilson, Dolly Smith (1999). "Russell, William Eustis". Dictionary of American National Biography. Vol. 19. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 115–116. OCLC 39182280.
External links
