Sam Morris Russell (August 9, 1889 – October 19, 1971) was a

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

from

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

. Born on a

farm A farm (also called an agricultural holding) is an area of land that is devoted primarily to agricultural processes with the primary objective of producing food and other crops; it is the basic facility in food production. The name is used fo ...

near

Stephenville, Texas Stephenville is a city in and the county seat of Erath County, Texas, United States. It is on the North Bosque River, which forms nearby. Founded in 1854, it is home to Tarleton State University. As of the 2020 census, the city's population was ...

, Russell attended the rural schools and the John Tarleton Agricultural College,

. He taught school in

Erath County, Texas Erath County () is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. According to the United States Census bureau its population was 42,545 in 2020. The county seat is Stephenville. The county is named for George Bernard Erath, an early surveyor a ...

from 1913 to 1918. He also engaged in agricultural pursuits. During the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, he served as a private in the Forty-sixth Machine Gun Company,

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

, in 1918 and 1919. He studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1919, and commenced practice in

. He served as county attorney of

from 1919 to 1924. He served as district attorney of the Twenty-ninth Judicial District 1924–1928. He served as judge of the twenty-ninth judicial district 1928–1940. Russell was elected as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

to the Seventy-seventh and to the two succeeding Congresses (January 3, 1941 – January 3, 1947). He was not a candidate for renomination in 1946 to the Eightieth Congress. He resumed the practice of law, and served as Democratic county chairman from 1953 to 1955. He resided in

, until his death there October 19, 1971. He was interred in East Memorial Cemetery.

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External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Russell, Sam Morris 1889 births 1971 deaths People from Stephenville, Texas Tarleton State University alumni Texas lawyers Texas state court judges United States Army soldiers Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Texas 20th-century American judges 20th-century American politicians 20th-century American lawyers