Colonel William Russell III (March 6, 1758 – July 3, 1825) was a soldier, pioneer, and politician from

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

and

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

. He was born in

Culpeper County, Virginia Culpeper County is a county located along the borderlands of the northern and central region of the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 52,552. Its county seat and only incorporated community is Culp ...

to William Russell and Tabitha (Adams) Russell. William Sr. was a prominent citizen of southwestern Virginia and served as a colonel in the

Continental Army The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies (the Thirteen Colonies) in the Revolutionary-era United States. It was formed by the Second Continental Congress after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War, and was establis ...

during the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

. In 1773, the elder Russell took his family, including William Jr., westward in the first attempt to establish a permanent white settlement in

. The attempt, guided by

Daniel Boone Daniel Boone (September 26, 1820) was an American pioneer and frontiersman whose exploits made him one of the first folk heroes of the United States. He became famous for his exploration and settlement of Kentucky, which was then beyond the we ...

, was abandoned after a fatal attack by American Indians. Boone's son, James Boone, and Henry Russell, a son of William Russell, were captured and tortured to death by the Native Americans. During the American Revolution, William Russell, Jr., was a captain in the Virginia militia, taking part in the

Battle of Kings Mountain The Battle of Kings Mountain was a military engagement between Patriot and Loyalist militias in South Carolina during the Southern Campaign of the American Revolutionary War, resulting in a decisive victory for the Patriots. The battle took plac ...

as an aide to Colonel William Campbell. At the war's end, he moved to Kentucky, settling in 1783 in Fayette County on land granted to his father for military service. Russell served again as a colonel of

militia in the

Northwest Indian War The Northwest Indian War (1786–1795), also known by other names, was an armed conflict for control of the Northwest Territory fought between the United States and a united group of Native American nations known today as the Northwestern ...

. During the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...

, he was colonel of the 7th Infantry Regiment, taking part in the

Siege of Fort Harrison Fort Harrison, later renamed Fort Burnham, was an important component of the Confederate defenses of Richmond during the American Civil War. Named after Lieutenant William Harrison, a Confederate engineer, it was the largest in the series of fort ...

and the

Peoria War During the War of 1812, the Illinois Territory was the scene of fighting between Native Americans and United States soldiers and settlers. The Illinois Territory at that time included the areas of modern Illinois, Wisconsin and parts of Minneso ...

. Colonel Russell led a raid in July 1, 1813 with at least 700 mounted rangers and traveled 500 miles through the Indiana territory destroying hostile Indian villages. He had located an Indian stockade fort in Miami County Indiana and he burned it to the ground. Russell and his mounted raiders destroyed 5 enemy village bases. This raid lasted for about one month. After completing the raid, Russell and his fellow mounted raiders withdrew safely back to Fort Harrison. Not one American soldier was lost in the raiding campaign. Russell was a delegate in the Virginia state House of Representatives in 1790 and 1791, and after Kentucky's statehood, he served in the lower house in 1792, from 1796 to1800, in 1802, and finally 1823.

Russell County, Kentucky Russell County is a county located in the U.S. Commonwealth of Kentucky. Its county seat is Jamestown. The county was formed on December 14, 1825, from portions of Adair, Cumberland and Wayne Counties and is named for William Russell. In ...

and Fort Russel Township, Illinois is named for him, but

Russellville, Kentucky Russellville is a home rule-class city in Logan County, Kentucky, in the United States. It is the seat of its county. The population was 6,960 at the time of the 2010 census. History Local historian Alex C. Finley has claimed the area was firs ...

and

Russell County, Virginia Russell County () is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 25,781. Its county seat is Lebanon. History On January 2, 1786, Russell County was established from a section of Washington Coun ...

were named for his father.

References

*''The Kentucky Encyclopedia''. *

External links

* 1758 births 1825 deaths House of Burgesses members Members of the Kentucky House of Representatives American people of the Northwest Indian War Virginia militiamen in the American Revolution People from Kentucky in the War of 1812 {{Virginia-politician-stub