William Russell

William Hepburn Russell

• Born May 17, 1857 in Hannibal, MO USA
• Died November 21, 1911 in Manhattan, NY USA

Biographical Information

William Russell was the owner of the Boston Braves for a short time, when they were often known as the Boston Rustlers, after a derivation from his last name.

He was born and grew up in Hannibal, MO. He became a journalist for local papers before being admitted to the Missouri state bar. He served as the city attorney for his hometown, then moved to Indiana where he became an attorney for a large railroad. He eventually moved to New York, NY where he became involved in local politics. He was named an elector for the Democratic Party in the 1892 presidential election, and was affiliated with Tammany Hall, the political machine which controlled the Big Apple's Democratic Party. He left Tammany Hall in 1897 to work for an opposition candidate for the position of Mayor, George B. McLellan Jr., then later returned. As an attorney, he was co-publisher in 1903 of a compendium of Supreme Court decisions that served as a seminal work for legal scholars.

On December 17, 1910, he purchased a controlling interest in the Boston National League baseball team from John P. Harris, who was suffering from ill health. L. Coues Page was his main partner in the purchase. He moved to Boston, MA and took an active interest in running the team, being named team President, but the 1911 season was a tough one, with the team finishing last in the NL. His own health was not good, and that stressful year likely did not help things. He passed away at his home in Manhattan, NY the following November. Coues took over as president until the team's sale to James Gaffney and John Montgomery Ward.

He was likely named for businessman William Hepburn Russell who founded the Pony Express and was one of the most prominent citizens of Missouri at the time of his birth.